Research on Higher Education during the COVID-19 in the Gulf Cooperation Council: An Overview of Publications in the Journal Sustainability

Abstract

This study analyzes the research associated with higher education during the COVID-19 pandemic in the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) region, offering an overview of papers published in Sustainability by utilizing the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-analysis (PRISMA). The analysis comprised a total of 17 papers, illuminating a number of common features, thematic foci, and prevailing issues as well as recommendations for rethinking higher education delivery in the future. Briefly, the analysis of common features revealed that most of the papers were published in 2021, researchers were mostly affiliated with higher education institutions in Saudi Arabia, data were mostly collected from undergraduate students, and papers were mostly quantitative. Regarding thematic focus, papers were generally related to teaching, learning, and assessment. As for prevailing issues, results highlighted a lack of practical studies in higher education research in the GCC region and a need for extending the conducted research to further context including other countries and populations. Finally, the key recommendations included improvement in the use of information technology and distance learning tools, as well as the design of policies and regulations to ensure more relevant academic intervention and guidelines for utilizing the tools and technologies.