6

Traditional Exams, 21st

Century Employability
Skills and COVID-19
Disruptive Opportunities for
Rethinking Assessment Design
in Higher Education
Andrew Kelly, Catherine Moore, and Emma Lyons

Abstract

High-stakes examinations have been a university tradition for nearly

two centuries, due at least in part to a widespread perception that
they offer validity, objectivity, and reliability in assessing learning.
The disruptive COVID-19 crisis, however, has triggered shifts in
thinking over whether university exams in an online environment
hold the same rigor and authenticity—or even whether they still
serve as a valid form of assessment for preparing students for post-
graduate employment. This chapter examines those shifts against
the backdrop of COVID-19 and examines the relationship between
exams and enhancing graduate employability through three key
skills: problem-solving, creativity, and critical thinking. Taking a
global perspective, it reviews the current literature on these topics
and considers alternative forms of assessment using practical
examples that may provide more valid methods of improving post-
graduate employability outcomes through more authentic real-
world assessments. It ultimately argues that universities must seize
the opportunities created by COVID-19 for widespread assessment
reform and use this momentum for setting tasks that more closely
reflect the types of skills needed for work in the post-pandemic world.

Keywords
assessment, COVID-19, coronavirus, employability skills, exams, graduate
employability, graduate outcomes

Introduction
Four years before the global outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic, the
World Economic Forum’s (WEF) Future of Jobs Report predicted the top ten
68  Andrew Kelly et al.
employability skills for 2020. Through surveying senior executives in the
world’s largest employers, the report concluded that the top three desirable
workplace skills at the start of the next decade would be “complex problem-
solving, “critical thinking,” and “creativity.” “Emotional intelligence”
and “cognitive flexibility” also featured 7th and 10th respectively on the
2020 list; both of which were not even listed as top priority skills in 2015
(World Economic Forum, 2016). While those surveyed certainly could not
have predicted a pandemic such as COVID-19 would occur in 2020 and
the significant disruption it would have on the global workforce, it is indeed
telling that recent assessments of the key employability skills needed for a post-
coronavirus world align closely with those earlier predicted skill demands
(Bravery & Tomar, 2020; Marr, 2020). In short, the 2016 WEF predictions
were largely correct: each of these employability skills have been incredibly
important during a time of rapid change and instability worldwide.
During the global response to COVID-19, the role of universities in
preparing graduates to develop these skills has become more critical than ever
before. The 2016 WEF report had argued that educational institutions such as
universities required a “skills evolution” because many of its continued “20th
century practices” would not meet the needs of the future labor market (World
Economic Forum, 2016). One of the most common forms of these ongoing
practices are exams: an individual summative assessment that normally
occurs in an invigilated face-to-face environment. High-stakes examinations
have been a university tradition for nearly two centuries, due at least in part to
a widespread perception that they offer validity, objectivity, and reliability in
assessing learning. Yet, mandatory government social distancing requirements
brought about by COVID-19 forced universities to either shift the facilitation
of exams into an online environment or design alternative forms of assessment
altogether (Watermeyer, Crick & Knight, 2020). These revisions have raised
further questions over whether traditional university exams still serve as a valid
form of assessment for preparing students for employment after graduation
(Alexander, Cutrupi & Smout, 2019; Efu, 2019).
In the context of COVID-19 and the subsequent global demand for new
employability skills, this chapter critically analyses university exams and
their connection to post-graduate employability. Taking a global perspective,
it reviews the current literature on exams and enhancing employability of
graduates by focusing on the top three listed WEF report skills: problem-
solving, creativity and critical thinking. It also considers alternative forms of
assessment using practical examples that may provide more valid methods
of improving graduate outcomes in an increasingly competitive and digital
world. The chapter then focuses on how universities may be able to, and
indeed already have, adapted assessments to develop the key aspects of an
employability mindset that incorporates these skills. In short, this chapter
explores the possibilities arising from this surge of disruptive innovation
in higher education assessment. Through this exploration, it argues that
universities must seize the opportunities created by COVID-19 for widespread
assessment reform and use this momentum for setting tasks that more closely
reflect the types of skills needed for work in the post-pandemic world.
 Disruptive Opportunities  69
Employability in the COVID-19 World: Problem-
Solving, Creativity and Critical Thinking
The COVID-19 pandemic had an unprecedented impact on global
employment. Using a comparative population to employment ratio, there
were significantly more jobs lost worldwide in early 2020 than the 1930s Great
Depression (Coibion, Gorodnichenko & Webber, 2020). This recent job loss
also occurred twenty times faster. For instance, an April 2020 poll showed that
a third of workers in Canada and the United States reported that they had lost at
least half of their income during the peak of the crisis. Similar trends occurred
worldwide, with significant income loss reported by approximately one quarter
of polled respondents in the United Kingdom and almost half of those polled
in China (Bell & Blanchflower, 2020). Most job losses occurred in lower-skill
roles such as those found in retail, tourism, and hospitality, while industries that
were able to remain operational despite mandated government restrictions had
to change work practices significantly. School classes, business meetings, and
medical consultations all started occurring online at record rates.
By necessity, rapid response to this disruption required key employability
skills such as problem-solving, creativity and critical thinking. These skills
