The COVID-19 pandemic brought many challenges in higher education. All teaching and learning activities were moved online. Universities had to provide adapted solutions to facilitate learning and maintain students’ engagement. Online education implies creating new learning environments with the help of digital technologies. Beyond the process of acquisition of knowledge, teachers needed to facilitate cooperative learning, build positive relations, and reduce negative emotions. We provide some expert insights based on empirical observations on teaching and assessment practices connected with psychology models applied in education. The aim of the paper is to formulate specific learning design recommendations for developing effective didactic strategies and addressing the current worldwide critical issue: dealing with digitization of higher education in the immediate future. We propose a model of university classes aimed at bringing together our experience as teachers of psychology and didactics with evidence-based cognitive-educational theories and practices. The result is an example of an instructional work-model based on the complex dynamic between cognitive, emotional-motivational, and social aspects of learning in online settings. The effectiveness of university teaching in the post-digital era is strongly connected with the ability to create cognitive-transferable learning experiences, emotionally safe learning environments, while promoting an active autonomy-focused approach for self-regulated learning.

"The current educational paradigm implemented worldwide is the development of competence comprising knowledge, skills, and attitudes. This research aims to investigate the acquisition of procedural knowledge and competencies targeting this type of knowledge through the study of Biology in middle and high schools in Romania. The paper first provides a brief overview of the history and existent usage of the concepts of competence and procedural knowledge. Moreover, it describes the Romanian educational system from a diachronic perspective. Following this, a careful analysis of middle and high school Biology syllabi is conducted. Particularly, development of procedural knowledge and competencies targeting procedural knowledge in these documents is examined critically. The results of this analysis indicate that, even though syllabi mention competence and procedural knowledge, they need more concrete activity guidance and assessment to train them. Finally, an online survey targeting high school ninth-graders and first-year university students is applied and analyzed. The survey assesses the implementation of instruction based on procedural knowledge. The results reveal the need for more logistics (laboratories and instruments) provision in schools and for carrying out practical activities. A need for reconsidering Biology syllabi, educational investment, and teacher preparation is necessary to succeed in developing procedural knowledge and competencies associated with this, through the study of Biology. Keywords: procedural knowledge, competencies, curriculum, Biology syllabus, practical activity, competency-based education, middle school, high school. "

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