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Digital equity and accessibility for higher education (HE) students have become crucial since the early 21st century, especially for underserved, deprived, marginalised and oppressed students. The present study aimed mainly to reveal the barriers to digital access (BDA) faced by marginalised groups and to find effective strategies for promoting digital inclusion (DI). Another objective of the paper was to provide actionable policy insights (API) to improve DI in Pakistani universities. Participants (students from marginalised groups who face unique barriers to accessing digital education) were selected using a simple random sampling technique from the four provinces of Pakistan (Punjab, Sindh, KPK and Baluchistan). We used a cross‐sectional research design to collect quantitative data from 590 students selected from 12 universities in Pakistan using a self‐developed questionnaire via online platforms. The study's findings revealed a significant difference in digital access for marginalised groups, which contributes to educational inequalities for students in low‐income areas and remote areas facing enormous challenges. We also identified practices to improve digital accessibility, including technology‐based interventions and policy reforms to improve digital infrastructure. Based on preliminary findings, a combined effort toward digital equity can significantly improve educational outcomes for marginalised students, providing a roadmap for universities to bridge the digital divide. The present paper not only highlights the current state of digital equity and accessibility but also focuses on practical insights for policy and teachers and ensures that universities are inclusive and accessible to everyone. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: The current study explored the influence of Chat Generative Pre-Trained Transformer (ChatGPT) on the concepts, parameters, policies, and practices of creativity and plagiarism in academic and research writing. Methods: Data were collected from 10 researchers from 10 different countries (Australia, China, the UK, Brazil, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Iran, Nigeria, Trinidad and Tobago, and Turkiye) using semi-structured interviews. NVivo was employed for data analysis. Results: Based on the responses, five themes about the influence of ChatGPT on academic and research writing were generated, i.e., opportunity, human assistance, thought-provoking, time-saving, and negative attitude. Although the researchers were mostly positive about it, some feared it would degrade their writing skills and lead to plagiarism. Many of them believed that ChatGPT would redefine the concepts, parameters, and practices of creativity and plagiarism. Discussion: Creativity may no longer be restricted to the ability to write, but also to use ChatGPT or other large language models (LLMs) to write creatively. Some suggested that machine-generated text might be accepted as the new norm; however, using it without proper acknowledgment would be considered plagiarism. The researchers recommended allowing ChatGPT for academic and research writing; however, they strongly advised it to be regulated with limited use and proper acknowledgment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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Instructional practices can be strengthened when the education system allows teachers to upgrade themselves professionally, and leadership plays a key role in upgrading their professional competencies. In this regard, the current study aims to explore the role of identified leadership practices in enhancing the professional development of primary school teachers. At the same time, the moderation role of training between the association of identified leadership practices and teachers' professional development was also examined. The study followed a descriptive survey research design headed by questionnaires to collect the data, which was analysed through the different statistical tests. The findings of the study provide evidence that leadership practices contribute significantly in developing teachers' professional competencies by specifying the benefits of different identified leadership roles. Meanwhile, the study implied explicitly that training magnifies the positive effect of identified leadership practices on the professional development of teachers. The findings further suggest that school heads should perform their leadership tasks regularly and pay more focus to the training of teachers to upgrade their professional skills. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Globalization and technology are presently impacting every aspect of life, with digital technologies helping to set the trend. Human-centricity and the ethical use of technology are integral components of Society 5.0, which emphasizes quality of life, productivity, social responsibility, and sustainability. The purpose of this study was to develop a deeper understanding of how Higher Education 5.0 empowers the future workforce in the landscape of Society 5.0. A systematic literature review was conducted using 18 full-text research papers from the Scopus database. It shows that the number of studies in this area is limited. The results revealed the critical role of education in cultivating the digital skills necessary for upcoming professionals. In order to transition from higher education to the workplace, fresh graduates need academic and practical readiness to meet the demands of a future-ready workforce. The contribution of the future workforce will also be crucial in building a harmonious human-centric society that will use technology to improve the quality of life towards sustainable living as envisioned by the United Nations' SDGs. Additionally, we identify the current gaps in the research on Education 5.0 in the landscape of Society 5.0 and subsequently provide recommendations for the future. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The current study investigated the impact of perceived instructional strategies in online design studios on student engagement as a multidimensional construct. Given the rapid shift to online learning during the COVID-19 pandemic, understanding effective teaching strategies and their impacts on student engagement is crucial for enhancing overall student outcomes. The study also examined the role of learning motivation as a mediator in these relationships. A mixed-methods approach was employed, measuring a second-order construct of student engagement based on three reflective dimensions: cognitive, affective, and behavioral. Qualitative interviews with instructors revealed three main instructional strategies utilized in online design studios: learning by doing, learning with interaction, and learning from feedback. The present study analyzed self-report survey responses from 230 undergraduate architecture students across four major universities in Iran, utilizing partial least squares structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM). Based on the results, the perceived learning by doing (PLD) and learning with interaction (PLI) significantly improve student engagement. In contrast, the perceived learning from feedback (PLF) fails to influence student engagement directly. Additionally, intrinsic and extrinsic motivation mediated the impact of PLI and PLF on student engagement. These findings highlight the importance of effective instructional strategies in online design studios. Additionally, the results provide valuable insights for future pedagogical practices in online education, offering guidance for instructors aiming to enhance student outcomes in this dynamic learning environment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article explores the concept of structural injustices in school education and focuses on intergenerational repair. It highlights the intergenerational gap in knowledge, values, opinions, and experiences between different age groups and how it leads to inequalities in education. The study emphasizes the importance of addressing and managing these generational differences through educational procedures and practices. Intergenerational repair aims to promote understanding, respect, and cooperation between younger and older generations in order to create a more inclusive and fair learning environment. It suggests incorporating both generations' awareness, experiences, and values into the curriculum, fostering intergenerational discussions, and establishing mentorship programs. The article also discusses the impact of intergenerational gaps on educational achievement, student-teacher interactions, and the perpetuation of prejudices and biases. It highlights the need for equipping students with the skills to navigate and contribute to a rapidly evolving world and emphasizes the benefits of intergenerational repair in promoting critical thinking, responsibility, and continuous learning. The article concludes by discussing the structural injustices that hinder access to high-quality teaching, exposure to varied perspectives, and professional development, particularly in underprivileged communities. It highlights the demographic change and increasing age gap between teachers and students as a challenge in intergenerational interactions in the classroom. The article provides a comprehensive overview of intergenerational gaps and repairs, emphasizing the need for mutual respect, understanding, collaboration, and interdisciplinary learning to bridge the gap between generations and create a more equitable educational system. [Extracted from the article]

Mobile learning (M‐learning), ChatGPT and social media are integral to university education, improving accessibility, personalization and interactive engagement in the learning process. This paper aimed to investigate the role of M‐learning, ChatGPT and social media in university students' academic performance. It was a cross‐sectional quantitative investigation, and data were collected from 600 university students through a self‐developed questionnaire having four subscales (M‐learning, ChatGPT, social media and academic performance). Simple linear regression and process macro were deployed to test study hypotheses. The analysis revealed that M‐learning is a significant contributor to students' academic performance at the university level (β =.460, t(598) = 12.663, p <.001). Social media were found to be significantly mediating the relationship between M‐learning and academic performance with coefficient B =.267, SE =.038, t(597) = 7.08, p <.001, 95% CI [0.193, 0.341]. ChatGPT was significantly contributing to academic performance (B =.288, t(596) = 2.50, p =.013), but the interaction term had an insignificant effect on the relationship between M‐learning and academic performance (β =.292, t(596) = −0.43, p =.668). The study suggests that M‐learning can improve students' performance. The influence of social media and the non‐moderating role of ChatGPT indicate the need for strategic integration of these tools to enhance university students' outcomes. It is recommended that university students should judiciously use social media to enhance M‐learning. In contrast, universities should foster this integration to achieve educational aims and explore how AI tools like ChatGPT can be optimally deployed to improve learning. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Returned academics who have doctoral education abroad, a fast‐growing group in developing countries, are seen favorably in producing quality academic outcomes. However, academic performance and barriers are also important to learning mobility benefits and ensuring optimal outcomes motivated by the absence of research in the native context. The explanatory sequential embedded mixed‐methods study aimed to evaluate the teaching quality of returned doctorates compared with their local compatriots and explore teaching‐related challenges at public sector universities in Punjab, Pakistan. A multilevel sequential mixed‐methods sampling design was used to select 814 students and six academics from the six universities (three top and three medium‐ranked higher education institution) of central Punjab. The researchers developed two research instruments: (a) Student Evaluation of Teaching Quality Scale (SETQS) and (b) Semi‐Structured Interviews Protocol for Returnees (SSIP‐R). The psychometric properties of quantitative measure (SETQS) were ensured through factor analysis, while an expert panel review validated the qualitative measure (SSIP‐R). Inferential statistics were applied to quantitative data, while a thematic analysis technique was applied to qualitative data to find complementarity among results. The findings revealed that returnees and non‐returnees were similar in a few teaching aspects. However, returnees performed relatively better in interpersonal behavior, subject mastery, instruction, and learning resources. Teaching performance differed slightly by discipline and largely by university ranking. Further, returnees' capacity to perform was impacted by various academic challenges. Explored challenges and relevant solutions correspond to Bronfenbrenner system theory's microsystem, exosystem, and macrosystem levels. Higher education authorities and universities need to address academic challenges. In turn, this may lead to smooth, professional reintegration of the returnees into the local system, leading to enhanced teaching performance. Practitioner points: Returning academics with foreign doctoral education, a fast‐growing group in developing countries, can produce quality academic outcomes.Higher education authorities need to address the academic challenges returning foreign PhDs face.Implementing overseas mobility policies would only guarantee the intended benefits if addressing endogenous system challenges. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Creativity has long been emphasized as an essential skill identified and developed in classrooms by eminent psychologists. A high level of creativity is required to adapt to the changing world of innovation. University‐level students are privileged as they get multiple opportunities to learn creative skills. They are facilitated with autonomy and a creative environment. This study aimed to investigate the Psychometric Properties of the classroom creativity climate scale (CCCS) through confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) in the Pakistani context. The study involved 711 (males = 359, females = 352) Pakistani university students pursuing BS, MS/MPhil, and PhD degrees. Based on CFA, the proposed structure of the scale was confirmed, consisting of 22 items with a Likert‐type response set loaded on four variables: Teacher Support for the Expression of Student Ideas, Student Self‐perception about Creativity, Student Interest in Learning, and Student Autonomy. Alpha reliability coefficients range from.61 to.82 for the full scale. A comparison of demographics among different age groups and degree levels has been conducted. This scale is useful when investigating Pakistanis University students' perception of creativity, diagnosing the creative climate in the classroom, or asking the teachers for a creative environment inside the classrooms. Practitioner points: Adapting to the changing world of innovation requires a high level of creativity.Classroom creativity climate scale (CCCS) exhibits good psychometric properties for use in Pakistan and can be applied in other countries to assess the creative climate of classrooms.CCCS could be used to assess a student's self‐evaluation of creativity and their perception of the ability of their teachers to foster creativity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Economic growth has been attributed to STEM education in many countries. It is widely recognized as crucial to improve science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) education, especially for traditionally disadvantaged groups. In this age of the fourth Industrial Revolution, we are going through a rapid change. Several difficulties have been associated with STEM's implementation, particularly troubling developing countries. In this article, we investigated STEM teachers' unique challenges in their classroom experiences and how these factors influence their instructional practices and students' learning outcomes. STEM teachers' teaching reflections at the secondary level were examined in this qualitative study. A purposive sampling method was used to recruit ten novice STEM teachers. The data were analyzed using NVivo11. Despite their disciplinary expertise and the variety of teaching methods they employed, the teachers faced numerous challenges. Teachers faced difficulties managing classrooms, developing curriculums, and recognizing practical constraints in STEM education. Teacher beliefs about effective STEM education, the tension between these beliefs and the teaching goals of the teachers were closely linked to the teachers' beliefs about effective STEM education and the educational system's expectations. For STEM teachers, the mastery of content knowledge is critical. A regular exchange of experience is of significant help to teaching. Teachers' pedagogy and professional development in STEM education are discussed concerning underdeveloped countries' contexts. Researchers and educators in developing countries might not understand STEM education's significance. The reason may also be that STEM education in developing countries faces several challenges. