Teachers need to be able to inform and justify their teaching practice based on available research knowledge. When searching for research knowledge, the Internet plays a crucial role as it allows teachers to search for and access evidence long after their own education at university. On the Internet, however, educational information can have varying levels of scientific groundedness (e.g., science articles or blogs from colleagues), and research indicates that (pre-service) teachers struggle to find, select, and evaluate online educational information. It is precisely for this reason that it is important to educate (pre-service) teachers on how to competently source online information. This study describes pre-service teachers' search strategies when sourcing online educational information about the topic "students' use of mobile phones in class." It sheds light on their use of (1) basic or advanced search strategies and (2) the role of Internet-specific epistemological beliefs (ISEBs). N = 77 pre-service teachers conducted a realistic search on the Internet and selected those web items (WI) that they perceived relevant for justifying whether mobile phones should be used in class. Their sourcing behavior was screen-recorded and analyzed. Most selected WI were found via search engines of Google LLC (91.4%). Advanced search strategies were defined as (1) using two or more search engines (performed by 62.3% of participants), (2) adapting search terms and/or formulating new search terms (90.9%), (3) selecting at least one WI that was not listed among the first four ranks on the first search engine results page (54.7%), and (4) checking for the trustworthiness of the author/source (14.3%) or the quality of the content (13%). Binary logistic regressions were used to analyze the relationship between ISEBs and (1) search strategies and (2) science-relatedness of WI as dependent variables. The predictor ISEB did not contribute to the models, Frontiers in Education 01 frontiersin.org Zimmermann et al. 10.3389/feduc.2022.976346meaning that differences in participants' ISEBs did not significantly relate to their search strategies nor to the science-relatedness of WI, all β ≤ |0.36|, Wald ≤ 0.64, p ≥ 0.43. The role of pre-service teachers' search strategies is discussed with respect to teachers' evidence-informed reasoning and its implications for teacher education.

In the wake of COVID-19, study conditions in Europe have changed dramatically. To limit contact between students and teachers, since March 2020 teaching has largely taken place digitally (remotely via digital means) and in private. Because the success of digital learning likely relies on many factors beyond good digital infrastructure conditions, this article focuses on which aspects, at both the teacher and the student levels, promote digital learning success. The large-scale student survey “Studying in Times of the Corona Pandemic” conducted at German universities and universities of applied sciences in the summer semester of 2020 offers data on how COVID-19 has affected several aspects of university studying in Germany. Here, we consider this data within the theoretical framework “theory of transactional distance” introduced by Moore (in: Moore (ed) Handbook of distance education, Routledge, 2018), according to which the success of digital teaching is influenced by dialogue, structure, and learner autonomy. Based on various regression analyses, our results show that several (digital) framework conditions must be created on both the teacher and student levels to achieve sufficient digital learning success. In this sense, our findings provide guidance on which aspects institutions of higher education should focus on when developing or updating their digitalization strategies. In accordance with collaborative learning approaches a key factor for learning success appears to be enabling peer-to-peer interactions. This finding supports our prediction that the possibility of engaging in interactive learning activities is crucial for students’ learning experience, as it might reduce the perception of transactional distance and allow for social exchange. The strongest predictor of students’ learning success turned out to be the (perceived) digital competencies of the teachers. This finding clearly emphasizes that teachers must be qualified to address the very specific challenges of teaching in digital contexts and indicates that universities may need to implement more teacher qualification programs.

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ZusammenfassungIm Folgenden wird das Forschungsdesign der vorliegenden Arbeit erläutert. In einem ersten Schritt wird kurz der grundlegende methodische Zugang beschrieben, bevor in einem zweiten Schritt die Datenerhebung im Kontext der MOBIL-Studie wird. Dabei werden sowohl Pretest und Erstellung des Fragebogens als auch Rekrutierung und Datenbereinigung genauer beschrieben.

ZusammenfassungAbschließend wird der Beitrag der vorliegenden Arbeit auf drei Ebenen diskutiert werden. Erstens wird der Beitrag der Arbeit hinsichtlich der Grundlagenforschung im Feld der Hochschulforschung herausgestellt. Zweitens wird der Beitrag der Arbeit für die theoretische Fundierung der Hochschulforschung verdeutlicht.