Journals @ Ontario Tech
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Using Social Media for Peer Assessment in Higher Education: A Systematic Review of the Literature
No full textThe modern affordances of technology and social media networks\u27 popularity enable unique educational opportunities. In this systematic review, our objective was to outline insights regarding the current use of social media for peer assessment in higher education. Specifically, what does the current research indicate are common characteristics, benefits, and challenges, and how can they guide future research and practice? We searched the OMNI information consortium consisting of 392 databases to gain insights. From 2,450 identified articles, we included 12 consisting of 702 participants in our review. The included articles are empirical and peer-reviewed, focusing on higher education and retrieved through the OMNI information consortium. The results were synthesized through a three-step integrated approach to afford the qualitative assimilation of our findings. Facebook and YouTube were the most commonly used platforms, while educational studies used social media for peer assessment most often. The articles referenced in our review primarily used mixed methods approaches and were of medium quality. We found benefits associated with attaining learning objectives while fostering the co-creation of knowledge, self-awareness, and motivation. In contrast, educators may encounter challenges with implementing peer assessment through social media related to technology issues and student behaviours. We outline further insights into our findings and practical recommendations in our discussion
In Spite of the State: COVID, AIDS, and the Human Right to Access Health Information
No full textMisinformation about public health has rapidly increased in volume and influence since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, eroding public trust in health institutions and communications. Researchers and commentators across disciplines have written extensively about conspiracy theories and the Trump Administration’s dissemination of COVID misinformation in 2020, both of which led to increased deaths due to vaccine hesitancy and low rates of masking. This paper tackles COVID-19 misinformation in the Biden administration and its impacts on disabled people and increased mortality. I will begin with a rough timeline of the COVID-19 pandemic from February 2021 to April 2024, highlighting the key instances in which the Biden Administration and the Centers for Disease Control and Protection (CDC) undermined public health guidance. Next, using the Viral Underclass framework, the paper will examine the social and political factors that influence governmental pandemic response by comparing the HIV/AIDS epidemic and the COVID-19 pandemic. Arguing that the Biden Administration and the CDC are responsible for denying the human right to public health information and for promoting a eugenic information landscape of individualism steeped in mistrust and misinformation, this paper will explore potential pathways forward, introducing grassroots information sharing organizations that sick and disabled people organically developed throughout HIV/AIDS and COVID-19 to share accurate health information. Understanding how disabled advocates and allies have been combating governmental misinformation during the Biden administration provides a roadmap for collaboration and resistance throughout the next four years
“The Cruelty is the Point:” Disability Communities on Reddit React to Project 2025 Policies
No full textThis article explores the concerns of the disability community regarding Project 2025, a 900-page blueprint for an authoritarian far-right presidential administration, as expressed through comments on Reddit. Using qualitative content analysis of social media posts, I identify key themes in discussions among users engaging in two disability community subreddits, r/disability and r/disabled. The findings highlight concerns about potential policy implications, particularly regarding threats to healthcare access, social safety net programs, and housing, and questions about President Trump’s connection to the Project 2025 agenda. By examining online discourse, this study sheds light on the primary concerns and questions members of the disability community have about Project 2025 and its harmful potential to have a major impact on their lives
Reflections on Resistance
No full textA brief personal reflection on the nature of the present emergency and the long-haul nature of social justice movements
Formal and Informal Caregiving Utilization and Satisfaction Among Care Recipients with Paralysis
No full textThe experiences of individuals with paralysis with caregiving are understudied. Members of this community require different degrees of care and face barriers to quality caregiving. The current study explores the utilization of formal (paid professional) and informal (family) caregiving, satisfaction with caregiving, desired changes to caregiving from individuals with paralysis. Respondents utilized both types of caregiving, and users of only informal caregiving were more satisfied with their care than were those with formal only or both types of caregiving. Individuals with paralysis emphasized a need to increase the number of caregivers, caregiver wages, funding sources, and access to respite care
Assistive Technology in K-12 Schools on Prince Edward Island: : A Landscape Analysis