will be similarly crucial as the world continues to respond to the COVID-19
pandemic and its long-lasting impact on future work practices. As a result, it
follows that those who develop these skills while at university and can apply
them in practice will be best placed to find meaningful employment upon
graduation. Many factors contribute to employability, which this chapter
defines as the range of skills and personal attributes that recent graduates
need to possess in order to find meaningful employment. It includes a strong
foundation of discipline-specific knowledge and skills, and the cognitive,
interpersonal and intrapersonal skills that facilitate productive working
relationships. The categories often used to define skills for employability can
be referred to as “hard skills” (including knowledge and technical proficiency)
and “soft skills” (such as interpersonal skills and personal qualities;
Sessanga  & Mussisi, 2019). These latter traits are difficult to measure in
traditional university assessments, yet they are essential components of an
employability mindset. This mindset is also referred to in the literature as
a “professional purpose mindset,” characterized by the amalgamation of
self-awareness, career management, confidence, and flexibility (Bates et al.,
2019). It fosters adaptability in graduates to withstand the type of volatile
labor market conditions that are predicted, and that can be extrapolated to a
post-COVID-19 world.
Employers repeatedly express a preference for employees with a “can-do”
attitude (Fraser et al., 2019; Osmani et al., 2019), referring to people that are
confident and willing to respond constructively to new problems. The important
role of universities in fostering an overall mindset for employability is crucial
in framing assessment for employability. Bates et al. (2019, p. 7), for instance,
contend that due to an increasingly dynamic future job market, universities
should focus on fostering an employability mindset in students via four elements
(curiosity, action, collaboration, growth) and three domains (self and social
70  Andrew Kelly et al.
awareness, navigating the world of work, and building networks). Each of these
elements and domains have clear links to problem-solving, creativity and critical
thinking. For example, curiosity is a necessary precursor to thinking about
creative ways to solve problems. Similarly, in order to think critically about a
work-related problem, it requires an awareness of one’s own social context and
the impact of relationships that exist within professional networks.
Real-world problems such as COVID-19 are situated in an ever-changing
environment, so solving them also requires an ability to anticipate potential
difficulties and evaluate the impact of unforeseen events. Being able to work
with ambiguity and uncertainty requires cognitive flexibility and resilience,
which are both qualities highly valued by employers (Bridgstock, 2019; Seow,
Pan & Koh, 2019). Solving real-world problems also requires a combination of
critical and creative thinking, emotional intelligence, and cognitive flexibility
to generate a range of potential solutions. Future graduates’ success is heavily
pinned on the ability to use problem-based learning in collaborative scenarios
whereby “critical thinking, novel and adaptive thinking … [and] social
intelligence” combine to prepare students with transferable skills for the future
(Tuffley, 2017, p.11). In other words, addressing real-world problems requires a
willingness to engage with uncertainty and recognition that potential solutions
will never be completely correct or incorrect. Adapting to such uncertainty and
focusing on solving problems during critical moments was essential in responding
to COVID-19 effectively. Leaders within organizations that successfully
oversaw flexible changes to processes and practices based on government health
restrictions were better placed to thrive in challenging circumstances.
Creativity is another valuable employability skill. Organizations are
constantly seeking employees who display traits such as entrepreneurialism,
initiative and innovativeness in order to create new products and improve
services (Bridgstock, 2017). Employees that can demonstrate these types of
traits were especially important at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic
in early 2020, as the situation was largely unprecedented and required rapid
responses to meet government health restrictions. For future students working
in a post-COVID-19 world, this means that university learning activities
need to develop higher-order thinking skills like creativity in order to be more
competitive in the graduate labor market. Such activities teach students to
embrace a range of possibilities, to become comfortable with uncertainty,
and to remain open-minded and curious. In short, openness to questioning
and idea sharing, as well as the flexibility to err and make corrections, will
cultivate both creativity and professional resilience in students’ future working
lives (Sessanga & Mussisi, 2019). With these inclusions, students will learn to
maintain an open mind and adapt to changing workplace practices, as well
as be able to constantly analyze and reinterpret the world as the threat of
COVID-19 gradually subsides.
Reframing and opening oneself to multiple viewpoints through cognitive
flexibility not only cultivates creativity and innovation, but also allows learners
to unbed and examine their own and others’ assumptions. This ultimately
leads to another core employability skill: critical thinking. Organizations
 Disruptive Opportunities  71
seek employees that not only have interpersonal skills, but also the capacity
to analyze problems from multiple perspectives critically (Hart Research
Associates, 2015). Fields (2019) acknowledges the challenges in developing this
kind of cognition amongst students in tertiary education, yet several strong
employability traits can emerge through developing critical thinking skills.
These include effective decision-making, communication, and investigative
research skills. Moreover, the acceptance of ambiguity and a willingness
to maintain an open mind whilst critically weighing up evidence will likely
become increasingly important in order to discern credible information
from a saturation of online content (Sessanga & Mussisi, 2019). This involves
constant comparison, juxtaposition, and synthesis of incoming data (critical
appraisal) in order to reframe issues and innovate (creatively problem solve).
Therefore, the relationship between problem-solving, creativity, and critical
thinking are inherently interconnected.

