[2016] EoE Gliwice

2016 | BEST Educational Involvement Department

Be on the right track with SMART learning change the education of tomorrow!

Event on Education Report 21.07 – 31.07.2016, Gliwice, Poland

Event on Education Gliwice

BEST Educational Involvement Department

Contents Contents INTRODUCTION ................................................................................................................................... 2 ABOUT BEST AND EDUCATIONAL INVOLVEMENT (EI)............................................................................ 2 CONTENT TEAM .................................................................................................................................. 3 ORGANISERS - LOCAL BEST GROUP (LBG) GLIWICE........................................................................... 3 PROFESSORS AND EXPERTS ................................................................................................................ 4 PROF. DR. MAREK PAWELCZYK .................................................................................................. 4 PROF. DR. JERZY RUTKOWSKI .................................................................................................... 4 DR. THOMAS KIEFER .................................................................................................................. 4 PROF. DR. CARLOS DELGADO KLOOS ......................................................................................... 4 PROF. SEWERYN SPALEK ........................................................................................................... 4 PARTICIPANTS OF THE EVENT .............................................................................................................. 5 STATISTICS ON THE PARTICIPANTS....................................................................................................... 5 YEARS OF STUDY ........................................................................................................................ 5 FIELD OF STUDY ......................................................................................................................... 6 TEACHING EXPERIENCE PREVIOUSLY TO THE EVENT ..................................................................... 6 SCHEDULE OF THE EVENT ................................................................................................................... 7 COMBINING LEARNING TECHNIQUES WITH TEACHING METHODS.............................................................. 8 GENERAL PRINCIPLES OF EDTECH + SELF-DIRECTED LEARNING....................................................... 8 PROJECT BASED LEARNING (PJBL) ............................................................................................... 10 INQUIRY-BASED LEARNING ............................................................................................................ 13 FLIPPED TEACHING ....................................................................................................................... 16 MANAGING EFFECTIVELY PROJECTS .............................................................................................. 19 ASSESSMENT OF LEARNING ........................................................................................................... 22 COMPUTER-ASSISTED ASSESSMENTS ........................................................................................... 25 MOOCS AND DIGITAL LEARNING ....................................................................................................... 28 THE FUTURE OF EDUCATION IS NOT WHAT IT USED TO BE................................................................ 28 ONLINE LABS AS PART OF MOOCS ................................................................................................ 29 MUVES, EPISTEMIC GAMES AND VR/AR IN EDUCATION................................................................. 32 UNIVERSITY-BUSINESS COOPERATION & TRANSITION FROM UNIVERSITY TO WORK .............................. 35 DIRECT WAYS TO GET INVOLVED IN UNIVERSITY-BUSINESS COOPERATION, STUDENTS-BUSINESS COOPERATION AND HOW THE UNIVERSITY CAN IMPROVE IT ........................................................................................... 35 TOOLS FOR EMPLOYMENT ............................................................................................................. 41 CONTINUOUS PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT (CPD) ...................................................................... 44 ENGINEERING CARD ..................................................................................................................... 47 HOW TO ADJUST UNIVERSITY CURRICULA TO MATCH THE BUSINESS ENVIRONMENT .......................... 50 FINAL CASE STUDY............................................................................................................................ 52 EVALUATIONS ................................................................................................................................... 56 THANK YOU! ..................................................................................................................................... 60 AUTHORS ......................................................................................................................................... 60

1

Event on Education Gliwice

BEST Educational Involvement Department

Introduction Events on Education (EoEs) were created by BEST aiming to raise awareness and involve students in the process of education improvement. EoEs are bringing together students, professors and company representatives in order to discuss relevant educational topics. To obtain diverse results, more than 20 STEM students from different countries, cultural and educational backgrounds, participate in each event.

Their gender, year of study, study field and origin are among the factors that are considered to ensure the diversity of the participants and therefore reach a broader understanding of the given topics.

From 21st until 31st July 2016, an EoE was organised by the Local BEST Group in Gliwice, Poland under the support of Silesian University of Technology, in cooperation with the Educational Involvement Department of BEST. During the event, we discussed topics related to: • • •

Combining learning techniques with teaching methods; MOOCs and Digital Learning; University-Business Cooperation & Transition from university to work.

Together with different stakeholders and experts on the topics, participants defined how effective teaching methods should look like and how they can be implemented in European STEM Education.

About BEST and Educational Involvement (EI) Board of European Students of Technology (BEST) is a non-governmental, non-profit and apolitical student organisation. By reaching a better understanding of European cultures and developing capacities to work in an international environment, BEST strives to help European students of technology to become more internationally minded. Today, BEST is present in 32 countries with more than 90 active local BEST groups and a total of more than 3.300 vibrant and competent young technology students, who believe in the importance of technology and different ways of thinking.

While putting European universities on the map, connecting students with our partners and closing the gap between students, companies, and universities, BEST is adding value to the environment we are part of. What is more, BEST is not standing idle but rather looking into what we can still do together. BEST Educational Involvement (EI) is one of the main activities that BEST offers to technical students all over Europe. It creates a platform to raise awareness of students on educational matters and to provide impartial input of students to the stakeholders of European STEM Education.

2

Event on Education Gliwice

BEST Educational Involvement Department

Content Team Dragana Manasova Event coordinator

Adrien Merlier

Aleksandra Guliaeva

Agata Wippich

Nenad Trajkovikj

Facilitator

Facilitator

Facilitator

Facilitator

Organisers - Local BEST Group (LBG) Gliwice Malgorzata Bielawska

Marcin Lesek

Main organiser

LBG President

3

Event on Education Gliwice

BEST Educational Involvement Department

Professors and experts Prof. Dr. Marek Pawelczyk Institutions: International Institute of Acoustics and Vibration (IIAV), Silesian University of Technology Position: Vice-President for Professional Relations 2016-2020, former President 2012-2014 (IIAV), Deputy Director for the Institute of Automatic Control (Silesian University of Technology)

Prof. Dr. Jerzy Rutkowski Institutions: Societé Européenne pour la Formation des Ingenieurs (SEFI)/ European Society for Engineering Education, Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE), Silesian University of Technology Position: Former Board of Directors (SEFI), Professor at the Silesian University of Technology, Member (IEEE)

Dr. Thomas Kiefer Institutions: Verein Deutscher Ingenieure (VDI) / The Association of German Engineers, German Association of Technical and Scientific Societies (DVT) Position: Project coordinator for the FEANI “Engineering Card” (VDI), Director (DVT)

Prof. Dr. Carlos Delgado Kloos Institutions: Universidad Carlos III de Madrid (MCIII), / United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) Position: Vice President for Strategy and Digital Education (MCIII), Director of the Chair on “Scalable Digital Education for All” (UNESCO), Senior Member (IEEE)

Prof. Seweryn Spalek Specialties: Project Management Graduated from the Silesian University of Technology, with the title of M.Sc. Ph.D. studies - with a thesis in Project Management – graduated with the title of Ph.D. in Economics field: Management.

4

Event on Education Gliwice

BEST Educational Involvement Department

Participants of the event ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ●

Martin Aleksovski, University "Ss. Cyril and Methodius", Macedonia Tamás Bakó, Budapest University of Technology and Economics, Hungary Giovanni Antonio Cuffaro, Polytechnic of Turin, Italy Matthias Gorremans, Catholic University of Louvain, Belgium Tamara Horbunova, Vinnytsia National Technical University, Ukraine Julia Iskhakova, Ural Federal University, Russia Pavel Karataev, Ural Federal University, Russia Mathurin Lagrée, Grenoble Institute of Technology, France Danai Leventakou, National Technical University of Athens, Greece Silvia Ma Lu, Technical University of Catalonia, Spain Nejra Muslic, University of Zagreb, Croatia Ákos Patkó, Budapest University of Technology and Economics, Hungary Bárbara Perucha, Carlos III University of Madrid, Spain Kiril Petrov Nastev, Technical University of Sofia, Bulgaria Maurici Prats, Technical University of Catalonia, Spain Valeriya Shin, Saint Petersburg State Polytechnical University, Russia Yaroslava Smityuk, Saint Petersburg State Polytechnical University, Russia Cristina Sobrino Verde, Carlos III University of Madrid, Spain

Statistics on the participants Years of study

5

Event on Education Gliwice

BEST Educational Involvement Department

Field of study

Teaching experience previously to the event

6

Event on Education Gliwice

BEST Educational Involvement Department

Schedule of the event

7

Event on Education Gliwice

BEST Educational Involvement Department

Combining learning techniques with teaching methods General principles of EdTech + Self-Directed Learning

by Prof. Jerzy Rutkowski

1. Background and content During the presentation, professor Rutkowski presented different concepts and principles linked with modern teaching.

The first concepts raised were the Smart Classrooms and E-Learning (which sometimes is referred to as EdTech or Technology Enhanced Learning). While Smart Classrooms introduce more technology in the teaching methods of professors, they gives a chance to students to learn differently with these new opportunities to gather and try out their knowledge.