No full textTo understand the current state of assistive technology (AT) use in Prince Edward Island’s K–12 schools, we conducted a landscape analysis to identify key trends, opportunities, and gaps. Our research involved an online survey distributed to educators across the island, capturing their perceptions, experiences, and usage patterns of assistive technology in classroom settings. Findings suggest that while educators are committed professionals striving to support diverse learners, they face significant barriers in effectively implementing AT. These barriers include limited access to professional learning, student stigma, and challenges in maintaining and updating AT tools. Despite a shared commitment to inclusive education, many educators report feeling underprepared to integrate assistive technologies in ways that fully support student learning needs. This study underscores the urgent need for a coordinated, system-wide approach to AT implementation. This includes robust policy development, ongoing educator training, dedicated technical support, and sustainable funding models for acquiring and maintaining technology. Without these foundational supports, the potential of assistive technology to enhance educational access and outcomes for all students remains unrealized. Our findings point to clear pathways for strengthening AT use across the province, ensuring equitable learning opportunities for students with diverse needs
Crip Genealogies and Disability Citizenship in the Sinophone World: A Transnational Cultural Epistemology
No full textThis paper offers a comparative cultural and political analysis of disability terminology and the cultural narrative of citizenship across the Sinophone world, with a focus on mainland China, Taiwan, and Hong Kong. By tracing the etymological evolution and socio-political deployment of key terms such as cánji (殘疾), cánzhàng 殘障, and shēnxīn zhàng’ài 身心障礙, this study explores how disability is not merely a biomedical or legal classification, but a culturally embedded construct shaped by colonial legacies, socialist governance, and neoliberal reforms. Drawing on Alison Kafer’s political/relational model of disability and extending it through localized cultural narratives, the paper introduces the concept of Sinophone crip genealogies to theorize the dynamic between transnational and trans-regional disability citizenship beyond Western-centric frameworks. Further, it examines how state institutions, legal reforms, and cinematic representations contribute to the formation of Chinese disability citizenship, an ambiguous status that both includes and marginalizes other disabled individuals and communities. Through a transnational cultural epistemology, the study interrogates how Kafer’s political/relational model of disability contributes to the critiques of the universalizing tendencies of Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD) global disability rights frameworks
Making in the Middle Years: A Scoping Review Exploring Outcomes of Maker Activities in Educational Contexts for Students and Teachers
No full textAs generative AI reshapes the educational landscape, schools face pressing questions about how to foster more agentive, collaborative, and interdisciplinary learning. This scoping review synthesizes insights from 68 research articles exploring maker-centered projects conducted with students from grades four to eight (age 9-13) in educational contexts. Analyses synthesize key design elements that shape effective making activities for students of this age group that follow what we identify as a three as a three-phase structure of implementation: 1) inspiration and preparation, 2) implementation and creation, and 3) presentation and recontextualization. This paper also reports on the outcomes of making for both students and teachers. Our findings suggest that making, as an intervention for students, supports a range of important disciplinary, social, affective, and metacognitive outcomes. For teachers, engaging in maker-centered learning enables pedagogical decisions that move them away from traditional, teacher-centered practices and toward experimental, self-directed and collaborative pedagogies tailored to student needs. Additionally, findings of both affective and social outcomes were also reported for teachers. In an era of rapid technological change, evidence from this study suggests that making creates meaningful and impactful learning opportunities for students and teachers that can be tailored to students’ social, developmental, and cultural strengths and needs
Immersive Learning Through 360° Classroom Videos: Enhancing Teacher Education and Professional Development
No full textConventional classroom videos have long been recognized as valuable tools for teacher training, enabling educators to analyze pedagogy, classroom management, and assessment strategies. However, recent advancements in 360° video recording and virtual reality (VR) technologies present exciting opportunities to further enhance teacher preparation by providing immersive, interactive experiences of classroom lessons. Accordingly, this study explores the use of 360° classroom videos in Lesson Study to enhance teacher education through immersive technologies. A modified four-stage model was implemented: (1) a 360° video lesson was recorded; (2) participants observed the lesson using VR headsets and reflected in real-time; (3) group discussions produced annotated videos with instructional insights; and (4) educators reviewed annotations to refine teaching practices. Using qualitative methods, data were collected from 48 VR think-aloud sessions, 16 interviews, and 2 group discussions. Key findings show that participants found the immersive experience highly engaging, promoting reflection on pedagogy, classroom setup, and student behaviour. Group dialogue supported collaborative learning and consensus-building, although various technical challenges were also noted. As such, this research highlights the potential of immersive video to support critical reflection and pedagogical development, while also addressing the need for infrastructure, accessibility, and digital fluency to fully integrate these tools into teacher training programs