COVID-19 and University Exams

When COVID-19 hit, universities were faced with the challenge of how
to move traditional on-campus individual invigilated assessments to an
online environment. Transferring exams to an online environment with
access to limitless internet resources requires a change to the invigilation
process or deployment of deterrent measures against cheating. Migration of
traditional examinations to an online environment, however, can be much
more complex and resource-intensive than often anticipated (Allan, 2020).
Students need precise communication about preparation, such as clear
instructions for accessing the exam itself and as well as technical support for
any ad-hoc issues that may present during completion (Cramp et al., 2019).
Despite these challenges, many universities still decided to move exams to an
online environment at the height of the pandemic. In a survey of 312 higher
education institutions worldwide, an Educause ‘QuickPoll’ found that 54% of
respondents were using a form of online proctoring during early to mid-2020.
It also found that another 23% of institutions were still considering using them
for end of semester exams during that same period (Grajek, 2020).
In the higher education context, responses to the pandemic were not
consistent globally. Growth rates of the COVID-19 infection were higher
in some countries than others by mid-2020, and this necessitated varied
approaches to teaching and learning practices depending on the context in
which an institution was operating. Where the risk of COVID-19 was very
low, some institutions did not need to respond significantly. In areas of high
risk, however, universities and other higher education providers undertook
rapid curriculum redesign in order to teach and assess in an entirely online
environment. In a survey of 20 countries from the Americas, Europe, the
Middle East and Asia, the move to online teaching and assessment during
the first half of 2020 occurred most commonly in developed countries such
as the United States, Germany, and Australia. However, despite these trends,
there were still significant variations in the number of COVID-19 cases
72  Andrew Kelly et al.
reported per one million population between these countries and others
(Crawford et al., 2020). This suggests that the risk of the COVID-19 infection
as well as the capacity in which an institution could deliver online teaching
both contributed to whether face-to-face exams were replaced with alternative
assessments during the initial response to the pandemic.
For some institutions, the unanticipated challenges of migrating traditional
examinations to an online environment provided an impetus for universities
to explore alternative forms of assessment. As Fuller et al. (2020) described,
the disruption caused by COVID-19 presented genuine opportunities to
explore different assessment designs that focused on higher order thinking.
For instance, an Australasian Council on Open, Distance and e-Learning
(ACODE) survey (Sankey, 2020) found that most institutions ran alternative
forms of assessment to some of their exams and chose a range of solutions to run
more formal examinations, either in a proctored or unproctored way. Some
chose to manually proctor exams using internally employed tutors working
through Zoom or similar platforms, whereas others used different measures
such as test banks and keystroke information to improve the integrity of online
tests (Clark et al., 2020). Another approach was to use alternative solutions
such as assessment deferral, submission mode changes, online presentations,
and virtual simulations. Despite these shifts occurring rapidly, alternative
assessments such as presentations and simulations offered new opportunities
for authentic work that can improve future employment prospects. Compared
to writing answers individually during a timed and invigilated exam setting,
students completed tasks that more closely resembled the type of work they
might perform in the workplace after graduation.
By transforming traditional high stakes examinations into more authentic
tasks, universities were unexpectedly able to drive learning behaviors that
enhanced employability. To be sure, good assessment tasks must have integrity
(validity and student identity verification) and authenticity (both relevant and
rigorous). However, traditional high-stakes university assessment tasks have
prioritized integrity over authenticity. In this context integrity prioritizes
student identity verification by seeking to ensure that the work on which
student achievement is judged and certified has been done by the individual
purporting to have done it. The notion that traditional examinations in timed
and invigilated settings offer the best assurance of integrity has led to a pre-
dominance of this form of assessment. This is understandable as doubts cast on
the integrity of university assessments threaten the reputation of universities
and their graduates (Slade, Rowland & McGrath, 2019). Universities tend to
pride themselves on the rigor of their assessment regimes, but authenticity in
terms of relevance of assessments to students’ current or future careers has
been a lower priority (Care & Kim, 2018).
COVID-19 ultimately disrupted this status quo of traditional university
assessment. Due to mandatory social distancing restrictions which prevented
conducting on-campus invigilated exams, the pandemic prompted a
proliferation of alternative authentic online teaching and assessment
 Disruptive Opportunities  73
practices (Crawford et al., 2020). This transformation of assessment has
required a concurrent reshaping of learning activities and may well change
the landscape of university education. Boud (2020) suggests that previous
conventional assessment practices cannot be assumed to continue to meet
the needs of the present and encourages reflection on whether current
assessments are promoting the type of learning behaviors that will support
future success for our graduates. Traditional examinations may be suited to
certifying discipline-specific knowledge, yet they are unlikely to be effective
at evaluating key employability skills such as problem-solving, creativity and
critical thinking. Even before COVID-19 hit, the question was already being
asked: does current university assessment still pass muster (McKie, 2019)?
High stakes exams predominantly test students’ ability to reproduce
knowledge in the form of discrete facts, routine computational formulae
and predetermined procedures. This is undoubtedly useful, as factual and
procedural knowledge are necessary elements in the exercise of higher order
skills. However, it is not sufficient for enhancing the capacity of graduates
to solve complex problems, develop creative solutions, and to cultivate
critical awareness around both these respective aspects. The proportionately
heavy weighting of exams toward final grades also means that preparation
for such exams becomes the default curriculum, even when other intended
learning outcomes are stated. This problem of a narrow focus on factual and
procedural knowledge is exacerbated when preparation for such exams shapes
and pervades all teaching and learning activities. This influencing effect has
been well documented as “the washback effects of high-stakes exams” (Tan,
2020). There is, indeed, a growing realization of the need to transform exams
by including elements that reflect authentic “world of work” situations in order
to ensure that assessment regimes enhance graduate employability. Online
examinations can be tested via scenario-based or open-ended questions,
simulations using discipline-specific professional software, and the use of
multimedia, thus providing authentic assessments that prepare students for
their working life.