With this rise of Technology Enhanced Learning in today’s education, we saw in the last years a trend of online courses getting more and more attention from students, professors and media. But today, it seems that MOOCs and online courses have reached their peak of popularity and yet do not have a significant impact on higher education. Therefore, the blended model, related to Self Directed Learning has emerged in order to solve the constraints and disadvantages of traditional education and online education.

Image 1: Types of courses

The idea behind blended learning or Self Directed Learning is to combine some elements from both traditional education and online education and try to take the advantages of both. Their interactivity is

8

Event on Education Gliwice

BEST Educational Involvement Department

provided through an online platform where students and their peers can communicate and access the content. However, some lectures and live laboratories still happen in the university in order to complement the knowledge gained online.

In order to design the content for those classes, it is important to put in place different instructional methods that will enable students to explore new learning opportunities. Also based on two important theories about education (Dale’s Cone and Bloom’s Taxonomy), it is possible to design adequate content that will allow the students to remember better, as we can see it is Dale’s Cone of Experience.

Image 2: Dale’s cone of experience The act of learning itself is no longer seen as simply a matter of information transfer but rather as a process of dynamic participation, in which students cultivate new ways of thinking and doing, through active discovery, discussion, experimentation, reflection migrate toward Self-Directed Learning (SDL) experiences on computer and Internet.

Nonetheless, this flexibility and looseness implies certain threats or better formulated, requirements. The most importants one is that the student must have the initiative to learn and the teacher must provide support and resources for learning. This makes SDL a collaborative process, where the professor is not the sage on the stage, but the guide on the side.

As a conclusion, SDL can be a very useful teaching method if taught properly, but cannot be used by not experienced educators as they do not have the tools to properly make the most of SDL, which they would find extremely demanding in terms of efforts.

2. Methodology After the presentation, the teacher asked a few questions to the audience, with a more free flow methods.

The students answered and were bouncing on the remarks of each other.

3. Outcomes The first question tackled what kind of materials the students were using in their university. The answer was quite broad:

9

Event on Education Gliwice ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ●

BEST Educational Involvement Department

PDF formats as presentation; Website such as Duolingo; Moodle; Youtube podcasts; Blogs; Quizzes; Screencasts; Textbooks.

The professor then asked how many of them were using SDL in their curricula, and 8/9 of the 20 students said they were.

The next question tackled the interest of students and how to make SDL appealing to students. ● ● ● ● ● ●

Be motivated about the subject; Make course interesting; Social contact, motivating each other; Collaborative is much better than alone; Set milestones; Universities posting their own materials tutorials and tests, extra material. This motivates the teachers and a motivating loop is made.

Project Based Learning (PjBL)

By Prof. Marek Pawelczyk

1. Background and content Project-based learning (PjBL) is a dynamic classroom approach in which students actively explore realworld problems and challenges and acquire a deeper knowledge.

Problem-Based Learning (PBL) is an instructional method of hands-on, case active learning centered on the investigation and resolution of messy, real-world problems, often used in higher education.

This session was conducted as one of the first ones - as an introductory speech followed by a question round. The reason behind it was to give participants a glance on modern teaching at technical universities (based on an example of Silesian University of Technology), so they can have a general overview on the topic (which was widely introduced in the following days of the event) and understand the main principles of it.

2. Methodology In this case, the methodology was rather traditional, since the session was not supposed to lead to any specific outcomes and serve rather as a basis for further research and discussion. Therefore, it had a form of a lecture, divided in two parts, conducted by two speakers from Silesian University of Technology - Prof.

Marek Pawełczyk and his student, Jaroslaw Rzepecki M.Sc. Both presentations were supported by visual aids - powerpoint presentation which included info graphics and short videos. The lecture was based on real-life examples of applying the methods at Silesian University of Technology.

10

Event on Education Gliwice

BEST Educational Involvement Department

Image 3: The learning pyramid What was expected from the experts was to introduce the topic of the event itself and make students realize why the matters such as learning methods should be rethought and approached with reason.

Therefore, the basic pyramid of learning concept was introduced, described and analyzed - thanks to this visual method, students seemed to focus and see traditional methods, well known to them, from a very different perspective.

Based on this model, students could link modern teaching methods to participatory learning and see the difference it makes when it comes to effectiveness of learning.

3. Outcomes In the lecture prepared by prof. Marek Pawełczyk, the following topics were introduced: ➢ Learning Models ➢ PBL (Problem Based Learning) ➢ PjBL (Project Based Learning) ➢ Interactive Learning ➢ Mentoring Programmes.

Apart from scientific definitions, professor tackled the topic of possibilities that certain learning method bring, e.g. what effects can we achieve by combining the 3 most efficient methods together. Turns out, that by using discussion groups, practice by doing, teaching others/immediate use on the classes together, we can achieve an attention rate even higher than 90%.

He also pointed out the flaws of classic methods of learning and the possibilities generated by PBL:

11

Event on Education Gliwice

BEST Educational Involvement Department

Table 1: Solving problems of classic methods with PBL Use of classic methods ➢ classes tend to be repetitive ➢ often only theoretical part covered (followed by evaluation only at the end of the semester) ➢ boring process of assessment ➢ limiting the discussion and direct participation possibilities

Solving problems with PBL ➢ defining problem and aim (or multiple aims) at the beginning of the classes - giving the purpose ➢ clearly visible learning points ➢ applicable to each subject ➢ encourages the discussion, since students deal with the problem they want to solve ➢ theory serves as a mean to solve real-life issues, so it's easier to remember and apply ➢ leaves space for own research ➢ involves older students to help less experienced, embraces the culture of sharing ➢ constant supervision of one tutor, who is directly involved in the process of research ➢ students enjoy it, no need to convince them ➢ easy to apply, doesn't require major changes in the curriculum

Professor also introduced how PjBL was introduced on his subject at one of the faculties of SUT (Automatic Control and Robotics), as a project realized throughout the semester, which allows students to: ➢ gain 50%of their ECTS points; ➢ be a part of a real-life project (commissioned by a company representing a certain industry as a competition or made for research grants purposes); ➢ choose their own role and responsibilities for the project; ➢ work within a realistic budget.

Table 2: Benefits from and problems of PjBL Benefits of PjBL ➢ constant interaction between the students ➢ strong cooperation and sense of commitment (solidarity, loyalty) ➢ working discipline (setting milestones, analyzing workload) ➢ embracing and using the specific knowledge/experience of members

Problems generated by the method ➢ growing frustration if the amount of work is uneven ➢ differences in ambitions/goals ➢ risk of projects being mediocre if some parts are underdeveloped

12

Event on Education Gliwice

BEST Educational Involvement Department

➢ teaching people how to discuss and make compromises

Then, in the second presentation Jaroslaw Rzepecki, a member of students' vehicle development project, described in detail how his team of students learned to construct a machine by continuous practicing, observing and testing in collaboration. From the presentation he held, event participants could discover more about: ● Problem Based Learning ● Semi-active suspension system ● Possible problem solving approach ● Testing phase ● Etc. Thanks to his speech students were able to see how Problem Based Learning could be applied in longterm group projects, how the knowledge could be acquired and what is the role and importance of teamwork in such initiatives.

As a result of the session, students not only gathered new theoretical knowledge on learning methods, but more importantly - were shown a real-life case on how Project Based Learning can be applied in practice.

They got familiar with the general concept, which was a vital step for engaging them in further participation at the classes.

Inquiry-Based Learning 1. Background and content As flipped teaching is being more and more promoted in modern educational systems, students need to find other ways to acquire information and learn on their own. One of the learning methods that have been popular so far is Inquiry-Based Learning, which consists of students asking themselves questions and posing problems in order to solve them on their own or by groups.

In order to do so, the students go through a learning cycle, that start by wondering and go through different steps to solve the problem and gather the knowledge on the way. This methods have shown in the past to improve the thinking skills of the students.

Nonetheless, it also present some risks and flaws, as this requires more efforts and proactivity from the students.

13

Event on Education Gliwice

BEST Educational Involvement Department

Image 4: IBL Learning cycle

2. Methodology The methodology used for that session rather broad, and followed different steps.

In the first place, students had the opportunity to research on their own regarding a specific topic. The topic chosen was MOOCs, in order to give them a rather broad possibilities to look for information, but also to prepare them for the future sessions of the Event on Education. The main task was for them to create study materials similar to the ones they would be using at home to summarize their classes. They later presented the materials to the rest of the students together with the founding they had on the way.

This was followed by a presentation of what is Inquiry-Based Learning and of the cycle associated with it.

Afterwards, the students were divided in two groups. They were able to provide input on the usage of Inquiry-Based Learning in their curricula and the most adequate ways to integrate it in their studies.

Finally, the students went over each other’s materials in order to discover how did they feel during the exercise and what do they think about IBL. Finally they could make a statement on whether they would like to see more of this learning methods in their education.

