At the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic, higher education institutions around the world were compelled to bring forth suitable alternatives to secure continuity in the process of education. To gather data that would indicate the quality and efficiency of online teaching in higher education in south and south-eastern Serbia initiated at the outbreak of the pandemic and the state of emergency declared in March 2020, we conducted a research study to provide the necessary information from students attending undergraduate academic studies. The research was conducted in two phases. The first phase consisted of quantitative research conducted on a sample of 211 students. The data collected were processed by resorting to factor analysis to determine specific factors as a starting point for designing questions for the second research phase. The second phase was implemented by conducting semi-structured interviews on a sample of 61 students. The main intention was to determine key characteristics of the teaching process realised in the context of an emergency transition to the form of teaching which had not been prepared or resorted to beforehand. We identified certain specifics in this regard, as a starting point for improving existing practice. Implications for practice or policy: It is necessary to secure a suitable level of institutional support, to maintain the quality of higher education in unforeseen social circumstances. It is necessary to adequately prepare for and support teachers and students in online teaching at both institutional and national level. To avoid adverse effects on individual students in the circumstances of online teaching, it is necessary to meet students´ educational, social and emotional needs.

A study of medicinal flora of the Vidlič mountain situated in southeastern Serbia was conducted. The presence of 264 plant species, that are considered official or used in folk medicine is recorded. An overview of medicinal plants is given in a systematic order. For each herb species, main medicinal substances which enter in its chemical composition are listed. An overview of plant parts which are curative and which families contain the highest numbers of medicinal species, are presented. A special review of species that contain toxic substances, as well as species that have become so rare in their natural habitats by irrational exploitation in nature that they have been declared protected and strictly protected taxa in the Republic of Serbia is given.

Сажетак: Истраживањем вегетације планине Видлич на југоистоку Србије, посебно смо обратили пажњу на ароматичну флору. Фитоценолошка истраживања вегетације смо обавили методом Браун Бланкеа. Дали смо детаљан преглед заступљености ароматичних биљака у истраживаним и описаним биљним заједницама на планини Видлич. Значајна карактеристика Видлича је велика разноврсност шумских и ливадско-пашњачких биљних заједница и присутних ароматичних биљака у њима. Ароматичне биљке су забележене у 27 различитих биљних заједница на Видличу, од чега су 14 шумске, а 13 ливадско-пашњачке. Највећи број ароматичних биљака пронађен је у заједници јоргована (Syringetum vulgaris). Врсте Achillea millefolium и Teucrium chamaedrys имају највећу заступљеност у по 13 типова различитих заједница. Abstract: While doing researches of vegetation of the Vidlič Mountain in sutheastern Serbia, we were focused on the aromatic flora. Phytocenologi-* marijam@pmf.ni.ac.rs 1 Овај рад је урађен у оквиру пројеката Министарства просвете, науке и технолошког развоја Републике Србије ОИ 171025 и ТР 31070. М. Марковић и сар.: Преглед ароматичних биљака... Пиротски зборник 44 (2019) 65-85 cal studies of vegetation were carried out in accordance with the method of Braun-Blanquet. The detailed review of the presence of aromatic plants in investigated and described plant communities on the Vidlič Mountain, are presented here. The significant characteristic of the Vidlič mountain is the great diversity of forest and meadow-pasture communities and present aromatic plants. Aromatic plants were recorded in 27 diffrent plant communities: 14 forest communities and 13 medow-pasture communities. The largest number of aromatic plants was found in the community Syringetum vulgaris. Achillea millefolium and Teucrium chamaedrys have the highest representation in 13 types of different communities. Кључне речи: планина, Видлич, ароматичне биљке, биљне заједнице, шумске заједнице, ливадско-пашњачке заједнице

The species from genus Thymus are polymorphous plants from the family Lamiaceae, spread in Serbia in many species, subspecies, varieties, and forms. The aerial parts of species from genus Thymus have a long tradition of being used worldwide. The subject of this study was the research of ethnomedicinal application of thyme in Pirot County (Southeastern Serbia). Ethnomedicinal surveys were conducted among the population in four municipalities: Pirot, Babušnica, Bela Palanka, and Dimitrovgrad. It was noticed that 56.9 % of interviewed persons use the species of genus Thymus in the Pirot County. They are usually used in the county's folk medicine in the form of herbal tea against colds to relieve dry and spastic cough, especially in bronchitis and asthma, and for sedation.

As digital media permeate all aspects of our lives, achieving distance learning today, and in the future, can be considered inevitable, for the effectiveness of which it is necessary to provide appropriate preconditions. After the sudden outbreak of the pandemic in late 2019 and early 2020 caused by the appearance of the COVID19 virus, faculties around the world were forced to reorganize and move to online classes as soon as possible, in order to enable students to continue the academic year. The aim of this paper is to point out the basic assumptions of successful online teaching in higher education, which is assumed to continue to exist in some form after the end of the pandemic. The given assumptions will be presented in the form of pointing out the specifics of online teaching, which are significantly related to the success of students in it. It is possible to single out three groups of such specifics: individual specifics of the students themselves, characteristics of online teaching and characteristics of the higher education institution, which are described in more detail in the paper. Such teaching primarily implies adequate preparation of teachers and students in terms of developing appropriate individual competencies. In addition, an important factor of successful online teaching implies the existence of appropriate institutional support at the level of a specific higher education institution in its implementation. The given recommendations can be a good starting point for the implementation and improvement of the quality of online teaching in higher education in our country.