Exam Alternatives: Practical Examples

Traditional exams in timed and invigilated settings do not appropriately reflect
the contexts that students will be performing tasks after leaving university.
A more authentic alternative to these forms of exams is to design them as
open book, in which students have either full or limited access to a range
of resources such as websites and textbooks while completing an assessment.
In this way, it more closely resembles real-world work tasks such as writing
reports. In exploring open book exams as an alternative, Teodorczuk, Fraser
and Rogers (2018) investigated the impact of medical teachers complaining
about a full curriculum. Open book exams were trialled, and it was concluded
that learners became less reliant on memorizing facts and achieved deeper
learning of higher-level outcomes. The redesign also led to tasks that were
74  Andrew Kelly et al.
more authentic to clinical practice where information is freely available
during consultations. The nature of this assessment stress was closer to the
inherent stressors that students would encounter in their future practice,
thereby making the task more useful in developing resilience that would
support students in future work.
A key challenge of simply migrating traditional face-to-face examinations
to an online open book exam, however, is the extent to which academic
integrity can be upheld. Although cheating also exists in the traditional
assessment environment, it can be amplified in the online setting when the
focus of the examination is demonstrating factual and procedural knowledge
(Akimov & Malin, 2020). However, the move to online examinations can
be used to transform examinations, testing higher-order skills via scenario-
based or open-ended questions. Alternatively, exams can be reconceptualized
as simulations that provide authentic assessment contexts whereby students
apply the learnt content knowledge to theoretical case studies in a relevant
work environment. It also offers opportunities for online oral examinations,
in which students deliver a presentation or respond with applied knowledge
to questions via videoconference or recording (Akimov & Malin, 2020). This
approach improves assessment integrity and more appropriately reflects
the type of skills graduates need to develop in the digitally competitive
employment market.
How, then, can tertiary educators ensure graduates develop the “can-do”
attitude that makes them confident and willing to deal with problems or new
tasks? At least in part, building student confidence in solving complex problems
creatively can be nurtured through setting clear expectations of assessment
tasks and providing constructive feedback. In assessment, it is common
practice to clearly define all task requirements and include clear marking
guides that identify criteria and standards of performance against which work
will be judged. Students now expect, even sometimes demand, such clarity in
all assessments. While clearly defined assessments can be a useful exercise in
applying knowledge and exercising critical and creative thinking in a study
context, they only reflect a small dimension of the challenges that graduates
will be expected to deal with once they enter the workplace (Boud et al., 2018).
There are no marking criteria when completing tasks in a workplace. At times,
even clear communication about expectations can be absent. This means that
some tertiary learning activities and corresponding assessments also need to
be designed to consider situations in which there is no obvious correct answer
or the parameters of answering a question can change over time. Traditional
exams are not well equipped to provide this sort of learning experience.
Engaging students in case studies that are real and ongoing (not resolved)
offers a unique opportunity to develop critical thinking and innovative
problem-solving skills. One practical example are dynamic case studies, in
which the context and parameters of an assessed situation can change over
time. This assessment model has been implemented with business students
 Disruptive Opportunities  75
at an Australian university. Students are assigned a high profile Australian
public company, and in groups they analyze their business, evaluate real
scenarios, and engage in robust discussions to make predictions about the
likely impact of key decisions (Moore & Chandra, 2019). As the semester
develops, the context of these decisions changes as the companies’ positions
changes, and as a result, students need to conceptualize alternative forms of
action. They also need to compare their recommendations against what the
business actually did and reflect on the accuracy of their predictions. The
course engages students in audit and risk assessment processes, and ethical
decision making through contemporary cases. Unlike traditional case studies,
students cannot “google” how the case unfolded at the time they need to
make, and advocate for, their decisions.
Problem-solving requires both critical and creative thinking. Real-world
problems are generally fuzzy and ill-defined, requiring an ability to first
clearly define the problem before attempting to address it. Another interesting
example of this type of alternative assessment approach is the International
Mathematical Modelling Challenge (IMMC). In this annual competition,
teams from around the world develop an original mathematical model that
demonstrates how stores should arrange products during a flash sale in the
most optimal way to minimize damage to merchandise. The challenge tests
students’ logical thinking and synthesis in a pressured real-world setting, as
well as their collaboration and communication skills (Russell, 2020). While
the IMMC is organized in secondary school settings, it could also be applied
in a higher education context. The global challenge requires the application of
mathematics to solve real-world situations and allows the use of freely available
material from the internet. In contrast to recalling knowledge in an exam, the
IMMC more closely resembles the types of tasks that future mathematicians,
marketers and business analysts would be completing in a workplace situation.
Similar real-life examples can be found elsewhere, such as cases in
which students solve problems in specific scientific domains that comprise
of a few interconnected and complex variables. The enormous potential of
this approach was recognized in the Programme for International Student
Assessment (PISA) in 2012 (OECD, 2014; Scherer, 2015). In this example,
students were presented with a system (i.e. the problem environment) that
simulates a specific scientific concept (such as climate control). Their first task
was to generate knowledge about this system of variables and their relations
by testing how changes in the input variables affected the system. Students
represented their mental model about these relationships in a path diagram.
Their second task was to apply this knowledge in a problem situation which
allowed for incorporating interactive, dynamic, and uncertain elements
into the problem environment, but still provided sufficient psychometric
characteristics in terms of reliability and validity (Greiff, Wüstenberg &
Funke, 2012). Consequently, students needed to adaptively respond to
dynamic changes in the problem environment and critically analyze whether
76  Andrew Kelly et al.
proposed solutions are viable. In other words, students had to prepare for
unexpected results and innovate alternative solutions as a response. This type
of assessment is very difficult to create in a traditional exam environment.

Future Possibilities
In the tertiary sector, the disruption and uncertainty brought about by
COVID-19 has offered opportunities to rethink types of assessments and
their role in developing employability skills. The restructuring of traditional
high-stakes assessment formats into more collaborative and real-life case
studies, such as the examples presented in this chapter, offers opportunities
to build professional resilience in the face of future uncertainty. They
also facilitate greater development of problem-solving, creativity and
critical thinking; all of which were top projected employability skills in the
2016 WEF Report. COVID-19 and the resulting online adaptation and
assessment reinvention at universities has inadvertently accelerated this shift
toward enhancing the profile of flexible thinking styles and the aptitude for
creative solutions.
Although COVID-19 has certainly changed life, learning, and work as
they have been collectively known, its long-term impact may be characterized
by the way it has accelerated some trends that were already underway.
This includes increasing moves toward digital business operations and the
transformation of university assessments to more authentic tasks (Grajek &
Brooks, 2020). COVID-19 has unwittingly provided a view into the potential
of online learning, teaching, and assessment to provide an employability-
focused platform for students. Not only is there more potential for linkages to
be created between assessment and work readiness in terms of the key skills
discussed in this chapter, but there is also the opportunity to better equip
students with the digital and information literacy needs of the future.
Universities now have an impetus to adopt alternative exam assessments
beyond their forced introduction due to COVID-19. Given the unpredictability
and need for adaptability during the pandemic, future employers will be
looking for graduates that can adapt, think critically about problems, and find
creative solutions. As this chapter explored, alternative assessments such as
open book tasks, simulations, collaborative problem-based tasks, and dynamic
case studies can provide more authentic ways for students to develop these
skills and find meaningful employment upon graduation. Higher education
institutions and their respective educators must seize the opportunities created
by COVID-19 for widespread assessment reform and use this momentum for
setting tasks that more closely reflect the types of skills needed for work in the
world outside of academia. These assessment alternatives should not revert
to their traditional counterparts once the world recovers from the impact of
COVID-19. Instead, they should provide the way forward for rethinking the
role of assessment in enhancing graduate employability in the post-pandemic
world.
 Disruptive Opportunities  77
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Bios
Andrew Kelly, PhD is the Manager, Learning Support, at Edith Cowan
University. Dr Kelly’s research interests include academic integrity, academic
development, and online learning. Email: [email protected]
Catherine Moore, PhD is the Division Secretary for the National Tertiary
Education Union in Western Australia. Previously Dr Moore was a Senior
Academic Developer at Edith Cowan University, specializing in assessment
and moderation. Email: [email protected]
Emma Lyons is a Senior Learning Designer at Edith Cowan University. She
previously worked in learning adviser roles, specializing in English language
teaching and development. Email: [email protected]