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Holistic development is fostered when the education system allows learners to equip themselves with moral values, which is crucial in prospering a society. The current situation of moral disintegration among youth raises the importance of consolidation of moral values in education, and teachers play an important role in cultivating moral values among students. Therefore, this study aimed to examine the practices and challenges in imparting moral values by the teachers from primary schools in Karachi, Pakistan. A qualitative design was adopted, followed by semi-structured interviews and observations. All the interviews were voice-recorded, transcribed precisely, and analyzed through the thematic analysis technique. The views of teachers were confirmed by observing their classes for two days. The findings reveal that the teachers impart moral values by using different teaching practices, i.e. exemplary role, teamwork, storytelling, (positive and negative) reinforcement, and arranging activities. In contrast, most of the teachers were unaware of moral philosophies and the moral work of teaching. Results also revealed other challenges which highlight the importance of inclusion of moral education in curriculum and teaching practices by providing adequate opportunities for the professional development of teachers and allocate sufficient resources for the moral work of teaching. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: Reading is an attempt to comprehend the writer's message for personal growth and success in the relevant fields. Thus, psychologists consider it a multifaceted cognitive process of constructing meanings from texts. The present study was conducted to determine the relationships among students' reading habits, study skills, and academic achievement in English at the secondary level in Punjab, Pakistan. Methods: The (n = 1614) students enrolled in the science section for the academic year 2019-2020 participated in this descriptive correlational survey, selected from 40 high schools in Lahore, Punjab, Pakistan, through a non-proportionate stratified random sampling technique. The Reading Habits Questionnaire (RHQ) and the Study Skills Scale (SSS) were used to collect data about students' reading habits and study skills. At the same time, academic achievement was the students' grades obtained in the ninth class in the subject of English that were determined by the Board of Intermediate and Secondary Education (BISE) Lahore in 2019. Students' responses were analyzed through descriptive and inferential statistics. Results: The results indicated that students have competent reading habits and study skills. The correlational findings showed a strong positive relationship among reading habits, study skills, and academic achievement in English, while moderate positive relationships between reading habits and academic achievement in English. However, regression analysis results were significant, while reading habits and study skills moderately predicted academic achievement. Discussion: It is implicated that teachers should plan such assignments and tasks based on reflective thinking by considering the role of study skills in academic achievement. Moreover, teachers and school administrators could mutually create timetables for library lessons to build reading habits and study skills among learners. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We investigated the effect of packaging materials namely polyethylene (PT), polypropylene (PP) and polyvinylchloride (PVC) and three wheat varieties namely Galaxy-13, Aas-11 and Shafaq-06 when packaged in above mentioned packaging on damage to packaging and wheat by Rhyzopertha dominica (Coleoptera: Bostrichidae). After 90 days the maximum numbers of scratches, holes, insect penetrations in packaging and weight loss of packaged wheat was in PT followed by PP and minimum was in PVC. Varieties effect though not significant, showed that these damages were relatively less due to wheat variety Aas-11. Microphotography after 90 days showed maximum mean width of openings in scratch damage in PT followed by PP and minimum in PVC. Although, width of openings in holes was maximum in PVC followed by PP and PT in descending order but both scratches and holes in PT and PP usually contained multiple other accompanying damages along with a major damage per each damage, while in PVC damage mostly was either a single opening or with minor small openings showing more susceptibility of PT and PP compared with PVC. These results show none of the packaging was completely resistant to attack by R. dominica, while variety Aas-11 was relatively less susceptible than the other two varieties. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: This study aims to understand the practices and perceptions of education for sustainable development (ESD) in the university classrooms of Malaysia, exploring how holistic, pluralistic and action-oriented approaches to ESD were linked to their knowingness, attitudes and behavior regarding sustainability. Design/methodology/approach: The perceptions of 2,678 students and 1,013 teachers from a range of undergraduate and postgraduate courses at four Malaysian universities were surveyed. Their views of ESD and sustainability consciousness (SC) were recorded on five-point Likert-type scales, and the resulting data was investigated using descriptive and analytical statistics. Findings: Holistic, pluralistic and action-oriented approaches to ESD teaching and learning were widespread in Malaysian universities, with significant associations found between ESD approaches and SC. While all three approaches enhanced each aspect of SC, the results indicated the need to develop action-oriented approaches more fully. Originality/value: This research underlines the importance of sustainability education in the context of higher education. It provides empirical evidence for developing action-oriented approaches to ESD and confirms the utility of holistic content and pluralistic pedagogy to the teaching and learning of sustainability. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Chicken coccidiosis is an economically significant disease of commercial chicken industry accounting for losses of more than £10.4 billion (according to 2016 prices). Additionally, the costs incurred in prophylaxis and therapeutics against chicken coccidiosis in developing countries (for instance Pakistan according to 2018 prices) reached US $45,000.00 while production losses for various categories of chicken ranges 104.74 to US $2,750,779.00. The infection has been reported from all types of commercial chickens (broiler, layer, breeder) having a range of reported prevalence of 7–90%. The concern of resistance towards major anticoccidials has provided a way forward to vaccine research and development. For prophylaxis of chicken coccidiosis, live virulent, attenuated, ionophore tolerant strains and recombinant vaccines have been extensively trialed and commercialized. Eimeria antigens and novel vaccine adjuvants have elicited the protective efficacy against coccidial challenge. The cost of production and achieving robust immune responses in birds are major challenges for commercial vaccine production. In the future, research should be focused on the development of multivalent anticoccidial vaccines for commercial poultry. Efforts should also be made on the discovery of novel antigens for incorporation into vaccine designs which might be more effective against multiple Eimeria species. This review presents a recap to the overall progress against chicken Eimeria with particular reference to previous decade. The article presents critical analysis of potential areas for future research in chicken Eimeria vaccine development. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The global community has faced significant challenges in the twenty-first century, such as COVID-19, which have led to uncertainty about the survival of current and future generations. Educating the next generation of employers and leaders is the primary goal of educational institutions, particularly in higher education. Education promotes sustainable development (SD) when learners acquire ethics, abilities, and skills that assist them in affecting positive changes in themselves and their communities. Policies, projects, and investments that benefit society today while protecting the environment, human health, and social well-being in the future are considered SD. This study aimed to develop our understanding of how to promote SD in Pakistani higher education institutions (HEIs) by finding out students' perceptions about their institutions' commitment to SDGs and SD. The data for this quantitative-descriptive study were gathered through an online survey. The study involved 1109 students from ten Pakistani HEIs. The study results show that SD has become an essential issue in the present era. In students' perceptions, HEIs should give more training on sustainable development goals. Furthermore, students' self-declared statements indicated that most have sustainable habits and behaviors. Students of different genders had different sustainability behaviors and habits. Students are less likely to participate in environmental or higher education organizations supporting sustainable development. HEIs and stakeholders in Pakistan and worldwide are still needed to participate actively and engage in improving education for SD. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Although STEM is an essential feature of 21st-century education and learning, there is a lack of awareness about it in Pakistan, especially at the K-12 and tertiary levels. Recently many initiatives have been launched across Pakistan to create more interest in STEM education. In order to assist in raising the level of STEM awareness in Pakistan, this study sought to examine the current state of research and identify recent contributions and gaps in the literature. A systematic literature review was conducted using 22 research papers from five renowned databases. Results produced limited research in this area, with the majority being descriptive and only four being interventional studies. Regrettably, no research explored the engineering component of STEM education. Trends indicate that STEM education research has experienced a downward trend in Pakistan. The observed decline may have occurred due to a lack of understanding among Pakistani researchers regarding the importance of STEM education. Additionally, we identified the current gaps in research on STEM education and subsequently provided recommendations for future research. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Globally, the COVID-19 pandemic is triggering a public health emergency and crisis on a large scale, with far-reaching effects and severe damage to all aspects of politics, economy, cultural and social life, and health. Consecutive outbreaks over the past nearly 2 years of "living with COVID-19" have forced most schools to physically close, resulting in the largest educational disruption in human history. In turbulent times of the COVID-19 crisis, school leaders are facing numerous major challenges germane to school governance and leadership. The key objective of the study is to fully explore the prospective challenges principals are encountering in public schools in times of COVID-19. To fulfill the research purpose, a systematic literature review (SLR) was carried out to investigate the leadership challenges. As a result, a total of 24 challenges were explored through SLR approach. Frequency analysis approach was initially applied to figure out the most significant challenges. Accordingly, seven challenges were found statistically significant as showing frequency ≥ 50 each. Irrevocably, the study works as a contribution to K-12 school leadership by providing guidance for current and future leaders in crisis based on practical investigation, experiences, and recommendations. Policy makers can leverage these findings to make necessary adjustments to school policy to better prepare school leaders for crisis. Additionally, the findings of the current study are believed to have profound implications for future research. These findings expand our current understanding on school leadership in time of crisis that needs further investigation. Subsequent studies can quantitatively and/or qualitatively validate these leadership challenges findings regarding a particular school context. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: The COVID-19 pandemic has forced the world to pause. One hundred and eighty-eight countries have imposed countrywide school closures, affecting more than 1.5 billion children and youths. The majority of academic leaders are currently encouraging online education to resolve this crisis. This study aimed to investigate international medical students’ (IMS) experiences of online teaching during the COVID-19 pandemic. Methods: Data were collected online using a validated questionnaire and one open-ended question, presented on the Google forms platform. The study attracted responses from 1,107 IMS volunteer participants. IBM SPSS v. 25, GraphPad Prism v. 9, and MindManager v. 2018 were used for data analysis. All variables were subjected to descriptive statistical analysis. The Mann–Whitney U test was used in subgroup analysis and the Kruskal-Wallis test was also applied for year-wise comparisons. Open-ended text responses were analyzed qualitatively, extracting themes by which responses were classified. Results: Among 1,107 respondents, a total of 67.8% were males, and the majority (63.1%) of the IMS were in the age group of 21–23 years. The results show that more than half of the respondents reported their Internet connection quality as poor to average. Poor Internet connection severely affected IMS online learning experience. Persistent and recurrent issues with Internet access became a significant concern for IMS. Lack of electricity is one of the factors that can contribute to poor learning output and dissatisfaction with online teaching. IMS perceive online medical education as unhelpful in several phases of the training, such as improving their clinical skills, knowledge, and discussion skills. Conclusions: During these unprecedented periods, online teaching has allowed medical education to continue. However, IMS are generally dissatisfied with online teaching. Medical students must visualize the human body, so supportive technologies are important to compensate for the lack of clinical practices. Medical institutions may need to invest in faculty training programs and continually adjust to enhance the content of online training and international partnerships. A switch from conventional face-to-face teaching to a fully functional virtual education framework in the medical education field will take time and experience. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aim/Purpose: This study aims to examine the challenges faculty members face with online teaching practices in public universities in Karachi, Pakistan during the COVID-19 pandemic. Faculty members' pedagogical experiences were examined by following the approach of the technology acceptance model (TAM) framework presented by Davis in 1986 and 1989. Background: The COVID-19 pandemic has significantly affected educational activities and disrupted the traditional norms of education at colleges and universities in the world, and, as a result, teaching and learning have shifted to online. Accordingly, the outcome of the COVID-19 pandemic has unexpectedly forced educators and educational leaders to analyze pedagogical measures to offer quality education to students and make changes to their curriculum and instruction. Methodology: This study used a mixed-method research design with closed-ended surveys and interviews. The researchers distributed online questionnaires and conducted phone call interviews, followed by simple random sampling approach to strengthen data collection and analysis. The research data were analyzed through descriptive statistical tests, including mean, standard deviation, and Pearson correlation, and thematic analysis. Contribution: By examining the challenges faculty members face with online teaching practices, this study contributes to the literature knowledge to advance the Practical-Knowledge gap (the lack of empirical studies in the context of practice and theoretical perspective) by knowing faculty members' experiences and attitudes regarding online teaching in public universities in Karachi, Pakistan. The adopted framework of the technology acceptance model provides confirmation of reliability in the context of higher education institutions, which can help explore pedagogical challenges and practices of teachers who teach online in other provinces in Pakistan, cultures, and countries. This study provides suggestions to online teachers in Pakistan to sort out their challenges. Findings: The findings highlight a favorable attitude of faculty members' usage of virtual platforms for teaching. Likewise, faculty members