🧭 Broad Area of Supervision

Economics Education & Teacher Education — with sub-areas in digital pedagogies, Open Distance e-Learning (ODeL), and technology-integrated teaching and assessment.

🔎 Specialist Sub-Areas:

• Flipped classroom pedagogy
• E-portfolios and authentic assessment
• Digital game-based learning
• Digital technologies, AI and machine learning in education
• Scholarship of teaching and learning (SoTL) in higher education.

Professor MM Van Wyk is a Full Professor in Economics Education and an NRF C2-rated researcher at the College of Education, University of South Africa (UNISA). A qualified professional teacher with more than 18 years of teaching, research, and supervision experience, he has published 89 articles in journals indexed on Web of Science, Scopus, DOAJ, DHET, and IBSS, supervised 38 doctoral and 42 master’s students, and is a recognised expert in flipped learning within ODeL research. He is a two-time recipient of the UNISA Chancellor’s Award for Excellence in Research (2013, 2023). *(83 words)

📄 Full Profile

Professor MM Van Wyk is a Full Professor in Economics Education and an NRF C2-rated researcher in the Department of Curriculum and Instruction, School for Teacher Education, College of Education, at the University of South Africa (UNISA). He is a qualified professional teacher who has taught at both primary and secondary school level, and brings more than 18 years of teaching, research, and supervision experience at higher education institutions to his doctoral supervision.

His publication and supervision record is extensive: 89 articles in journals indexed on Web of Science, Scopus, DOAJ, DHET, and IBSS; supervision of 38 doctoral and 42 master’s degree students; 78 conference papers read; 15 published conference proceedings; 7 edited academic books; and 12 book chapters. He is a recognised flipped learning researcher within Open Distance e-Learning (ODeL), and his groundbreaking work on the e-portfolio as an alternative assessment approach in teacher education earned him the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning (SoTL) Award in 2018.

One of his articles, *Students’ Perceptions of the Flipped Classroom Pedagogy in an Open Distance e-Learning University* (2020), published in *Ubiquitous Learning: An International Journal* (Scopus), was voted best scholarly publication by the journal’s vetting panel and subsequently earned him the International Award for Excellence for Research (2020) from the Common Ground Research Network, University of Chicago, USA.

He is a two-time recipient of the UNISA Chancellor’s Award for Excellence in Research — first in 2013, for his contributions to economics education and teacher education, and again in 2023. In 2023 he also received the Medal of Honor in Education from the Education Association of South Africa, in recognition of his contribution to teacher education.

He currently serves as Associate Editor for *Heliyon: Education* (Scopus, Quartile 2), and sits on the editorial boards and vetting panels of *Ubiquitous Learning: An International Journal* (Scopus), the *Global Journal of Business Pedagogy* (Cabells), the *Journal of Economic Education Research* (Scopus), and the Academy of Science of South Africa.

🔬 Areas of Research Interest

Economics & Teacher Education** Economics education pedagogy · teacher education and professional development · scholarship of teaching and learning (SoTL)

Digital & Flipped Pedagogies** Flipped classroom pedagogy · digital pedagogies and technology-integrated teaching strategies · social media tools for the classroom · digital game-based learning

Assessment & ODeL Research** E-portfolios and authentic assessment · Open Distance e-Learning (ODeL) research and practice

Emerging Technologies in Education** Digital technologies in teaching and learning · artificial intelligence and machine learning in education

🏆 Awards & Recognition

Award** **Year** **Recognising

Chancellor’s Award for Excellence in Research (UNISA) 2013 Contributions to economics education and teacher education

Scholarship of Teaching and Learning (SoTL) Award 2018 Research on e-portfolios as an alternative assessment approach

International Award for Excellence for Research (Common Ground Research Network, University of Chicago) 2020 Best scholarly publication on flipped classroom pedagogy in ODeL

Chancellor’s Award for Excellence in Research (UNISA), second award 2023 Ongoing research excellence

Medal of Honor in Education (Education Association of South Africa) 2023 Contribution to teacher education

🎯 Ideal Candidate Fit

If your research is about\…** **Prof Van Wyk is a strong match because\…

Flipped classroom pedagogy or ODeL teaching models His own award-winning research specialism

E-portfolios or alternative/authentic assessment SoTL Award-winning research in this exact area

Economics education or teacher education Full Professor in the field with 18+ years of specialist experience

Digital technologies, AI, or game-based learning in education Actively researches emerging technologies in teaching and learning

High-volume doctoral supervision with a strong publication track record Supervised 38 doctoral and 42 master’s students; 89 published articles.

Ready to talk about doctoral admissions, supervision, or researcher development? Contact the Knowledge Edge team.