How to cite this chapter:

Kelly, A., Moore, C., & Lyons, E. (2022). Traditional exams, 21st-century employability skills
and COVID-19: Disruptive opportunities for rethinking assessment design in higher education.
In R. Ammigan, R. Y. Chan, & K. Bista, (eds), COVID-19 and higher education in the global context:
Exploring contemporary issues and challenges (pp. 67-79). STAR Scholars. https://starscholars.org/
product/covid-19-and-higed/
Praise for this book

This book is a must-read for all university leaders and senior managers
to enable them to get a better insight into the numerous challenges facing
academia in the new normal, where it is not only about academic excellence
but also about the human dimension through the enhanced use of technology.
—Dhanjay Jhurry, Professor and Vice-Chancellor,
University of Mauritius, Mauritius

This thought-provoking book captures contemporary changes to higher

education at the micro and macro level post-2020. Stakeholders across
the sector will benefit from reading the research-driven chapters that are
stimulating and insightful. The book interrogates and challenges ways in
which internationalization and global mobility can be re-imagined.
—Dawn Joseph, Associate Professor,
Deakin University, Australia

This book shows a more intensive and multi-facetted response by the higher
education community to the pandemic that one might have expected.
Attention is paid notably to sustain international life on campus.
—Ulrich Teichler, Professor Emeritus,
International Centre for Higher Education Research,
University of Kassel, Germany

This volume is a welcome addition to the literature on international Higher

Education produced during the COVID-19 era. With a sensitively chosen
array of topics, it shows new thinking around internationalisation, which is
encouraging for all, and is exactly what is needed.
—Amanda C. Murphy, Professor and Director,
Centre for Higher Education Internationalisation,
Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore, Italy

With the COVID-19 pandemic seeing no end in sight and its effects on
international higher education for students around the world yet unknown, the
importance of this timely book cannot be overstated. At a time when we are
literally awash in countless editorials prognosticating on possible implications
of this health catastrophe, it is refreshing to get a carefully collected series of
essays that step back, take a deep breath, and bring us back to the fundamental
questions we need to be asking at this most dangerous time for humanity.
—Bernhard Streitwieser, IEP Program
Director & Associate Professor of International
Education & International Affairs,
George Washington University, USA

This is a valuable addition to higher education for understanding the

complexities that COVID-19 introduced into the academic landscape. This
volume explores valuable topics and issues such as employability, research and
mentoring, innovative teaching and learning, and emerging opportunities
during the pandemic.
—Jane E. Gatewood, Vice Provost for Global
Engagement, University of Rochester, USA

This timely book is much needed for practitioners, scholars, and policy makers
who are grappling with the challenges created by the pandemic. The book
is comprehensive given the depth and breath of topics. The human centric
approach is refreshing.
—Fanta Aw, Vice President of Campus Life &
Inclusive Excellence, American University, USA
COVID-19 and Higher
Education in the Global Context:
Exploring Contemporary Issues
and Challenges

COVID-19 and Higher Education in the Global Context: Exploring Contemporary

Issues and Challenges addresses the lasting impact of the novel coronavirus
(COVID-19) in the higher education sector and offers insights that inform
policy and practice. Framed in a global context, this timely book captures
a wide variety of topics, including student mobility, global partnerships
and collaboration, student health and wellbeing, enrollment management,
employability, and graduate education. It is designed to serve as a resource
for scholar-practitioners, policymakers, and university administrators as they
reimagine their work of comparative and international higher education in
times of crisis. The collection of chapters assembled in this volume calls for
a critical reflection on the opportunities and challenges that have emerged
as a result of the global pandemic, and provides as a basis for how tertiary
education systems around the world can learn from past experiences and
shared viewpoints as institutions recalibrate operations, innovate programs,
and manage change on their respective campuses.

Ravichandran Ammigan, Ph.D., is the Associate Deputy Provost

for International Programs and an Assistant Professor of Education at the
University of Delaware, Delaware, USA.

Roy Y. Chan, Ph.D., is an Assistant Professor of Education and the Director

of the Doctor of Education (Ed.D.) program in Leadership and Professional
Practice in the Helen DeVos College of Education at Lee University,
Tennessee, USA.

Krishna Bista, Ed.D., is a Professor of Higher Education in the

Department of Advanced Studies, Leadership and Policy at Morgan State
University, Maryland, USA.
The STAR Scholars Network Titles

We seek to explore new ideas and best practices related to international and
comparative education from the US and around the world, and from a wide range
of academic fields, including leadership studies, technology, general education, and
area and cultural studies. STAR Scholars publishes some titles in collaboration
with Routledge, Palgrave MacMillan, Open Journals in Education, Journal of
International Students, and other university presses.  At STAR Scholars Network,
we aim to amplify the voices of underrepresented scholars, epistemologies, and
perspectives. We are committed to an inclusion of a diversity of racial, ethnic, and
cultural backgrounds and are particularly interested in proposals from scholars
who identify with countries in the Global South.
We value linguistic diversity. Although many of the volumes that we publish
are written in English, we welcome proposals in any language. If you are
proposing a book in another language besides English, please submit a version
in the proposed language and a translated version in English, so we can send
your proposal for peer review to scholars who may not speak the proposal’s
language but are able to review proposals in English. More information at
https://starscholars.org/open-access/

Recent Titles Include:

Global Higher Education During COVID-19: Policy, Society, and

Technology
Edited by Joshua S. McKeown, Krishna Bista, and Roy Y. Chan

Home and Abroad: International Student Experiences and

Graduate Employability
Edited by Xin (Skye) Zhao, Michael Kung, Ying yi Ma, and Krishna Bista

Cross-Cultural Narratives: Stories and Experiences of

International Students
Edited by Ravichandran Ammigan
COVID-19 and Higher
Education in the Global
Context
Exploring Contemporary Issues and
Challenges

