Global Research in Higher Education (GRHE) is an international open-access journal published by Scholink. The journal is published in both print and online versions. In order to give all researchers equal opportunity to share their ideas, GRHE adopts double-blind peer-review. GRHE focuses on scholarly research and practical experience of a wide range of research areas within the general field of higher education which covers, but is not limited to the following areas: Educational Theory Teaching Method Instructional Design Students Management Case Studies Teacher Education or Teacher Training Online Learning Education Policy Use of Technology for Teaching and Learning Education Psychology Language Education Educational Research and Planning --------------------------------------------------------------------------- We welcome scholars and researchers engaged in the related fields to submit their manuscripts to GRHE. Both of online submission and E-mail submission (grhe@scholink.org) are acceptable. Open access: Global Research in Higher Education is available online to the reader "without financial, legal, or technical barriers other than those inseparable from gaining access to the internet itself". Peer review: Global Research in Higher Education takes peer review policy. Peer review is the evaluation of work by one or more people of similar competence to the producers of the work (peers).
Authors who publish with this journal must agree to the following terms: Copyrights for articles published in our are retained by the authors. Authors should promise that their works are entirely original, and all the references in their works should be appropriately cited or quoted. The works have not been published previously. The behavior of submitting the same work to other journals is unacceptable. The journal editor has the right to edit the format of works.
From Equations to Real Problems: A Problem-Based Reform of Thermodynamics and Statistical Physics Teaching in Higher Education
Thermodynamics and Statistical Physics is a basic foundational course in undergraduate physics education; however, it is also widely considered as one of the most difficult study contents. Students frequently meet difficulties with abstract concepts, mathematical formalism, and the connection between macroscopic laws and microscopic explanations. Traditional teaching methods usually pay heavy focus on derivation works and regular exercise tasks, which can restrict students’ conceptual comprehension and reduce the link between theoretical knowledge and physical real situations. To solve these existing problems, this research puts forward a problem-based reform model for this course. The reform takes meaningful physical problems as starting points for learning activities, and it combines classroom discussion, concentrated mini-lectures, and case analysis works. Its target is to help students build a more coherent understanding about key concepts like entropy, equilibrium, and thermodynamic processes. This study discusses the theoretical basis, design details, classroom practice process, and wider educational importance of the reform. It argues that problem-based teaching can make Thermodynamics and Statistical Physics have higher engagement degree, more easy to understand, and more related to the cultivation of scientific reasoning ability in higher education.
Copyright (c) 2026 Xin Zhong & Huixia Zhang http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
Exploration and Practice of “Virtual-Real Integration” Hybrid Teaching Mode in the Course of “Construction Engineering Measurement and Pricing” under the Background of Digital Transformation
With the acceleration of digital transformation in the construction industry, the traditional teaching mode of the “Engineering Construction Measurement and Pricing” course is facing challenges in cultivating students’ ability to interpret drawings, spatial imagination, and practical operation skills. This paper addresses the problems existing in current teaching, such as theoretical disconnection, resource scarcity, and limited practice, and proposes the construction of a “virtual-real integration” blended teaching model. This model uses real engineering projects as the carrier, integrates BIM technology to build a virtual simulation teaching resource library, and combines online self-study with offline project-based teaching, aiming to reshape the teaching process and enhance students’ comprehensive vocational qualities. Teaching practice shows that this model effectively stimulates students’ learning initiative, significantly improves their operational skills of measurement and pricing software and their ability to solve engineering practical problems, providing a new path for cultivating high-quality engineering cost talents who meet the needs of the new era.
Copyright (c) 2026 Wang Mingming, Zhao Ziyuan, Li Zekun, Wang Yuting, Jiang Xiangyu http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
Digital Transformation in Student Affairs: Overcoming Socio-Technical Barriers in China’s “One-Stop” Student Communities
Under the strategies of “Digital China”, higher education institutions are undergoing profound digital transformation. However, current initiatives, specifically the “One-Stop” student community model, face challenges such as data silos and collaborative inertia. This study addresses the gap between technical implementation and institutional governance by adopting a conceptual analysis approach grounded in Socio-Technical Systems (STS) theory. Through a systematic review of national policy guidelines (2019-2025) and implementation reports from pilot universities, five structural barriers were identified: value misalignment between instrumental and educational rationality, technical fragmentation through persistent data silos, organizational inertia resisting networked collaboration, bottlenecks in technical empowerment, and lack of distinctiveness in educational models. To address these socio-technical misalignments, a four-tiered integrative framework—Philosophy, Technology, Mechanism, and Ecology—is proposed, advocating for the joint optimization of values, infrastructure, processes, and culture. By shifting the focus from instrumental rationality to value rationality, this study offers a theoretical pathway for sustainable digital governance in higher education. Although the “One-Stop” student community model is specific to the Chinese higher education system, the underlying socio-technical challenges it reveals—such as data fragmentation, organisational silos, and the tension between administrative efficiency and student-centred values—are widely shared across higher education systems globally, suggesting that the analytical framework may inform digital governance reform in diverse institutional contexts.