3. Outcomes After the 15 minutes awarded for the research, the students present their results. The topics covered were: ● ● ●

Types of MOOCs Benefit for the career Evolution of MOOCs

14

Event on Education Gliwice

BEST Educational Involvement Department

In general, the exercises seemed to show that self-directed learning broadens the field of exploration of students and give them a wider idea of the topic.

The students discussed afterwards the part of the circle they were able to tackle during the exercise and their own experiment of Inquiry-Based Learning.

Table 3: IBL circle parts covered by the students Areas tackled ➢ ➢ ➢ ➢ ➢

Investigate Record Wonder Discover Measure

Areas not tackled ➢ Try ➢ Reflect

The main reason mentioned by the students for not being able to complete the full cycle was the lack of time. This may also be a consequence of the exercise that was chosen, as the possibilities to try a MOOC takes a longer time period and would not be possible in such a limited timeframe.

In order to achieve Inquiry Based Learning and organise their thoughts, the students used different methods: ● Mindmaps ● Stickers ● Underlining a text ● Lists ● Etc. Those wide ways of building up their study materials also had a consequence on their portability. When the students switched notes, they noticed that it was hard to actually get the research of the person that drafted the study sheet. They were not able to process the information sometimes as it was not constructed on the same way of thinking they would usually use for their education. A conclusion that could be drawn would be that Inquiry-Based Learning is quite a personal method, and that it can be hard to get the information from somebody else if it is not build-up in the same way. An interesting suggestion was to have sharing sessions after IBL learning to exchange on what did the students learned and cover a broader part of the topic.

Table 4: Advantages versus risks of Inquiry Based Learning Avantages ➢ Allows the student to explore areas he wouldn’t in class ➢ Creating his own point of reference, easier to memorize

Risks ➢ Wrong information available ➢ Takes a lot of time ➢ If not motivated, the student might not go deep enough in the topic

15

Event on Education Gliwice

BEST Educational Involvement Department

➢ Creates a sense of commitment, keeps the student motivated

It seems overall that students appreciated Inquiry-Based Learning. They appreciated the broaden chances it offered to discover a certain topic. Another point they raised is that by creating the materials and learning by themselves, the students were able to better memorize the content of the course than when they were learning through traditional manners. This offers chances for them to learn more effectively. Finally, the responsibilities of the students give them a better motivation to keep on and study harder for their own success.

On the other hand, Inquiry-Based Learning also has some drawbacks. The information available might be wrong or not up-to-date, and gathering the proper sources might take some time. Also, if not done properly by the student, there are high chances that the student will not be able to use properly the method and will be stuck to superficial parts of the course.

Regarding having IBL in their curricula, the students had some suggestions to make this technique even better: ●

● ●

It should be complemented/ guided by a professor, or a tutor, to support and guide them in the methodology first of all, but also to complement the knowledge they might be missing or that was wrong; It is necessary to have it part of the curriculum as it is rather efficient; Students think that IBL help them memorize information better.

Flipped teaching

by Prof. Jerzy Rutkowski

1. Background Flipped teaching is the hottest topic in modern education, says prof. Jerzy Rutkowski. The concept of flipped teaching is switching the work done in the classroom with the work done at home. In traditional teaching the theoretical part, remembering and understanding, is done in the classroom and the practical part, analysing, applying and further understanding, as homework whereas in flipped teaching it is the other way around. In SUT (Silesian University of Technology) the implementation and idea is as followed: the students are given tutorials to be studied before the class so that they can use and apply the knowledge and methods they have previously acquired with the guide of a experienced professional - a professor.

This way of teaching was invented with the purpose of getting the teacher from being a “sage on a stage” to a “guide on the side”. The goal of Flipped Teaching is to motivate students to be self-driven seekers of knowledge instead of forcing it onto them.

2. Content The act of learning itself is no longer seen as simply a matter of information transfer

16

Event on Education Gliwice

BEST Educational Involvement Department

...but rather as a process of dynamic participation, in which ...students cultivate new ways of thinking and doing, through ...active discovery, discussion, experimentation, reflection* migrate toward Self-Directed Learning (SDL) experiences on computer and Internet The content was provided by prof. Jerzy Rutkowski. He explained the factors that contribute to SDL Readiness and the role of the professor The transition from Traditional to Self-Directed Learning is the process of changing the teacher’s role from a Sage on Stage to a Guide on Side.

The following characterise SDL: ● ● ●

Self-Directed Learning is a collaborative process; The student must have the initiative to learn the material; The teacher must provide support & resources for learning.

Image 5: Benefits of Flipped Classrooms

To make SDL effective: • Teacher should make students aware of their role in their own learning and encourage each student to take initiative in their learning.

17

Event on Education Gliwice

BEST Educational Involvement Department

• Teacher must support students in their learning process by providing opportunities for help and discussion so students don’t feel like they are working on their own.

• Teacher has to monitor students’ SDL Readiness level.

• Teacher has to prepare high quality e-materials.

Image 5: Pyramide of learning: traditional teaching vs. flipped teaching

3. Methodology The session was facilitated by prof. Rutkowski. It lasted for 1.5 hours and it consisted of a power point presentation and a discussion.

4. Outcomes The students were introduced to the concept of flipped teaching as well as the concepts of MOOCs and SDL and how they are all connected. Improvement of SDLR seems to be essential for Flipped Teaching to work. If high level of SDLR is reached, and only then, great benefits of FT: significant improvement of students satisfaction and performance, can be obtained.

At the introductory stage, monitoring of students’ satisfaction and improvement of SDLR seems more important than measuring of FT impact on exam scores (performance). You have to remember that every project objective can be spoiled by improper design. Before a course redevelopment can begin, it is needed to clearly identify all key factors seen as important to achieve an objective and then take them into account at a course redevelopment stages. The students want to learn in the classroom the same way they interact outside of it. Smart education tools make exploring lessons a simple experience that students immediately recognize and adopt and this is the main opportunity.

The main threat of FT is the student’s insufficient readiness to accept SDL principles. At early stages this threat has to be accepted and all possible measures have to be undertaken to minimize its impact.

18

Event on Education Gliwice

BEST Educational Involvement Department

The Flipped Teaching method can free up valuable class time and provide the background knowledge that is fundamental for students to then go forward and wrestle with higher order thinking. If students don’t need to come to class to get informational Learning Content delivery, we need to transform how we use our class time such that it continues to be relevant and valuable (discussion forum, working on problems).

The students present were all intrigued by these methods and asked questions regarding the implementation of them and prof. Jerzy Rutkowski had some questions for the students. In classroom where FT is applied, the number of students depends on different factors such as the project, task, design of the exercise, whether it is a simulation, an animation or solving some practical problems. In order for students to be encouraged to prepare before lectures, they can be assigned in teams or groups of 2 and study in such a group setting. Questions by the professor during the lectures and teamwork, were supported by the students.

Managing Effectively Projects by prof. Seweryn Spalek and Filip Liebert

1. Background and content Project Based Learning is a teaching method in which students gain knowledge and skills by working for an extended period of time to investigate and respond to an engaging and complex question, problem, or challenge. After the presentation of the topic by the professor, the students had the chance to take part in a discussion concerning some questions related to this teaching method.

Expected effect: In this session the students will delve into PjBL and through the sharing of experiences and opinions come to valuable conclusions.

The session covered a theoretical background of the following: ● ● ●

Problem Based Learning (PBL) Project Based Learning (PjBL) Interactive Learning

Problem-based learning Table 5: Classical vs. problem-based learning CLASSICAL LEARNING Cycle: introduction, exercise by exercise, homework, repetition, evaluation

PROBLEM-BASED LEARNING Exercises combined in blocks motivated by the problem

Exercises loosely related, rather fitting interests and schedule of tutors

Exercises fully related, interweaving within the blocks

Exercises led by tutors trained for them

Each block fully supervised by the same tutor, along with students struggling with the problem

19

Event on Education Gliwice

BEST Educational Involvement Department

Difficulties organizing the evaluation process during exercises, queues at offices, routine reports

Sufficient time for performance, evaluation done fully during the exercises (not in tutors’ offices)

Lack of time to think over obtained results, exchange opinions, draw conclusions, formulate ideas

Thorough analysis of results, discussion with other students, teaching them, reference to other exercises, common reflection and conclusions.

Lack of time for real and open-minded

In the consultation hours the tutors get the time for real support to students

consultations with tutors

Project-based learning

Image 6: Project-Based Learning (PBL) basic– rules, possibilities

● ● ● ● ● ● ●

Applied to all students, assigned to groups; Project subject defined at the beginning of the semester; Fundamentals at the beginning, followed by more details, classical or using multimedia; Then, only the project is continued, and finally all are evaluated; Model easy to apply; Easy accommodation of the current study programme; Limited benefits of PBL.

