The months that we have had to adjust to the altered circumstances precipitated by COVID-19 have finally brought about a new equilibrium, even as we remain vigilant. At OUM, we have settled snugly into the fully online mode of teachinglearning, as have our learners who are spread widely across the country and outside it.

A significant number of these learners were once unable to interact in real-time with their peers and tutors in face-to-face tutorials, chiefly because they were physically located far from a learning centre and because their tutorial dates clashed with their life and work schedules.

Now, with the introduction of ten live etutorials for postgraduate programmes and eight for undergraduate programmes, the playing field is levelled and OUM learners, no matter where they are geographically, are reaping the full benefits. In an etutorial I facilitated last weekend, for instance, there were learners joining in from all corners: one from Japan, where she has been working as an English teacher for the past seven years, one from a northern state who was literally juggling between participating in the etutorial and running her tuition centre, one who dialled in from Langkawi, from his car, to be exact, waiting to pick up his children from school, and one from Kuching, far from the Kelana Jaya HQ where she would have had to travel to if not for the live etutorials.

It is in this spirit of equilibrium and buoyant optimism that we enter into the September 2020 semester. Etutorials for all programmes have kicked off smoothly and learners have dived excitedly into their learning activities and started to digest their assignment tasks. On behalf of the University, the editorial team of inspired wishes you a productive new semester, and we hope you will enjoy the features in this issue.

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