Edited by
Ravichandran Ammigan,
Roy Y. Chan, and Krishna Bista
First Published 2022 Editors
Ravichandran Ammigan | Roy Y.
by
Chan | Krishna Bista
STAR Scholars
In collaboration with
Open Journals in Education and
Journal of International Students ISBN: 978-1-7364699-7-2
Category © STAR Scholars
Education/Higher Education
Series
Comparative and International Library of Congress Control
Education Number: 2021943758

Typeset in Garamond
COVID-19 and Higher Education
Series Editor in the Global Context: Exploring
Krishna Bista Contemporary Issues and Challenges
Subject: Education/Higher Education –
Project Advisor United States | International
Chris R. Glass Education | Student Mobility |
Comparative Education
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Printed in the United States of America

Facts and opinions published in this book express solely the opinions of the respective
authors. Authors are responsible for their citing of sources and the accuracy of their
references and bibliographies. The editor, series editor or the publisher cannot be held
responsible for any lacks or possible violations of third parties’ rights.
In memory of those who lost their lives during the
COVID-19 pandemic worldwide
Contents

List of Tables xiii

Acknowledgments xv
List of Editors xix
Foreword xxi
DA R L A K . D E A R D O R F F

1 The Impact of COVID-19 on Higher Education:

Challenges and Issues 1
R AV I C H A N D R A N A M M I G A N , ROY Y. C H A N , A N D K R I S H N A B I S TA

PART I
COVID-19 and Global Issues in Higher Education 9

2 The Evolution Revolution: The Application of a

Leadership Adaptation Continuum to the Future
of Global Higher Education Post COVID-19 11
A L L I S O N S I LV E U S A N D L E S L I E E K P E

3 Rethinking the Social Responsibilities of

Universities in the light of COVID-19 Pandemic 25
H Ằ NG T R Ầ N T H Ị, QU Y DI N H L E NGU Y E N, A N D LUC -DI E P T R A

4 “Internationalization at Home” in the United

States: Enhancing Admissions and Enrollment
Practices for Marginalized Students During and
After the COVID-19 Pandemic 39
R AQ U E L M U Ñ I Z A N D N ATA L I E B O RG
x Contents
5 Financial Ramifications of Coronavirus on
Division I Athletic Departments 51
M O L LY H A R RY

PART II
COVID-19 and Academic Issues in Higher
Education: Special Topics and Themes 65

6 Traditional Exams, 21st Century Employability

Skills and COVID-19: Disruptive Opportunities
for Rethinking Assessment Design in Higher
Education 67
A N D R E W K E L LY, C AT H E R I N E M O O R E , A N D E M M A LYO N S

7 From Hardships to Possibilities: Dissertation

Writing during the COVID-19 Pandemic 80
J UA N M A N U E L N I Ñ O A N D O N É S I M O M . M A RT Í N E Z I I

8 Disrupting Accommodations through Universal

Design for Learning in Higher Education 93
C A R LY D . A R M O U R

9 Reshaping the Landscape: Considering

COVID-19’s Uncertain Impacts on Canadian and
U.S. International Higher Education 107
M I C H A E L O ’ S H E A , YO U Z H A N G , A N D L E P I N G M O U

10 The Vulnerability and Opportunity of

Privatization in Higher Education during a Pandemic 123
Z I YA N B A I

PART III
COVID-19, Wellbeing and Humanity in Higher
Education: International Perspectives and Experiences 137

11 COVID-19 and Health Disparities: Opportunities

for Public Health Curriculum Enhancement 139
A N U L I N JOKU
 Contents  xi
12 Internationalizing Trauma-Informed
Perspectives to Address Student Trauma in
Post-Pandemic Higher Education 154
J O S H UA M . A N Z A L D ÚA

13 Global Collaboration for Global Solution in

Academia: Opportunities and Challenges 172
E K AT E R I N A M I N A E VA A N D G I O RG I O M A R I N O N I

14 Humanizing the Academic Advising Experience

with Technology: An Integrative Review 185
C H A R L E S L I U A N D R AV I C H A N D R A N A M M I G A N

Index 203
Tables

4.1 Examples of How to Integrate Internationalization at

Home in Practice During and After the Pandemic 46
10.1 Sample State and Institutional Profiles 126
10.2 Sample Program Profiles 127
10.3 Interview Participants by State, University, Program, and Role 128
13.1 Impact on teaching and learning by region, International
Association of Universities, 2020 176
14.1 Search Engines, Databases, Academic Articles and Books,
and Keywords Used to Synthesize Literature 188
14.2 Categorization of Reviewed Interventions involving
Technology for Academic Advising 189
Acknowledgments

