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Still rebounding from the impact of the global pandemic, the higher education sector is being challenged even further by the next wave of Artificial Intelligence (AI) technologies. These technologies have the power to generate in a matter of seconds, quality text, images, music and coding responses to questions or prompts entered into an online chat box. Currently, one of the most accessible and popular text generators is OpenAI’s ChatGPT which was released in November 2022. Early evaluation indicates that the quality of the responses exceed standard pass rates for comparable university assessments. Even if academic protocols mandate that text cited from AI sources should be acknowledged and referenced as any other source material, the speed, accessibility and high quality of the AI material justifies a rethink of the purpose of higher education and a redesign of curriculum, pedagogy and assessment. An initial suggestion being promoted in the sector is that learning outcomes and assessments should move away from a focus on content memorisation and recall, to development of higher order thinking skills such as critical analysis, evaluation, resilience, creativity, problem solving, appraising and mastery of verbal communication and computer literacy. This preliminary paper examines some of the literature to date, which discusses potential risks and threats, as well as the opportunities to enhance learning, embedded in this new wave of emerging AI technologies in higher education.

The rapid spread of the COVID-19 pandemic in the first half of 2020 disrupted and changed higher education across the world, and into the future. Campuses were shut down, almost overnight. International and State borders were closed and business models that relied heavily on high-paying international students collapsed. University leaders and academics were forced to find new ways of attracting, engaging with, and retaining students. This paper describes a project that was undertaken in Australia in 2021 which investigated the implications of, and scope for online assessment in this ‘new virtual world’ of learning and teaching in higher education. After extensive research and consultation, the project developed a Digital Assessment Framework dubbed DASH C21, which stands for Digital Assessment Stretching Horizons for the 21st Century. The Framework is based on a set of underpinning principles and values; the Inputs. The Inputs feed into four Dimensions. These Dimensions are Practices and Pedagogies, Strategies, Emerging Technologies and Stretching Horizons. The Outputs are a series of authentic, innovative, experiential and forward looking, digital assessments, reinforced by academic integrity values. This paper will be of particular interest to higher education senior managers, academics, learning and teaching specialists, staff professional developers and curriculum designers.

Before the COVID-19 outbreak, universities were already exploring the potential of online education. Colleges and universities throughout the world became more reliant on online learning management systems (LMSs) and videoconferencing tools like ‘Zoom’ and ‘Microsoft Teams’ during the 2020-2021 campus’ lockdowns. The transition from traditional face-to-face teaching to online learning presented significant difficulties for universities, particularly those that depended heavily on international students. The project reported in this paper was undertaken in Australia in 2021 at the request of a private higher education institution. A new student-centric version of the Moodle learning management system (LMS) was created to maximise the platform’s pedagogical, communicative, and informational capabilities. The purpose of this article is to demonstrate how online learning platforms that are flexible, utilise embedded interactive features and resources, and are freely available can enhance and support the delivery of quality online education. The paper discusses how well-designed learning management systems have the capacity to motivate, engage and retain students in online learning. Academics, at both the undergraduate and graduate levels, as well as those working in curriculum development and information technology at institutions of higher learning, may find this article to be of interest and value.

The development in the communication network technology has changed drastically the narration of the prolonged war in the Middle East. It has provided the militant organisations, their supporters and their enemies another platform to ignite their war on the cyberspace. Taking the rise of notorious organisations, such “The Islamic State in Iraq and Syria [or the Levant]” (ISIS or ISIL), and their online broadcasting of statements, horrified images and videos alongside a machine of supporters to recruit new fighters, this example provides an insight on the impact of social media to militant organisations. The recent fifty days of Israel war on Gaza Strip, which named by Israel “Protective Edge Operation”, emphasised the ken about the role of social media during the conflict. It has become a savvy way to win the war, because the level of success is measured by wining the hearts and minds of people, and consequently to demoralise the spirit of the enemy. This paper is an endeavour to review the Palestinian's performance on social media during the war on Gaza. It intends to show the media tactics of the Palestinian militant organisations in Gaza and Gaza’s sympathisers. In the context, the paper will show also the Israeli utilisation of social media to legalise bombing on Gaza.