Connecting and engaging equitably through webinars: reflections on online pedagogy in a global online MSc public health program

Abstract

This article discusses the pedagogical challenges associated with synchronous webinars in a fully online MSc in Public Health, designed for students across diverse global contexts. The programme integrates asynchronous, self-paced study with synchronous learning, including webinars intended to enhance engagement, dialectical dialogue, and assessment clarity, and to support learning outcomes aligned with Fink’s taxonomy of significant learning. Drawing on pedagogical frameworks including the Community of Inquiry model, Universal Design for Learning, and Assessment for Learning, this article reflects on how webinars are positioned to advance student-centred learning and inclusivity. In practice, however, three interrelated challenges have emerged. First, the imperative to record sessions for equity and accessibility may simultaneously inhibit open and experimental dialogue, as there are risks that their contributions could be scrutinised or misinterpreted, echoing wider issues of polarisation and self-censorship in higher education. Second, a paradox arises between the programme’s emphasis on asynchronous flexibility and students’ desire for real-time connection, highlighting persistent tensions between autonomy and belonging in online education. Third, low attendance diminishes the potential for dialectical dialogue, often reducing webinars to perfunctory exchanges, lectures or instructor-led conversations, failing to align with webinar purposes. These challenges highlight the need for ongoing pedagogical innovation to reconcile flexibility, equity, and engagement. Potential strategies include partial recording practices, the cultivation of student-led peer communities, and empirical research into students’ perceptions of safety, openness, and participation in digitally mediated environments. Webinars can serve as critical sites for sustaining interactivity, equity, and support in the delivery of flexible public health education.