We are extremely grateful to several teacher-scholars, practitioners, and

policymakers who have supported our project since the COVID-19 global
pandemic in January 2020. In particular, we are most grateful to our
colleagues including Dr. Uttam Gaulee, Dr. Chris Glass, Dr. Darla Deardorff,
Dr. Glenda Prime, Dr. Harvey Charles, Dr. Rajika Bhandari, Dr. Rosalind
Latiner Raby, Dr. Shibao Guo, Dr. Stewart E. Sutin, Dr. Harry Bhandari, Dr.
Don Jones, Dr. Sanoya Amienyi, Dr. Marvin Perry, and Dr. Eward J. Valeau
at the Society of Transnational Academic Researchers (STAR) Scholars
Network, Maryland. We also appreciate the support of colleagues whom we
worked with over the years at the Open Journals in Education, a consortium
of the professional journals and the Journal of International Students, as well as
the Comparative and International Education Society’s (CIES) Study Abroad
and International Students (SAIS) SIG, and the Association for the Study of
Higher Education (ASHE) Council on International Higher Education.
We would also like to acknowledge the help of all scholars and organizations
who were involved in this project and, more specifically, Terra Dotta, LLC,
who helped fund the publication of this book. We also acknowledge support
from the authors and reviewers that took part in the review process. Without
their support, this book would not have become a reality. At the University
of Delaware, Dr. Ammigan would like to thank his colleagues at the Center
for Global Programs & Services and the Office of the Provost for their
support. At Lee University, Dr. Chan would like to thank his colleagues and
Ed.D. students, who provided suggestions and feedback in this project. At
Morgan State University, Dr. Bista would like to thank his colleagues for
their encouragement and support including graduate students and graduate
assistants in the Department of Advanced Studies, Leadership and Policy.
Special thanks to the following reviewers who assisted us in reviewing
manuscripts received for this book. It could not be possible to finalize the
selected chapters without their evaluations and constructive feedback.
xvi Acknowledgments
List of Chapter Reviewers
Adriana Medina, University of North Carolina Charlotte, USA
Ana Amaya, Pace University, USA
Barry Fass-Holmes, University of California, San Diego, USA
Charles Brown, Purdue University, USA
Chris Glass, Boston College Center for International Higher Education,
USA
Darla K. Deardorff, Association of International Education Administrators,
USA
Emily Schell, Stanford University, USA
Hatice Altun, Pamukkale University, Turkey
Jie Li, Rutgers University, USA
Kimberly Manturuk, Duke University, USA
Krishna Bista, Morgan State University, USA
Li Wang, Institute of Education Sciences, USA
Naif Daifullah Z Alsulami, Umm Al-Qura University, Saudi Arabia
Peggy Gesing, Eastern Virginia Medical School, USA
Ravichandran Ammigan, University of Delaware, USA
Roy Y. Chan, Lee University, USA
Ryan Allen, Chapman University, USA
Shawn Conner-Rondot, Indiana University, USA
Shytance Wren, Zayed University, Dubai, United Arab Emirates
Siyin Liang, University of Regina, Canada
William Harder, Goucher College, USA

We would like to thank the following colleagues for their feedback on the early
draft of this book as well as for their endorsements:

• Amanda C. Murphy, Professor, Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore,

Italy
• Dawn Joseph, Associate Professor, Deakin University, Australia
• Dhanjay Jhurry, Professor and Vice-Chancellor, University of Mauritius,
Mauritius
• Ulrich Teichler, Professor Emeritus, University of Kassel, Germany
• Bernhard Streitwieser, IEP Program Director & Associate Professor of
International Education & International Affairs, George Washington
University, USA
• Jane E. Gatewood, Vice Provost for Global Engagement, University of
Rochester, USA
• Fanta Aw, Vice President of Campus Life & Inclusive Excellence, American
University, USA
• Uttiyo Raychaudhuri, Vice Provost for Internationalization, University
of Denver, USA
 Acknowledgments  xvii
About Terra Dotta
Terra Dotta is the trusted leader in global engagement solutions for higher
education. Over 600 universities and colleges use Terra Dotta’s global
engagement platform to facilitate cross-cultural experiences for students,
faculty and staff in more than 85 countries worldwide. The company’s
solutions help customers deliver end-to-end, accessible global engagement
experiences that meet comprehensive safety and compliance requirements –
from managing domestic and international travel to international student
programs, virtual and global experiences and beyond. Terra Dotta is based in
Chapel Hill, N.C. and can be found at http://www.terradotta.com.
Editors

Ravichandran Ammigan  is the Associate Deputy Provost for Inter­

national Programs and an Assistant Professor of Education at the
University of Delaware. With over 20 years of experience in the field of
international higher education, he has served in a number of leadership
positions in international student and scholar services, education abroad,
and admissions and recruitment. Dr. Ammigan’s current research focuses
on the international student experience at institutions of higher education
globally, with a particular emphasis on student satisfaction and support
services. He is the editor of the book Cross-Cultural Narratives: Stories and
Experiences of International Students (STAR Scholars, 2021). Originally from
the island of Mauritius, Dr. Ammigan first came to the United States as
an international student himself and stayed to work as an expatriate. He
holds a Ph.D. in Higher Education Internationalization from Università
Cattolica del Sacro Cuore, Milan; an M.A. in Communication from
Michigan State University; and a B.A. in Business from Kendall College.
Email: [email protected]
Roy Y. Chan  is an Assistant Professor of Education and the Director of
the Doctor of Education (Ed.D.) program in Leadership and Professional
Practice in the Helen DeVos College of Education at Lee University.
Previously, Dr. Chan served as the Director of TRIO Student Support
Services (SSS), where he managed a budget of $1.3 million funded by
the U.S. Department of Education. His research interest includes cross-
border and transnational higher education, study abroad, global education
policy, and educational philanthropy. Dr. Chan currently serves as Chair-
Elect of the Comparative and International Education Society (CIES)
Study Abroad and International Students (SAIS) Special Interest Group,
and previously served as an advisor to the Forum on Education Abroad’s
Data Committee. His latest books include Online Teaching and Learning in
Higher Education during COVID-19: International Perspectives and Experiences
(Routledge, 2021); The Future of Accessibility in International Higher Education
(IGI Global, 2017); and Higher Education: A Worldwide Inventory of Research
Centers, Academic Programs, Journals and Publications (Lemmens Media, 2014).
Dr. Chan holds a Ph.D. in History, Philosophy, and Policy in Education
xx Editors
from Indiana University Bloomington, an M.A. in Higher Education
Administration from Boston College, an M.Ed. in Comparative Higher
Education from The University of Hong Kong, and a B.A. from the
University of California, Irvine. Email: [email protected]
Krishna Bista is the Vice President of the STAR Scholars Network and a
Professor of Higher Education in the Department of Advanced Studies,
Leadership and Policy at Morgan State University, Maryland. Dr Bista is
the Founding Editor of Journal of International Students. His research interests
include comparative and international higher education issues, global
student mobility, and innovative technology in teaching and learning.
His recent books include Online Teaching and Learning in Higher Education
(Routledge, w/Chan and Allen), Global Perspectives on International Student
Experiences (Routledge), Higher Education in Nepal (Routledge, w/Raby and
Sharma), Rethinking Education Across Border (Springer, w/Gaulee & Sharma),
and Inequalities in Study and Student Mobility (Routledge, w/Kommers).
Dr. Bista serves on the editorial review boards for  Kappa Delta Pi Record,
Teachers College Record, Journal of Leadership and Organizational Studies, and
International Journal of Leadership in Education. Dr. Bista has organized more
than 70 professional development workshops on a variety of topics related
to college student experience, international student/faculty mobility,
internationalization and exchange programs, and cross-cultural studies;
has published 15 books, and more than 80 articles, book chapters,
and review essays. He is the founding Chair of the Comparative and
International Educational Society (CIES) Study Abroad and International
Students SIG, and the editor of the Routledge Global Student Mobility
Series. Previously, Dr. Bista served as the Director of Global Education
at the University of Louisiana at Monroe, where he was also the Chase
Endowed Professor of Education in the School of Education. He holds a
doctoral degree in Educational Leadership/Higher Education, a specialist
degree in Community College Teaching and Administration, both from
Arkansas State University, and an M.S. in Postsecondary Education/
Higher Education from Troy University, Alabama. E-mail: krishna.
[email protected]
Foreword
Darla K. Deardorff