Image 7: Project-BL full – rules, possibilities

20

Event on Education Gliwice ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ●

BEST Educational Involvement Department

Fundamentals only at the very beginning, classical means or using multimedia Project subjects defined at the beginning of the semester, after the fundamentals Theoretical details provided along with the project and related to it Regular seminars during the semester Theoretical aspects presented in a wider sense Essential multi-disciplinary nature Evaluation of milestones This version is more difficult to be applied due to current regulations and ordinances It requires accommodating the learning programme It involves and takes advantage of all benefits of PBL.(for relevant project subject, student team, tutors, consultants, and evaluation rules)

Interactive learning Premises: ● ● ●

Nobody can teach a student better, than another student; The top retention rate is if the learner can teach another student; (For the students to understand and be able to apply)!

Image 8: Comparison of learning methods

3. Methodology The session was conducted by prof. Seweryn Spalek and it consisted of a powerpoint presentation and a short question’s round with the students.

4. Outcomes

21

Event on Education Gliwice

BEST Educational Involvement Department

Project-Based Learning - summary Benefits

Problems

Interaction

Frustration

Learning from each other

Different ambitions

Cooperation

Partner who does not do his work

Being a part of the group

Mediocre partner

Work discipline

Room for elite

Solidarity / loyalty Compromises Knowledge / acceptance of individualities

Current trends, expectations and students’ mentality require updating the methods of teaching at technical universities. Methods leading to a higher retention and skills development in a shorter time are requested for. They are challenging both for tutors and students. Experience gained during a few years is very positive.

Assessment of learning 1. Background The term 'assessment' refers to all those activities undertaken by teachers, and by their students in assessing themselves, which provide information to be used as feedback to modify the teaching and learning activities in which they are engaged.

Types of Assessment: ● ● ●

Diagnostic: Given at the beginning of the school year, or the beginning of a new unit of study, a diagnostic test attempts to quantify what students already know about a topic.

Formative: Given throughout the learning process, formative assessments seek to determine how students are progressing through a certain learning goal.

Summative: Given at the end of the year or unit, summative assessments assess a student’s mastery of a topic after instruction.

Effective assessments give students feedback on how well they understand the information and on what they need to improve, while helping teachers better design instruction. Assessment becomes even more relevant when students become involved in their own assessment. Students taking an active role in developing the scoring criteria, self-evaluation, and goal setting, more readily accept that the assessment is adequately measuring their learning.

2. Methodology

22

Event on Education Gliwice

BEST Educational Involvement Department

The session lasted for 1 hour. It consisted of a theoretical introduction for the topic, group work and presentations of the outcomes. The group work was in a form of a World Cafe. the students were divided into 3 groups: 1. Types of assessments they know and the ones used in their universities; 2. Delivery methods (paper and pencil, online, adaptive etc) they know and the ones used in their universities; 3. Correlation of learning techniques and assessment methods.

3. Outcomes Types of assessments the students know, and the ones used in their universities Table 6: Types of self-assessment and assessment of professors, according to students How do I assess myself? ➢ Trying to write down something from my memory ➢ Practice the content ➢ Asking for feedback ➢ Taking some trial tests ➢ Comparing improvement over time ➢ Practical problem solving ➢ Discussing with teachers, friends, family ➢ Memo cards ➢ Rehearsing in front of the mirror ➢ Learning in different environments ➢ Competing in class or against friends ➢ Answering the questions that others have ➢ Answering the questions to the exams from previous years ➢ Researching and paraphrasing ➢ Rewriting the notes ➢ Learning from mistakes ➢ Trying to explain phenomenons in everyday life ➢ Self-challenging and asking questions

How do professors assess me? ➢ ➢ ➢ ➢ ➢ ➢ ➢ ➢ ➢ ➢ ➢ ➢ ➢ ➢ ➢ ➢ ➢ ➢ ➢

Quizzes Practical problem solving Continuous projects with checkpoints Reports after labs Presentations and Q&A Exams: written, oral, practical Homework Assessing the input given during a discussion group Interaction during lectures Asking us to teach someone else Competitions during class Research projects By the amount of mistakes you are able to track Analysing the input given by other bodies (companies where we had internships) Attendance to classes Assessing the student’s notes Participation in classes - being active Extra questions that weren’t covered in the basic programme Participation in extracurricular activities

23

Event on Education Gliwice

BEST Educational Involvement Department

Delivery methods (paper and pencil, online, adaptive etc) the students know, and the ones used in their universities Table 7: Delivery methods of assessment which the students were familiar with Which ones they know? ➢ ➢ ➢ ➢ ➢

Which ones are used in their universities? ➢ ➢ ➢ ➢ ➢ ➢ ➢ ➢ ➢ ➢ ➢ ➢ ➢ ➢ ➢ ➢

Optional workshops Gamification Fish in aquarium Observation jury Continuous assessment

Feedback Multiple choice questions Online quizzes Internship report Essays Oral examination Hybrid project on theory and practice Practical lab Project presentation Continuous assessment Written exam Real time simulation False info teaching Peer assessment Discussion Competitions

Correlation of learning techniques and assessment methods The students were giving examples of assessment methodologies which correlate to the three best ways how to learn: discussion groups, practice by doing, teach others/immediate use.

Table 8: Correlation of learning techniques and assessment methods Learning techniques Assessment methods Discussion group

Practice by doing

Teach others/immediate use

Lab work

✔

✔

✔

Case studies

✔

✗

✔

Real life case studies from companies (ECTS are given for this activity)

✔

✔

✗

24

Event on Education Gliwice Summer camps (ECTS are given for this activity)

BEST Educational Involvement Department

✗

✔

✗

Problem solving discussions

✔

✗

✗

Mentoring (ECTS are given for this activity)

✗

✗

✔

Engineering competitions

✔

✔

✗

Internships

✗

✔

✗

Table 9: Recommendations given by the students on assessing the learning techniques Learning techniques

Recommendations by students

Discussion group

After 1h, evaluate if the students improved their knowledge. Test it afterwards (possibly on the same questions).

The quantity of how much a student has spoken doesn’t matter, but the quality of what is said.

Practice by doing

In a project, check if all the members contributed equally.

Someone has to check the benchmarks of the project. There can be a competition between teams.

Teach others/immediate use If a student finishes a given task list, then the mentor gets points.

It can work in a project which is divided into multiple parts, and the team members will have to teach each other. The team leader can also teach and help the others and get points.

The team members can evaluate each other.

Computer-Assisted Assessments

by Prof. Jerzy Rutkowski

1. Background Verification of knowledge has always been a discussion catalyst. Whether it should be done via computer, on paper, oral examination or through the creation of a project; it’s a matter of debate. This topic is tackled straight on by professor Jerzy Rutkowski in an attempt to shine light on the matter of computer-assisted assessments and the student’s mindset.

2. Content

25

Event on Education Gliwice

BEST Educational Involvement Department

The main problem when assessing knowledge is that the goals of the student do not match the goals of the teacher. This may be because the student is focused on passing the exam whereas the teacher, as should the student be also, is focused on understanding engineering concepts, links between theory and practice. The cause for this is the lack of SDL Readiness and in turn he uses the carrot on a stick method. „Carrot & Stick” approach is the only way to force the students to do systematic work, make them solve formative quizzes, says Prof. Rutkowski. If quizzes are non-obligatory, the students interest is almost none, up till the final examination time. This applies only to low SDL Ready students of course.

Image 9: Teacher’s vs. Student’s learning goals

Solution - “Carrot and stick” approach This approach was presented by Prof. Rutkowski and he has used it in one of his classes. The description of his methodology follows.

● “Stick” Formative quizzes are obligatory. If the student doesn’t pass the quizzes before the deadline, at the end of semester, then he/she is not admitted to the summative assessment and this is the „Stick”. ● „Carrot” There is also the „Carrot” for the top students, students that solve more than 50% of all questions – the final mark of these students is upgraded by 0.5 or even 1.0, and number of this students oscillates around 10%. The summative assessment questions are drawn from the formative assessment quizzes, with minor modifications, and this is an additional motivation to solve these formative quizzes. ●

The results

26

Event on Education Gliwice

BEST Educational Involvement Department

As the result of this change, greater and more systematic engagement in solving quizzes has been expected. Unfortunately, no significant improvement of pass/fail ratio has been observed. Majority solve the obligatory minimum of tasks, during the last week before deadline and probably with illegal help of cheat-sheets.

1. Methodology The session was facilitated by prof. Rutkowski. It lasted for 1.5 hours and it consisted of a power point presentation and a discussion.

2. Outcomes The students were introduced to the many problems of assessment of learning that teachers face. The concept of carrot & stick was introduced as a solution and the results that it yielded.

The main problems identified by the professor are: ● ● ● ●

How to convince students to work systematically?

How students to solve the quizzes with understanding?

Sometimes students only memorize the answers from last years’ quizzes.

Sometimes students procrastinate until the last moments.

The question of how to deal with cheaters was raised by one of the students. The method which prof. Jerzy used is not to give them points if they are spotted to cheat.