encountered several challenges that caused restrictions in accomplishing competent teaching and learning. Furthermore, faculty members lacked sound experience in conducting online classes and were not given adequate technical assistance or ICT infrastructure to cope with the technical challenges. Recommendations for Practitioners: It is recommended by this study that teachers should be given adequate professional development opportunities to develop technical and ICT infrastructure competencies to facilitate them to successfully teach online. Recommendations for Researchers: Another study should be conducted at the national level to reinforce the understanding and generalization of this study's results. Furthermore, this study assessed public universities faculty members' experiences through selfreported surveys and interviews. However, future researchers should employ other means and methods of examination such as private universities, public universities, primary schools, middle schools, secondary schools, and observations or focus group discussions to broaden the understanding of online teaching practices and challenges in Pakistan. Impact on Society: By examining faculty members' experiences and challenges of teaching online, this study will help educators and educational leaders to raise the quality of online teaching in Pakistan by knowing the appropriate solutions and recommendations. Future Research: This study examined the adoption of three ICT indicators through pedagogical practices such as perceived usefulness, perceived ease of use, and attitude to use. For future studies, researchers and practitioners should evaluate other indicators such as students' learning outcomes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Sustainable development is a process occurring on several levels, which placed the expectations on educational institutions, especially secondary schools, change radically. Schools, therefore, are gradually likely to emphasize enhanced and sustainable teaching practices under the agenda of the United Nations 2030, sustainable future. Hence, the job-oriented development of teachers is a critical factor of the school leadership mechanism. Considering this, the present empirical research was designed to study the mechanism of path-goal theory (PGT) to sustain teachers' job-oriented development in private secondary schools in Pakistan. The viewpoint of teachers, whose job performance is ultimately affected by the school leadership behavior and who perform the job at the front line in schools, was taken on board for the investigation. A total of 2469 secondary school teachers from 785 private secondary schools participated in the present study. Confirmatory factor analysis, t-test, Pearson correlation, and path analysis structural equation modeling analytics were mainly involved in the data analysis. Overall, the findings substantiated the constructive PGT mechanism, especially indicating that directive leadership is the most influential and effective leadership behavior in complex tasks, including when teachers are inexperienced. Moreover, the helpful role of supportive leadership and achievement-oriented leadership behaviors backs up the directive behavior. Although participative leadership behavior was problematic in the studied schools, it should be constructively adopted, as it was found to be a statistically significant predictor. Therefore, training programs for school leaders with good experience in participatory leadership functions can be productive for long-term teachers' motivation. The literature shows that several secondary school teachers still perform poorly because of inadequate leadership, and the viewpoint of teachers on PGT was ignored in earlier studies. Hence, there was a dire need to conduct this research to address these concerns, especially in the non-Western, Asian context. In addition to pioneering academic research on leadership PGT in the secondary school context, the PGT elements were investigated, including teachers' extrinsic and intrinsic motivation for the first time, adding new understanding about the theory. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Achievement-oriented leaders let their followers know their expectations. They regularly set clear goals with potential high-performance standards, they trust in the capabilities of their subordinates, and they encourage the continued performance improvement of their subordinates. This investigation studied the effects of private secondary school principals' leadership styles on teachers' job performance. Four leadership styles outlined in the path–goal theory and five key performance indicators (KPIs) of teacher job performance were chosen for the present research. Numerous prior studies have documented this subject. However, they reported on teacher job performance as a single unit. Therefore, a concerted effort was required to examine the effects of adopted principal leadership styles on each of the five key performance indicators of teacher job performance. A total of 253 middle management personnel took part in this empirical study. The correlation findings from the structural equation modeling revealed that the directive leadership style had a significant effect on teacher job performance in the studied schools, followed by the supportive and achievement-oriented leadership styles. Conversely, although participative leadership was identified as a significant predictor, it was not considered a promising predictor of teacher job performance. This research was conducted in a non-Western culture, where directive leadership is beneficial for encouraging teacher job performance; this claim is greatly supported by the available rigorous literature. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]