Copyright (c) 2026 Qingyun Feng http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
Construction Cost Prediction Model for University New Campus Projects and Multi-Method Comparative Study—A Case Study of a University New Campus Expansion Project in Qingdao
The new campus construction projects of universities have large investment scales and long construction periods, and the accuracy of cost estimation directly affects the arrangement of funds and the effectiveness of cost control. This paper takes a new campus construction project of a university in Qingdao as the research object, collects complete data of 13 individual buildings, and respectively builds four cost estimation models: multiple linear regression (MLR), support vector machine (SVM), random forest (RF), and BP neural network (BPNN). The performance of these models is compared through 10-fold cross-validation. The research results show: (1) The random forest model has the highest prediction accuracy, with R²=0.892, RMSE=128.6 yuan/m², MAPE=3.24%, significantly superior to the other three models; (2) The building area and floor count are the key factors affecting the cost, with a cumulative contribution rate of 71.2%; (3) Compared with traditional linear regression, the prediction errors of these three machine learning methods are on average reduced by 28.6%. The constructed prediction model in this paper can provide decision support for cost control of university infrastructure projects and also offer practical references for cost management of similar projects.
Copyright (c) 2026 Chuang Han, Ziyue Zhang, Jia Zhan, Mingming Wang, Yi Li, Jingli Li http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
Artificial Intelligence–Supported Psychodrama
Artificial intelligence (AI) technologies have increasingly been integrated into mental health services, offering new possibilities for psychological assessment, therapeutic support, and behavioral intervention. At the same time, experiential psychotherapy approaches such as psychodrama continue to demonstrate effectiveness in facilitating emotional expression, interpersonal learning, and behavioral change. Despite these parallel developments, relatively little research has examined how artificial intelligence may support psychodramatic processes. The present study aims to conceptualize an Artificial Intelligence–Supported Psychodrama Model through qualitative document analysis of academic literature related to psychodrama, digital psychotherapy, and AI-supported mental health interventions. A corpus of peer-reviewed articles and scholarly books was analyzed using thematic coding procedures commonly applied in qualitative research. Findings were organized into three major themes reflecting core therapeutic processes: cognitive, affective, and behavioral dimensions. Cognitive codes included privacy, decision-making, reflection, and insight; affective codes included trust, emotional expression, empathy, and emotional awareness; behavioral codes included experimentation, persistence, role exploration, and skill practice. Results suggest that AI technologies may extend the possibilities of psychodramatic therapy by supporting reflective feedback, facilitating emotional awareness, and enabling repeated behavioral experimentation within simulated interpersonal scenarios. However, ethical considerations such as confidentiality, technological transparency, and the preservation of authentic therapeutic relationships remain essential. The proposed conceptual model provides a framework for future empirical studies exploring the integration of artificial intelligence with experiential psychotherapy practices.
Copyright (c) 2026 Hakan Usakli http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
Construction and Practice of Virtual Simulation Experiment Teaching System for Concrete Rebound Test
As a core experimental project in the courses of civil engineering materials and structural inspection, the concrete rebound test is faced with such pain points in traditional physical experiments as shortage of hardware resources, high cost of specimen preparation, difficulty in reproducing extreme working conditions, single teaching mode, and lack of process assessment. Guided by the training of new engineering talents, this paper constructs a five-in-one virtual simulation experiment teaching system for concrete rebound test, namely “objective-content-platform-implementation-evaluation”. This system integrates the virtual-real combination teaching mode, task-driven and gamified interaction methods, restores the whole process of on-site engineering inspection relying on the virtual simulation platform, and breaks through the temporal, spatial and conditional constraints of physical experiments. Teaching practice has verified that this system effectively improves students’ experimental operation ability, data analysis and critical thinking, optimizes the allocation of experimental teaching resources, and provides a replicable practical path for the teaching reform of virtual simulation experiments of civil engineering materials.
Copyright (c) 2026 Xiaozhen Wang & Kun Li http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
Beyond Reading: Exploring Multicultural Services in University Libraries Guided by Musical Aesthetics
University libraries, as the core site for cultural inheritance and education in universities, are important cultural spaces for teachers and students to expand their knowledge and improve themselves. They are also key bridges for higher education to promote cultural construction and the development of spiritual civilization. Music, as an art form that transcends language and culture boundaries, not only provides readers with profound spiritual nourishment, but also its aesthetic symbols and cultural connotations are widely permeated in life and learning scenarios, exerting positive educational value. Recently, university libraries have gradually broken through the limitations of traditional document services and explored innovative paths of diversified education through music as a medium. This article, based on the orientation of aesthetic cultivation in music, systematically reviews the background logic of music aesthetic leading the diversified cultural services of libraries, providing practical paths for university libraries to transform from a “document-centered” model to a “moral education cultural space”, and helping to improve and enhance the quality of university aesthetic education and cultural services.
Copyright (c) 2026 Jing Meng http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
Research on Approaches and Effects of School-Enterprise Collaborative Education Guided by Professional Honor under the Academic Tutor System
Addressing the prevalent issue of insufficient learning motivation among university students, this paper proposes an educational pathway centered on a sense of professional honor, implemented under the leadership of the academic tutorial system and in collaboration with enterprises. The study first designs a three-stage educational model comprising “professional cognition—honor enlightenment—honor consolidation.” In the third stage, typical corporate cases of professional honor are introduced to achieve emotional connection and deepen professional identity through online sharing and communication. Based on pre- and post-intervention questionnaire surveys and comparative analysis of academic performance, the results show that participating students’ sense of professional honor increased by 20.4%, and their classroom engagement and academic performance were significantly better than those of parallel majors. Finally, the paper identifies limitations such as the single-mode pathway, limited types of enterprises, and an incomplete evaluation system, and proposes future directions. This study provides an actionable new approach to spiritual and cultural education for advancing the academic tutorial system and industry-education integration in higher education.
Copyright (c) 2026 Han Liya, Ma Linlin http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0