The COVID-19 pandemic has represented a unifying challenge globally,

providing a defining era in human existence as t he pandemic u pended life
as we know it. COVID-19 and Higher Education in the Global Context: Exploring
Contemporary Issues and Challenges, edited by Ammigan, Chan, and Bista,
delves into the pandemic’s impact on higher education around the
world. Such an exploration empowers “educators, administrators,
practitioners, policy makers, and families” with ideas and guidance that not
only can be applied in the current context but also in the post-COVID future.
As the world emerges from the COVID pandemic, it is good to remember
the signs of hope that have been there all along from the small gestures of
kindness to the heroic efforts of those on the frontlines, from strangers lifting
their voices together in song across balconies as the pandemic began with the
later Jerusalema dance challenge that swept around the world, even as the
pandemic was raging. This pandemic has shown us that we are all truly
interconnected, for better or for worse. Desmond Tutu reminds us that we
are all in this together and that our humanity is bound up together. We are
members of one human family, and when some members are hurting, we all
are hurt. He goes on to say, “For us to engage in the practices that will ensure
that we all prosper, we must come to know that each of us is linked in the
chain of our common humanity.”
As we move into the light of a new day, there is radical hope in truly
embracing our shared humanity. Let’s seek to see ourselves in others. Let’s
seek to see the whole picture through discovering others’ perspectives beyond
our own. Let’s seek to see the invisible among us and to remember the power
of being seen and heard. As we do so, we can reflect on some of the following
questions:

• What do I know about my neighbors?

• Do I make an effort to learn more?
• What are others’ perspectives and can I articulate those?
• What are the connections I see in others to my own experiences?
• How much do I really listen for understanding and seek first to understand?
xxii  Darla K. Deardorff
Higher education provides opportunities for students to explore these and
other questions, as universities seek to educate global citizens. As we have
come to understand more poignantly over the last year that we are indeed
part of one global community, we need to remember that education is more
than employment or even graduating global citizens—in the end, it is about
how we come together as neighbors both locally and globally, to build a better
future together. We can make choices every day that help make the world
better for all. As Tutu noted, “When we step into our neighborhoods, we can
engage in the practices of good neighborliness or we can choose not to. The
quality of life on our planet now and in the future will be determined by
the small daily choices that we make as much as by the big decisions in the
corridors of power.” As we move forward into a post-pandemic era, we must
remember that actions matter and what we do impacts others. What daily
actions will we take to support the most vulnerable among us? To improve
the quality of life for others? How will we uphold justice and dignity for all in
the human family? In the end, how will we be good neighbors to each other?
Let us commit to taking action to address the racial injustices and inequities
faced by our neighbors. Let us commit to being a good neighbor, as we live in
authentic solidarity with each other, aspiring to be compassionate, generous,
and kind, knowing that we can find our greatest joy in showing love to all and
that in doing so, we are embracing the oneness of our humanity.

Bio
Darla K. Deardorff is the Executive Director of the Association of
International Education Administrators, a national professional organization
based in Durham, North Carolina, USA. She is also a research scholar with
the Social Science Research Institute at Duke University, where she has been
an adjunct faculty member in the Program in Education and a faculty affiliate
with International/Comparative Studies. In addition, she is an Adjunct
Professor at North Carolina State University, a Visiting Research Professor at
Nelson Mandela University in South Africa, and at Meiji University Research
Institute of International Education (RIIE) in Japan as well as visiting faculty
at Shanghai International Studies University (SISU) in China. Dr. Deardorff
has served on faculty of Harvard University’s Future of Learning Institute as
well as Harvard University’s Global Education Think Tank, in addition to
being on faculty at the Summer Institute of Intercultural Communication in
Portland, Oregon. She has also been an affiliated faculty at the University of
North Carolina—Chapel Hill, and Leeds Beckett University (formerly Leeds
Metropolitan) in the United Kingdom and taught at Thammasat University in
Bangkok, Thailand. She receives numerous invitations from around the world
(in over 30 countries including in Europe, Latin America, Africa, Australia,
and Asia) to speak on her research and work on intercultural competence
and international education assessment, and is a noted expert on these topics,
being named a Senior Fulbright Specialist (to South Africa and to Japan).
 Foreword  xxiii
Dr. Deardorff has published widely on topics in international education,
global leadership, and intercultural learning/assessment, and has published
eight books including as editor of The SAGE Handbook of Intercultural Competence
(Sage, 2009) as well as lead editor of The SAGE Handbook of International Higher
Education (Sage, 2012) with Hans de Wit, John Heyl and Tony Adams, Building
Cultural Competence (Stylus, 2012) with Kate Berardo, and co-author of Beneath the
Tip of the Iceberg: Improving English and Understanding US American Cultural Patterns
(University of Michigan Press, 2011). She is also the author of the recently
published book on Demystifying Outcomes Assessment for International Educators: A
Practical Approach (Stylus, 2015) and co-editor of Intercultural Competence in Higher
Education: International Approaches, Assessment, Application (Routledge, 2017) with
Lily Arasaratnam-Smith. Her seventh book Leading Internationalization (Stylus,
2018) is with Harvey Charles, and her most recent book is Manual on Developing
Intercultural Competencies: Story Circles (Routledge/UNESCO, 2019). E-mail:
[email protected]