Mc² = E Learning Reflections

Why do students cheat?  Why does there exist a presumption that students will cheat in exams or assessments?  So many people said to me in the past year, that open, distance or online learning isn't as good as traditional face to face teaching because students can cheat so easily.  Many say this not knowing that I myself am a graduate of the Open University in the UK.  But in doing so, I can't help wondering if they would question my honesty and academic integrity if they did know.  Maybe they do question me behind  my back, but I would hope not.  But still it raises the question as to why my qualifications, achieved through distance online are perceived by some as somehow less valid.  Moreover, what does that say about the qualification of the generation of students living through this pandemic? I realise that many institutions have undergone a massive overhaul of systems and infrastructure to allow students to continue to access some form of edu...

This isn't one of my usual academic blog posts.  But still a lot of thought and soul searching has gone into this.   I want to share something of my experience of being a carer.  It's not a unique story I'm sure, but I think its a story that needs to be told. It's a story that started 8 years ago when my Great Aunt had a stroke.  Aunt Betty was so special to me.  It was like having a third Grandma.  Betty had herself spent so much of her life caring for people (she looked after her own mother when she had cancer and her brother who had alzheimers and downs syndrome).  So when she had a stroke, mum and I didn't think twice about stepping up to the plate and helping her.  Thats what families do. So I would go to work and Mum would look after Betty until I got home.  We worked in shifts like that for years.  But all the while we had to spend six weeks living with Betty, then Betty spent six weeks living with us....