In search of excellence in higher education

In 2017 Ulm University organized the 1st Danube Conference for leaders, policy makers and researchers of higher education from the Danube countries. The Corvinus University of Budapest carried on this initiative by organizing the 2nd Danube Conference in cooperation with Ulm University and with the generous support of Péter Horváth Foundation. Higher education systems and institutions have been under the constant pressure of performance and efficiency since their considerable expansion in the 1990s. This pressure increased in the last decades as a result of the financial crisis, the spreading of international and national rankings, and the growing competition for international students. The main focus of the conference was to identify and present good management and policy practices, which could be interesting for other countries and institutions. The cultural proximity of the Danube countries provides an opportunity for the successful adaptation of such good practices. Therefore, the conference was intended to provide publicity for these practices. However, the book is not only the summary of the conference presentations, but an individual volume of seventeen completed papers authored by thirty-two scholars from four Central and Eastern Europe countries as well. Although papers were written on various topics, there is a common notion in all of them: they wish to explore what makes higher education institutions (or systems) excellent. The first chapter discusses various challenges leaders and policy-makers face on the system and organizational level from quality assurance to business-university collaborations, from early-career researchers to supervising bodies. The second chapter focuses on the connection between teaching and excellence. This relationship is based on two different points of view. Teaching is one of the main tasks of higher education institutions which aims to increase excellence, that is, develop individuals as well as society as a whole. However, teaching also contributes to the excellence of the institution. The chapter includes papers about teaching methods, program developments, quality assurance, and rankings. The third chapter leaves the national context and discovers the international dimensions of excellence. Studies are looking for the answer to the question of how internationalization can influence the excellence of the higher education institutions, of the students, and how the higher education institutions can handle the difficulties stemming from students with different nationality and background. Most papers focus on real practices and good practices. Even if some of the practices are less successful than others, we hope there is a possibility to learn from each of them. Finally, we would like to express our gratitude to Prof. Dr. h.c. mult. Péter Horváth for his generous support, which made possible to organize the conference and to compile and publish this volume

Makers at School, Educational Robotics and Innovative Learning Environments

This open access book contains observations, outlines, and analyses of educational robotics methodologies and activities, and developments in the field of educational robotics emerging from the findings presented at FabLearn Italy 2019, the international conference that brought together researchers, teachers, educators and practitioners to discuss the principles of Making and educational robotics in formal, non-formal and informal education. The editors’ analysis of these extended versions of papers presented at FabLearn Italy 2019 highlight the latest findings on learning models based on Making and educational robotics. The authors investigate how innovative educational tools and methodologies can support a novel, more effective and more inclusive learner-centered approach to education. The following key topics are the focus of discussion: Makerspaces and Fab Labs in schools, a maker approach to teaching and learning; laboratory teaching and the maker approach, models, methods and instruments; curricular and non-curricular robotics in formal, non-formal and informal education; social and assistive robotics in education; the effect of innovative spaces and learning environments on the innovation of teaching, good practices and pilot projects

Makers at School, Educational Robotics and Innovative Learning Environments

This open access book contains observations, outlines, and analyses of educational robotics methodologies and activities, and developments in the field of educational robotics emerging from the findings presented at FabLearn Italy 2019, the international conference that brought together researchers, teachers, educators and practitioners to discuss the principles of Making and educational robotics in formal, non-formal and informal education. The editors’ analysis of these extended versions of papers presented at FabLearn Italy 2019 highlight the latest findings on learning models based on Making and educational robotics. The authors investigate how innovative educational tools and methodologies can support a novel, more effective and more inclusive learner-centered approach to education. The following key topics are the focus of discussion: Makerspaces and Fab Labs in schools, a maker approach to teaching and learning; laboratory teaching and the maker approach, models, methods and instruments; curricular and non-curricular robotics in formal, non-formal and informal education; social and assistive robotics in education; the effect of innovative spaces and learning environments on the innovation of teaching, good practices and pilot projects

Using Active Learning to Teach Critical and Contextual Studies: One Teaching Plan, Two Experiments, Three Videos.

Since the 1970s, art and design education at UK universities has existedas a divided practice; on the one hand applying active learning in thestudio and on the other hand enforcing passive learning in the lecturetheatre. As a result, art and design students are in their vast majorityreluctant about modules that may require them to think, read and writecritically during their academic studies. This article describes, evaluatesand analyses two individual active learning experiments designed todetermine if it is possible to teach CCS modules in a manner thatencourages student participation. The results reveal that opting foractive learning methods improved academic achievement, encouragedcooperation, and enforced an inclusive classroom. Furthermore, andcontrary to wider perception, the article demonstrates that activelearning methods can be equally beneficial for small-size as well aslarge-size groups

Practical approaches to delivering pandemic impacted laboratory teaching

#DryLabsRealScience is a community of practice established to support life science educators with the provision of laboratory-based classes in the face of the COVID-19 pandemic and restricted access to facilities. Four key approaches have emerged from the innovative work shared with the network: videos, simulations, virtual/augmented reality, and datasets, with each having strengths and weaknesses. Each strategy was used pre-COVID and has a sound theoretical underpinning; here, we explore how the pandemic has forced their adaptation and highlight novel utilisation to support student learning in the laboratory environment during the challenges faced by remote and blended teaching

Challenges for engineering students working with authentic complex problems

Engineers are important participants in solving societal, environmental and technical problems. However, due to an increasing complexity in relation to these problems new interdisciplinary competences are needed in engineering. Instead of students working with monodisciplinary problems, a situation where students work with authentic complex problems in interdisciplinary teams together with a company may scaffold development of new competences. The question is: What are the challenges for students structuring the work on authentic interdisciplinary problems? This study explores a three-day event where 7 students from Aalborg University (AAU) from four different faculties and one student from University College North Denmark (UCN), (6th-10th semester), worked in two groups at a large Danish company, solving authentic complex problems. The event was structured as a Hackathon where the students for three days worked with problem identification, problem analysis and finalizing with a pitch competition presenting their findings. During the event the students had workshops to support the work and they had the opportunity to use employees from the company as facilitators. It was an extracurricular activity during the summer holiday season. The methodology used for data collection was qualitative both in terms of observations and participants’ reflection reports. The students were observed during the whole event. Findings from this part of a larger study indicated, that students experience inability to transfer and transform project competences from their previous disciplinary experiences to an interdisciplinary setting