It was pointed out that students can see the value of the learning process if they know how to practically use the gained knowledge. This way, passing the exam will not be the only motivation. For the question “How to convince students to work systematically?” - the answer can be found in the feedback from the students who took the course in the previous year. In addition, one of the students gave the idea for some of the lectures to be replaced with more hands on work or to have practical exercises after the theoretical lessons. Lastly, the idea for having a practical work done in a company was mentioned.

One of the professor’s conclusions is that classroom tutorials can be boring for the best students, whereas other students might not understand everything. He explored the idea of having consultations and sessions only for questions from students.

27

Event on Education Gliwice

BEST Educational Involvement Department

MOOCs and Digital Learning The Future of Education is not what it used to be

By Prof. Carlos Delgado Kloos

1. Background and content Although technologies have evolved and developed incredibly in the last century, we unfortunately cannot say the same about education. Looking at an amphitheater from 30 years ago and at one from today is disturbingly similar. The all world (information, music, images) digitised over the last 20 years, yet education stays an exception and blackboards are living a peaceful live, not threaten by the new technology, even though we could have thought it would happen.

Although, this glitch in the evolution of education might be fading away nowadays. More and more classes are being recorded in order to give students a chance to study remotely, a myriad of massive open online courses are available on the market and resources finally found their way to the open source philosophy.

This led a consequent numbers of universities to adapt their methods and switch to a more blended education between face to face and online teaching. The knowledge gap for freshmen entering university might slow down this process, but online features are finding more and more their way in today’s curriculum. This bring the opportunity for more and more students to join those courses, and another challenge from professors: reviewing the all content for those courses in a little time.

To solve this issue, several methods have been tested: ● ● ● ●

Practical video lectures where students are able to interact with the presenter Parameterized exercises with instantaneous FB automated by a software/the website A gamified system with rewards for each action done A learning assisted by social media and forums to catalyse sharing and discussions between students and with the professor

All those tools are being monitored by different analytical measurements, that help identifying certain teaching habits and adapt the content of the course to its participants from one session to another.

Although today’s lecture are being more and more digitalised, this do not mean that tomorrow’s education will be a distant education. Universities still requires this human touch and communication in order to perfect the knowledge of the students. Classrooms lectures will use more quizzes, and overall interaction with the teacher while MOOCs will tend to have local meeting or personal mentoring to support the students. Overall, we can see that the education of tomorrow tends for a hybrid model between online and live education, where both of the model tends to take the advantages of the other through different features.

On the other side, several initiatives have been taken for the sake of correcting the flaws of today’s educational system. Companies are launching bootcamps to model the students to their needs, several

28

Event on Education Gliwice

BEST Educational Involvement Department

businesses invest in education , universities tend to make their curriculum more flexible and certification models are being developed to guarantee the skills of live and online graduates

2. Methodology After the presentation from Prof. Delgado, an open discussion was carried out in order to trigger some thoughts from students and gather some feedback on the programm of the professor.

Also, the students asked Pr. Delgado some questions regarding the opinions of professors, the system he implemented in his university and the way students are involved in the development and feedback of university programs.

Some of the questions asked were: ● ● ● ●

What are your thoughts on the saying “The professors should be the one working in class and not the students?”

Do students with difficulties to learn more at home or work more in university?

What do professors think of online teaching methods?

How long will it take to implement a new teaching system in an university?

3. Outcomes Some students do not attend classes as the rhythm of the course does not match their preference. It can be that the rhythm is too slow and they get bored during the classes or that the rhythm is too fast and they can not follow the course without missing some of the notions.

For those reasons, some students acknowledge that online learning was an interesting solution as it allows that individuals can choose the pace of the classes and reach a higher efficiency with their learning. Also, it might increase the interaction of the student with online exercise and discussions, thus offer more possibilities to broaden his/her knowledge.

Professor Delgado mentioned that changing the status quo and the mindset of some professors takes obviously some time, but he believes that this way of teaching is the way to go and that there is a real need to adapt the lectures or teachings methods to satisfy the current needs of students, even though it requires efforts.

Also, the students questioned the professor on the involvement of students in the feedback and development of this program. The professor answered that even though the students’ input was indeed valuable to feedback and improve the current programs, they were not involved in the creation and development of the programs. Nonetheless, it could be something considered in the future.

Online labs as part of MOOCs 1. Background and content Teaching science in an online environment has always been a challenge. Because of many difficulties of creating online laboratories not so many science degree programs exist in a purely online format.

Sometimes professors just can’t fathom teaching science without the hands-on lab experience. However,

29

Event on Education Gliwice

BEST Educational Involvement Department

new technologies and a more complete understanding of outcomes-based teaching are allowing a new generation of students to be trained in an online lab format, with the same (or in some cases, better) effectiveness than traditional on-ground programs.

Nevertheless, online laboratories are not very wide-used in European technical education facing some problems on the way of implementation.

Students are also not very familiar with online labs. It was discovered that only 2 of 19 students participating Event on Education Gliwice have used online laboratories before.

2. Methodology and outcomes 2.1 Real labs vs. Online labs Problem and background: Implementation of online labs in modern education is currently facing some problems. One of the reasons is that most of the universities already have real practical and science laboratories with modern equipment which may attract students more than online labs. Another Obviously both real and online labs have their own strengths and weaknesses which should be defined in order to make the usage of online labs more efficient and fitting the particular students’ needs.

Methodology: In order to discover strengths and weaknesses of real and online laboratories and find out the fields where their usage gives the most relevant outcome the chosen methodology was debate. Students were divided into 2 groups and had to create arguments and counter-arguments for predominance of using online or real laboratories.

Outcomes: Table 10: Online laboratories vs. real laboratories Online laboratories

Real laboratories Good sides

Safe in use, no risk

You need to keep yourself focused

Big opportunities to try out

Space for understanding important measurement mistakes

More flexibility time-wise and space-wise

A lot of space for creativity and critical thinking

Lab equipment is easier to update Problems

30

Event on Education Gliwice

BEST Educational Involvement Department

No space for thinking out of the box ---> no innovative research.

Not good enough, outdated or old equipment

Don’t allow students to gather real experience

Always need teacher to supervise the experiments

Some specializations (e.g. chemical engineering) value only practical experience Too idealistic (close to theoretical) research, no opportunity to compare result to theory

The debate showed that online labs have very bright perspectives and students see a lot of benefits in using online labs. Although, they find it important to separate the fields of use of online and real laboratories.

The group agreed that online labs are very useful for basic physics and chemistry experiments which are included in the curriculum for all the students of technology and real labs are more valuable for high-level scientific experiments or gaining practical skills which are required for future job in the field of industry.

2.2 Online labs in the curriculum Problem and background: As the students of different specialisations have different approaches to laboratories and gain different skills with the use of laboratories it’s important to know which benefits and problems students of different fields see in the usage of online labs and if they find implementation of online labs valuable for their particular field. Different scientific researches require different equipment, moreover, Methodology: In order to define more precisely the impact of the usage of online labs in the curriculum of the participants and their interest in seeing this way of learning into their education, the participants were divided in different groups per study area and discussed together the benefits and problems of online labs and tried to imagine an online lab exercise related to their field through before presenting the results to other.

Outcomes: Table 11: Benefits and problems of online labs in certain fields Field Industrial engineering

Benefits of online labs -See simulation of strength/stress in mechanical engineering -See microstructures of materials

Possible problems -Simulation may not always represent reality -No human support -Special software might be needed

-Understand better step by step

31

Event on Education Gliwice

BEST Educational Involvement Department procedures

-Less motivating to work online

-Offers simulation of continuous production processes Electronic engineering

-Cheaper than regular labs -Smaller groups emphasizing participation -Can be repeated easily -Gain of space and time, thus in flexibility

-Do not offer practical knowledge (building circuits can be complicated) -No real results to witness -No mentoring from teachers -Risk of cheating -Students feel less pressure if the work is done online

Chemical engineering

-Very useful to run tests, can check the reaction from everywhere -Can apply what you learn in classes -Better way to apply and organise the chemical theory

-No contact with the equipments -No ability to compare results with theory or process why things “don’t work” -Potentially no team work -No experience of the incidents that may occur

-Protection from dangers Economics

-No financial risks taken

-Not real, virtual

-Accessible from everywhere

-May not consider all the incidents that could occur

-Very simple to use -Take data from everywhere, global tool

-Doesn’t foster discussions

In general, the students are keen to see online labs into their curriculum. There is no clear consensus on the quantity. Some want them as an addition to their curriculum with no replacement while others prefer to have it replacing the live labs by 50%.

MUVEs, Epistemic Games and VR/AR in Education 1. Background and content A Multi-User Virtual Environment (MUVE) is a computer, server- or internet-based virtual environment that can be accessed by multiple users simultaneously. In other words, it’s a virtual environment, which enables simultaneous participants to represent themselves with avatars, interact with other participants

32

Event on Education Gliwice

BEST Educational Involvement Department

and digital artifacts, and practice building skills or solving problems that have applications in real world contexts.

Epistemic games are computer games that are essentially about learning to think in innovative ways.

