Technology-Enhanced Learning and the Virtual University

Since the first works on Higher Education Administration in the 1970s no comprehensive work in terms of purpose and scope of Higher Education has been published. There have been important changes in people’s aspirations vis-à-vis higher education globally. In parallel, the higher education systems, worldwide, have been undergoing constant transformation in response to these aspirations. From governments, employers and prospective students and their parents, the stakeholders in higher education system are now extremely varied paying close attention to the various aspects of higher education - from infrastructure, on-campus safety and security to administration, faculty and curricula. The present series attempts to take into account the issues of importance to all the stakeholders. Hence the series not only pays attention to the purpose and outcomes of higher education but also the economics surrounding higher education vis a vis marketization. The nitty gritty of running and maintaining a university infrastructure, impact of globalization and internationalization on delivery and demand of higher education, the commoditization of research, and changing paradigms of teaching and learning fall within the purview of the series. The increasing competition from other entities to provide degrees, certificates or other forms of credentials makes it important to have a work that brings all of the elements together to see how they actually interact and inter-relate from a systems perspective. The present series attempts to comprehensively attend to these issues and provide a complete reference resource to all those involved and interested in setting up of a Higher Education institution and its administration.

Professor Michael Sankey is from Charles Darwin University in Australia, where he is the Director Learning Futures and Lead Education Architect. In addition to this role, Michael is President of the Australasian Council on Open, Distance and e-Learning (ACODE) and a Fellow of the Australasian Society for Computers in Learning in Tertiary Education (ASCILITE). He specialises in emerging technologies, technology enhanced learning, curriculum and ass jkessment renewal, eLearning quality and benchmarking, multimodal design, digital, visual and multiliteracies. Michael has worked in Higher Education for 30+ years, at 5 Universities and is particularly interested in how constructively aligned and aesthetically enhanced learning environments can better transmit concepts to students, particularly those from diverse backgrounds and those who study at a distance. More information at: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5516-7631

Associate Professor Henk Huijser holds a PhD in Screen and Media Studies, and has been an Academic Developer involved in Learning and Teaching in Higher Education since 2005 at the University of Southern Queensland, Bahrain Polytechnic, Bachelor Institute of Indigenous Tertiary Education, and Xi’an Jiaotong-Liverpool University (XJTLU) in Suzhou, China. Henk has been a Curriculum and Learning Designer in the Learning and Teaching Unit at Queensland University of Technology since 2017. Henk has published extensively in the field of learning and teaching in higher education, including (with Megan Kek) Problem-based Learning into the Future: Imagining an Agile PBL Ecology for Learning (2017, Springer) and as the Lead Editor of Student Support Services: Exploring Impact on Student Engagement, Experience and Learning (2022, Springer). He is an Associate Editor of the International Journal for Academic Development, the Australasian Journal of Educational Technology, and a Co-Editor of the Journal of Peer Learning. More information at: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-9699-4940

Rachel Fitzgerald (PhD, SFHEA) is Deputy Associate Dean (Academic) for the Faculty of Business, Economics and Law at the University of Queensland. Rachel has extensive experience driving future-orientated higher education.  With comprehensive expertise in online and blended learning, Rachel has achieved global recognition for her contributions to the innovation of education through digital learning and curriculum design. She has published widely on digital learning innovation and online education and is deeply immersed in research that harnesses technology for enhancing learning. More information can be found at: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-2905-6895