They’re designed to be pedagogical tools for the digital age where the player learns to think like professionals by playing a simulated game of such professions as management, engineering, journalism or urban planning.

As schools aim to prepare students for life outside of school, they need to realize that the world now values knowledge and skills that can be applied in creative ways. Epistemic games fit the learning requirements of today’s world because they allow students to role-play professions while learning skills that they apply in the game.

2. Methodology The MUVEs, Epistemic Games and VR/AR session was divided into 3 parts: 1. Introduction to a topic connected with short discussion and survey among participants 2. Pointing out similarities and differences of topic technologies 3. Case study: how those methods could be applied in your field of interest?

The session started with short projection of movies describing the idea of MUVEs, Epistemic Games and VR. The idea behind it was to introduce participants to the topic and underline the differences between particular methods. As a follow-up and background check, participants were asked if they ever encountered such methods during their studies. Turns out that: ➢ 3 of them (out of 18) had encountered VR in their education (not at the University directly), ➢ They admitted their knowledge was rather basic, ➢ Their knowledge of the technology is a result of their own curiosity rather than academic introduction to the topic.

The second part of the session aimed to let participants understand and define the similarities and differences between MUVEs, Epistemic Games and Virtual Reality. Their task was to cluster some of the features according to the technology connected to them, e.g.: ➢ Possibilities to apply in education and simulate the reality (as similarity) ➢ Oriented on gathering various skills and visualizing hard-to-understand processes (MUVEs) ➢ Epistemic Games focused on supporting professional development (Epistemic Game).

This task was followed by a short discussion on possibilities of applying the following methods in students curricula and their willingness to use and develop them.

The third and final part consisted of a case study, in which participants were divided into teams according to their field of study. They were supposed to choose one of the technologies define the niche in which it could be applied, as a substitute of traditional learning methods. They needed to focus on answering the following questions: ➢ Which skills can be tested and practiced thanks to this technology? ➢ Which cannot?

33

Event on Education Gliwice

BEST Educational Involvement Department

➢ How to combine them with (or implement them into) your current curriculum?

3. Outcomes The major outcome of the discussion was the indication, that students are rather eager to apply MUVEs, EG and VR into their curricula. Two of them shared their doubts about that - mostly as a result of their knowledge and common belief that the technology still needs to get developed in order to serve academical purposes properly.

Results of a small case study conducted during the sessions: 1. Computer Science students - using Epistemic Games as a topic to apply their own application (game development via creative thinking); 2. Industrial Engineering students - using virtual reality as a mean to visualise how engines/turbines work (simulation of different temperatures, velocity, materials); 3. Chemical Engineering students - using virtual reality to conduct chemical reactions in safe environment, when the results cannot be predicted and there is an explosion/contamination hazard; 4. Economics students - using epistemic games as a mean to practice budget planning, logical thinking and calculating skills (as complementary education applied to Finance classes programme); 5. Electronic Engineering students - using MUVEs as a way to visualise electron movement in electronic circuit (with adjustable zoom, current, speed with step-by-step task instructions).

Main conclusions after the CS: ➢ Every group managed to find a niche in which the technology could be applied; ➢ They noticed that those methods are quite comprehensive and universal, although they were not sure if applying them at a present state would affect learning in every field in a positive way (meaning: making the learning process more effective).

34

Event on Education Gliwice

BEST Educational Involvement Department

University-Business Cooperation & Transition from university to work Direct ways to get involved in University-Business Cooperation, Students-Business Cooperation and how the university can improve it 1. Background and content Closer links between business and higher education can: ●

encourage the transfer and sharing of knowledge, ● create long-term partnerships and opportunities, ● drive innovation, entrepreneurship and creativity.

Closer cooperation with business helps universities develop curricula that are relevant and meet the needs of students and society. This helps give graduates the right skills and mind-sets for the jobs market. There are many examples of successful cooperation between academia and industry in Europe. However, the level of cooperation varies considerably between different countries, universities and academic disciplines.

Whilst there are some exceptions, cooperation between HEIs and business in Europe is still in the early stages of development. European UBC is influenced by a large number of factors including the perception of benefits coming from UBC as well as barriers to and drivers of UBC. Moreover, situational factors such as age, gender, years at the HEI, years in business, type of HEI and country also influence the extent of UBC undertaken. Despite this complexity, UBC can be increased by focussing on appropriate UBC strategies, structures and approaches, operational activities and framework conditions.

2. Methodology This session focusing on University - Business Cooperation (UBC) was divided into two parts: ‘Direct ways to get involved in University-Business Cooperation’ and ‘Students-Business Cooperation and how the university can improve it’. The session consisted of teamwork, creating SWOTs and presenting the outcomes. Two hours were allocated for this session.

3. Outcomes Firstly, students were asked how do they measure their UBC satisfaction on a scale from one to ten, and why. ● ● ● ●

10 - I am very satisfied because my university offers a lot of opportunities regarding this issue.

10 - A lot of company links and a lot of opportunities 5 - Difficult formal process (to collaborate with them), little cooperation with companies 5 - Only a few internships are offered

35

Event on Education Gliwice ● ● ● ● ● ●

BEST Educational Involvement Department

6 6 3 3 - Teachers are looking for company projects in order to get more money.

6 - There is no platform for cooperation with companies.

5 - There aren’t enough job offers, and not enough are well paid.

Next, the students divided in 3 groups representing students / universities / companies (for company group check who had contact or worked in companies). Each group has a facilitator. They state what they expect from each other in terms of cooperation.

Expectations from universities towards companies: ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ●

Offer internships; Give scholarships; Offer good salaries; Offer long term employment; Offer sponsorships for competition; To attend job fairs and conferences; Open foundations for universities; Offer PhD opportunities; Promote the company; Be close to the campus; To have mutual projects; To offer consultations for projects; To feedback the content of projects; To offer software support; To organise visits of the company.

Expectations from universities towards students: ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ●

Give feedback; Be hardworking; Be fast learners; Attend classes; Get good marks; Represent their universities; Be prepared for hard work; Be motivated; Be passionate; Be involved in extracurricular activities; Improve throughout the years; Respect the teacher and the other students; Engage in group work/teamwork; Not to cheat - follow ethical rules.

Expectations from companies towards students:

36

Event on Education Gliwice ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ●

BEST Educational Involvement Department

To work for free; To be team workers; To have good communication skills; To be self-directed learners; To be good students; To have engaged in extracurricular activities; To know more languages; They want to invest in students so that later they will become good-quality workers; To be proactive; To be creative; To be open-minded.

Expectations from companies towards universities: ● ● ● ● ● ●

To offer promotion possibilities for the companies; To offer research and development opportunities; To create curricula which fit the needs of companies; To invite them to conduct some lectures; To offer high-quality education; To organise alumni meetings.

The next part of the session was group work. The students were divided into three groups and they discussed problems and possibilities for UBC regarding: ● Thesis writing; ● UBC involvement by companies; ● UBC involvement by universities.

Thesis writing: ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ●

Complexity of the project; Lack of mentoring from the company; Salary issues; Time management issues; Communication problems; It can be hard to arrange meetings; The idea of the thesis may not fit into the company’s field of work; Language problems; Students don’t have a lot of choice on thesis topics.

UBC involvement by companies: ●

● ● ●

Organise competitions (real case studies); ○ Business plans/cases/problems; ○ The jury should be from the company; The companies should offer more spots for students; The thesis should be paid (and based on real problems); More specific/specialised job offers;

37

Event on Education Gliwice ● ● ● ●

BEST Educational Involvement Department

Better promotion; The companies should be straight forward if they will hire after the internship; To organise workshops and conferences for which the students can get credits; ○ Try to get closer to the ECTS standards; To offer internships throughout the year and not only during some months.

UBC involvement from universities: ● ● ● ● ● ●

●

Universities should organise meetings between companies and students; Promote better the career centers; Mandatory internships (predefined hours that the students should have); More openness (opportunities) for student organisations to organise job fairs; International opportunities; ○ More offers for internships from international companies; Teachers to go on international exchanges and conferences; ○ To bring back new, interesting working methods; ○ To visit online coffee-places for exchange of teacher-to-teacher good practices; To assist students in finding projects with companies.

In the following part of the session, the students identified some problems concerning UBC. The question was: “Which problems do you see in your university cooperating with business?”

Identified problems: ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ●

Good companies don’t want to give paid internships so students are forced to work low-quality jobs.

Students can have a hard time managing their schedules when working and studying at the same time.

How can students adapt to another business culture?

How to make foreigners as attractive as locals?

Difficulties in assessing the quality of the student’s professional skills.

Companies use the students’ knowledge and they don’t give money.

There are not enough internship opportunities for students.

There are only a few scholarships from companies.

It’s hard to make friends in a small company.

After identifying the problems, the students tried to propose solutions.

Identified solutions: ● ● ● ● ● ●

Flexibility to choose your own schedule (eg. 3 days working, 2 days studying); Have specific classes dedicated to adaptation to another culture; The students have to make a report on what they did in the company and then the teacher can assess it.; Half time schedule - studying half week, working half week; Companies should see internist as potential good workers for them. So paying the students is a good way to invest; Governments should make a law on minimum internship salaries;

38

Event on Education Gliwice ● ● ● ●

BEST Educational Involvement Department

Companies should provide accommodation for the first period when foreign workers arrive; Time management courses; Offer of language courses to foreign workers; Hard to communicate with colleagues who cannot speak good English.

In separate teams, the students created SWOTs of the following UBC opportunities: ● ● ● ● ●

Company visits; Competitions; Thesis; Conferences; Job fairs.

Table 12: Company visits SWOT ➢ See the company from the inside; ➢ Talk with employees directly and see things from the inside.

➢ Companies are going to show you what they want you to see; ➢ Companies are often not available for visits.

Strengths

Weaknesses

Opportunities

Threats

➢ Students can get familiar with the company

➢ /

and the job; ➢ Possibility of future engagements or internships.

Table 13: Competitions SWOT ➢ ➢ ➢ ➢

Boosting the creativity of students; Challenging atmosphere; Friendly rivalry; Simulate real life problems.

➢ Limited number of participants; ➢ Some may be too competitive and become aggressive or offensive.

Strengths

Weaknesses

Opportunities

Threats

➢ Students can get a price if they win (money, job, internship).

➢ /

39

Event on Education Gliwice

BEST Educational Involvement Department Table 14: Thesis SWOT

➢ Facing real life problems; ➢ Gaining experience and knowledge; ➢ Good for the CV.

➢ Lack of companies willing to collaborate; ➢ Different field of study between company and university; ➢ Time management; ➢ Communication problems.

Strengths

Weaknesses

Opportunities

Threats

➢ Opportunity to be hired afterwards; ➢ Working with better equipment; ➢ Salary.

➢ ➢ ➢ ➢

It can be difficult; Mentoring problems; Complexity of the project; No choice of topic for the student.

Table 15: Conferences SWOT ➢ Networking; ➢ Gaining information about the latest trends; ➢ Motivation.

➢ Expensive; ➢ Not related to your field of study.

Strengths

Weaknesses

Opportunities

Threats

➢ /

➢ /

Table 16: Job fairs SWOT ➢ Opportunities for future career; ➢ An addition to the CV; ➢ Face-to-face meetings with companies.

➢ Limited amount of companies; ➢ Lack of personal approach because it’s too crowded.

Strengths

Weaknesses

Opportunities

Threats

40

Event on Education Gliwice

BEST Educational Involvement Department

➢ Finding a future career; ➢ A chance to meet important people.

➢ Difficulty in assessing the quality of companies; ➢ Lack of interest.

Tools for employment 1. Introduction and content The transition from university to work has always been difficult. Ways to make this transition easier are needed so that students who have finished their studies can more easily find jobs. The channels through which graduates find jobs or internships are the driving force of employability. They offer the leverage needed to find suitable jobs.

2. Methodology The session lasted for 1.5 hours and it consisted of group work and brainstorming.

3. Outcomes The goal of this session was to gather and evaluate the tools and platforms which students can use in order to look for and find a job.

The students were asked to share their experiences in looking for an internship or a job. Some said that they look for the info in mailing lists they are subscribed to and from forums. Networking was also mentioned as to offer the best chances of finding an internship.

One of the most common problems students face is that companies usually present their internships to many students but only offer a few spots thus making the competition big.

Platforms which offer personalised search and send email with the information from companies, as well as job fairs where students have the chance to talk live with companies, were said to be used often. The participants were also familiar with the job fairs organised by student organisations on their campuses.

In the next part of the session, the students brainstormed on features and information from the companies they would like to see in the platforms. Some of them are: ➢ ➢ ➢ ➢ ➢ ➢ ➢ ➢ ➢

Possibility to be in contact with people who have worked within the company; The opportunities to be structured by specialization and field of study; Information on the company, their working methods, what they offer etc.; The salaries which are offered by the companies; Experiences and testimonials from employees (past and present) and people who have been in contact with the company (partners, customers, etc); How often the company changes the personnel; Working hours of the employees; If the company gives a long term contract to employees or not; Possibilities to develop within the company (career development, CPD opportunities);

41

Event on Education Gliwice ➢ ➢ ➢ ➢ ➢ ➢ ➢ ➢ ➢ ➢ ➢ ➢ ➢ ➢

BEST Educational Involvement Department

Expectations the company has from the employee; How flexible is the company in terms of the schedule (working hours); Equipment and technologies used in the company; What kind of software the company uses; Days off in the year and holidays; If the company offers some other facilities for its employees; Values of the company; What are the risks during the job (poisonings, fire, explosions, etc.); If the company offers risk protection or not (in cases when it’s needed); Possibility for the employees to work from home; If they give fund to different causes and to NGOs; Their budget (where they spend their money/profits); The company’s mission and vision; If they support R&D (research and development).

In the next stage of the session, the students were divided into 4 teams. Each team was assigned different tools and platforms on employability. Their goal was to do a small research on them using a few keywords.

For the research they used laptops and search engines. All the teams had to identify the good and bad features of the tools thinking of a perspective of a person who is searching for a job. They also had to make a small presentation in front of all the other groups. The division of the tools and keywords is given in table 17.

As a tool to help to help create their presentations, using a Mind-map or a T-chart was advised.

Table 17: Division of tools for employability and the keywords per team Tools, platforms, channels for a job search Team Charmander

Keywords

Job fairs

University job fairs; student organisations; organisations

Websites; employment platforms; networks

Platforms for employment; job advertising websites; blogs

Team Squirtle

Mailing lists; newsletters

University mailing lists; job newsletters; company mailing lists; NGO mailing lists

Team Pikachu

Conferences; symposia

Conferences; symposia; forums

Team Bulbasaur

42

Event on Education Gliwice

BEST Educational Involvement Department

Image 10: Team Bulbasaur

Image 11: Team Charmander Table 18: Team Squirtle

43

Event on Education Gliwice

BEST Educational Involvement Department

Newsletters

Mailing lists

➢ A lot of useless info; ➢ Finding opportunities without searching; ➢ Specific division.

➢ Networking; ➢ A lot of useless info; ➢ Hard to find the relevant mailing lists.

Table 19: Team Pikachu Conferences and symposia Features: ➢ ➢ ➢ ➢

Big format events; One speaker in front of an audience; Company presentations; Questions and answers time.

Pros: ➢ ➢ ➢ ➢

Cons: Overview of the companies; HR speaker; Tips about applying for the jobs; Time for questions and discussions.

➢ ➢ ➢ ➢

Subjective point of view; Contact not only with your specific field; Little chance to get a job; Lack of personal approach.

Continuous Professional Development (CPD) 1. Introduction and content CPD is the acquisition of knowledge, experience and skills as well as the development of personal qualities. It contains both the acquisition of new skills to broaden competence and the enhancement of existing skills to keep abreast of evolving knowledge. Your competence is what interests your present and future employers. Therefore one must keep an eye on what happens in your field of technology to prepare in advance for change. Updating your knowledge and skills is the minimum requirement when you want to hold your position and stay employed. If you want your career to progress, through vertical or horizontal mobility, you need to invest more into CPD. There are many ways one can continuously develop their professional competences. To name a few: on the job learning and training, attend training courses, seminars, conferences, study for another complementary degree, e-learning, write articles in magazines and scientific periodicals or join expert groups of technical organisations.

Certain CPD courses are designed to help you obtain and maintain the five competences of a Chartered Engineer (CEng): C1. Knowledge and Understanding; C2. Application of Knowledge; C3. Leadership: Technical, Commercial and Managerial;

44

Event on Education Gliwice

BEST Educational Involvement Department

C4. Communication & Interpersonal Skills; C5. Professional Conduct.

2. Methodology and outcomes 2.1 The first part of the session consisted of brainstorming and discussion on two questions. They were asked the following: 1) What kind of skills and knowledges do you want to update throughout the years?

2) How can you develop yourself as a professional 1. Before graduation (undergraduate) 2. After graduation? (postgraduate). (Means how to get the skills and competences?)

The students gave the following answers on the first question: ➢ ➢ ➢ ➢ ➢ ➢ ➢ ➢ ➢ ➢ ➢ ➢ ➢ ➢ ➢ ➢ ➢

Team leading; Leadership; Creativity; Algorithms and programming languages; Leadership skills; Management skills; Problem solving; Communication skills; Teamwork; Soft skills; Negotiation skills; Public speaking; Time management; Presentation skills; Project management; Financial planning and management; Fluency in different languages.

Some of the skills recognised as being attractive to obtain but also necessary in the student's development as a professional, were pointed out as not being provided in formal education. Some skills like project management, are also needed in universities, but students often have to learn from trial and error and the theory is not provided.

The students had time to think of answers to the second question, write them on post-its and then present their ideas in front of the group. After the brainstorming, the students had the chance to cluster their ideas and to give points to the ones they agree with. Most of the students highlighted the first 4 in both divisions (undergraduate and postgraduate) in the following table as most important factors in one’s development as a professional.

Table 20: Important factors in the development as a professional

45

Event on Education Gliwice

BEST Educational Involvement Department

Before graduation (undergraduate) ➢ ➢ ➢ ➢ ➢ ➢

By taking part in exchanges; By following MOOCs; By joining startups; Through competitions; Through trainings on soft and hard skills; By working for an NGOs and/or volunteering; ➢ Through workshops.

After graduation (postgraduate) ➢ By going to internships; ➢ Through online research; ➢ By reading books and publications in your field; ➢ By attending seminars/conferences; ➢ Through discussions with colleagues; ➢ By learning new languages; ➢ Through additional formal education; ➢ Giving presentations in your field; ➢ Through mentoring and coaching.

2.2 In the next part of the session, the CPD types defined by FEANI were presented and explained. After this, the students had a chance to choose 5 of the types they found as most important and efficient. In the following list, the CPD types are given depending on the ratings they got from the students (the first one was rated as most important by the largest number of students and so on).

1. On-the-job training; 2. In-company training courses or lectures; 3. External training courses; 4. Preparation and publication in a journal or book; 5. Service in prof. engineering organization activities; 6. Technical visits or assignments; 7. Formal post graduate academic courses; 8. Updating prof. development based on ind. study; 9. Preparation / presentation of a technical topic; 10. Paper Teaching/instructing in CPD related activities.

2.3 In the third part of the session, a debate took place. The participants were divided into two teams. One team was defending the case of companies paying for their employees CPD activities, and the second team was for the case that an individual employees should cover the costs on their own.

Regarding the professional development after graduation and in a company environments, the students opinions were divided on who should cover the costs. A final conclusion wasn’t reached, but the students leaned more on the freedom of their choices on CPD activities if they were to pay their own expenses.

On one side, paying for one's CPD was pointed out as more logical because the employee is not obliged to stay in the company and might leave the job position at a given time. Even though courses provided and/or paid by the company might be optional, the students emphasized that an employee would feel under pressure to refuse it. A refusal of this kind can be seen as a lack of proactivity on the side of the employee. It was also mentioned that guilt should not be a factor in the decision making of the employees on these matters. CPD courses increase an employee's competitiveness in comparison to hers/his

46

Event on Education Gliwice

BEST Educational Involvement Department

colleagues and might improve one’s performance in the company. Moreover, individual initiatives to follow courses were mentioned as an added value which can be recognised by the employers.

The investments made by the companies in order to provide their employees with additional courses were recognised as a necessary risk in order to improve the performances of the employees. In addition, it was pointed out that a training provided by one company, won’t be necessary useful in another. If the course or other activity is done during the working hours, it would mean that the employee is missing out on work.

Thus it would be logical for the company not to pay for the activity expenses. Moreover, it was mentioned that the employees should not be pushed to cover the costs for an activity/course they would not choose to do otherwise.

4. Further reading ● ● ●

http://www.engineersireland.ie/CPD-Training.aspx http://www.engineersireland.ie/CPD-Training/CPD-Training/Online-CPD.aspx http://www.feani.org/site/index.php?id=287

Engineering Card 1. Introduction and content The engineerING card is based on an European approach to help engineers document and validate their engineering education, their professional experience, and their Continuing Professional Development.

The idea behind the engineerING card, which the European Federation of National Engineering Associations (FEANI) developed and the national associations in the respective countries issue, is to promote transparency and mobility of engineers on an ever closer European labour market.

With the growing importance of CPD, some national engineering associations in 2015 started an EU aided project to enhance the engineerING card, developing a system to document and validate not only formally but also non formally and informally acquired learning.

Keeping in mind the problems with recognition of study programs and the increasing importance of cross border mobility of engineers, the engineerING card may offer a European solution to some of the challenges engineers in Europe are facing and will continue to face.

2. Methodology The Engineering Card session was divided into 3 parts: a presentation, a discussion round and team work.

The session started with a presentation held by Dr. Kiefer. The content of the presentation covered the following topics: VDI - the association of German engineers; FEANI; the engineering card. After the familiarisation of both organisations, he proceeded to explain the project engineerING card, its features, factors as motivation for the project and the goals.

Prof. Delgado was also present on this session and he engaged in the discussions with the students. This allowed the chance for the students to hear about a professor’s perspective on the topic.

47

Event on Education Gliwice

BEST Educational Involvement Department

The second part of the session was a discussion focused on the following questions: ➢ ➢ ➢ ➢

What makes/would make the engineering card attractive for students?

Where do you personally see the benefits of a European approach?

Where do you see difficulties?

What do you think about the possibility to have non-formal/informal learning documented/validated? ➢ What kind of non-formal/informal learning outcomes would you like to have documented/validated? ➢ How important is Continuing Professional Development to you? ➢ What do you think should national engineering associations offer to be (more) attractive for students/young professional?

The third part of the session consisted of team work. The participants were divided into two teams. One team made a SWOT analysis on the engineering card concept and the other discussed about informal and non-formal related activities which could be added to the database of the card.

3. Outcomes The following points were raised as the most important for students if they would choose to use the card or not: ➢ ➢ ➢ ➢ ➢

Price of the card; Usage of the card by companies (recognition of the card by companies); Importance of the card to engineers; Additions which can be made to the card; An added value which the card offers.

Moreover, students identified the three most valuable added experiences and skills which should be added to the card’s database. They are: ➢ Language skills of the card holder; ➢ Attended online courses/MOOCs; ➢ E-learning (self-learning).

The students raised the idea of finding better ways to mark the language skills. The available certifications, sometimes are not valid after a certain period of time. Also, it was mentioned that a decrease in the price of the certifications would be beneficial.

On the topic of MOOCs, it was proposed for them to be certified without the official certificate. They would be added to the database only with a confirmation of attendance and a confirmation that the person has passed the MOOC. Another valuable addition to the card, would be an option to add previously validated knowledge which was acquired solely by the individual, through e-learning and other methods. The proposed solution for the validation would be the existence of tests and/or essays in order to evaluate those skills and the acquired knowledge. This process may be simpler for engineering skills. A system for self-evaluation could be created which would later be checked and confirmed by experts. In addition, a topic of evaluation of

48

Event on Education Gliwice

BEST Educational Involvement Department

soft skills was raised but the group agreed that it is a difficult area as social skills can only be assessed through interaction and in a group setting.

The students raised the concern on the importance of the card to companies because the interviews can be an indirect substitute for the database. However, as interviews are done repeatedly when applying in different companies, the card could potentially ease the process.

Moreover, it was mentioned that the card might be valuable for students who have been on internships when they enter the business world. If the universities move towards a more internship oriented curriculum, it’s attractiveness can increase.

The difficulty in the card’s acceptance in different countries was also noted by the students. The current price of the card was pointed out as a factor which decreases its attractiveness to students.

Table 21: A SWOT analysis of the engineerING card ➢ Networking opportunities;

➢ Is not promoted sufficiently; ➢ There is no obvious benefit for companies to use the engineering card; ➢ The price of the card is high for certain countries; ➢ It is not an official way to validate university diplomas for European students.

Strengths

Weaknesses

Opportunities

Threats

➢ The price of the card can depend on the country where it’s issued; ➢ The card can serve as an official way to validate the university diploma.

➢ Due to the relatively high price of the card in some countries, it can create an imbalance between the ones who have it and the ones who cannot afford it; ➢ The card’s attractiveness can drop if the university curricula are standardized and validated in different European countries.

4. Further reading ● ●

http://www.feani.org/site/index.php?id=279 http://www.engineering-card.de/index.php?id=2711&L=1

49

Event on Education Gliwice

BEST Educational Involvement Department

How to adjust University Curricula to match the business environment 1. Introduction and content The session's purpose was to measure students' satisfaction when it comes to usefulness of the content of their classes and teaching methods used at their university in terms of future work as a professional.

The main goal was to gather both the impressions of students who already have a business experience and of those who didn't manage to work in their field yet. This way the input could be diversified, based on both assumptions and expertise, so that the different statements and points of view could fuel the discussion. We hoped that it would be a great base to try and find flaws in the system as well as strong points of currently used teaching methods in order to try and (in theory) adjust the University curricula to students' and employers' demands and expectations.

2. Methodology The session was divided into 3 sections: ● Level of satisfaction measurement, followed by a discussion, ● Analysis of current teaching methods and the directions of development, ● Evaluation of good/bad teaching practices.

In the first part we gathered anonymous and subjective opinions of participants - "Your satisfaction/confidence level with University preparing you for the future career" The results are shown on a scale below (image 12).

Image 12: The students’ satisfaction/confidence level with University preparing you for the future career

In the second part we focused on similarities and differences between current teaching methods and those used centuries ago (in middle ages), since education is a branch which tends to adjust to the technological

50

Event on Education Gliwice

BEST Educational Involvement Department

discoveries and changes in a rather slow pace.

As a catalyst to initiate the discussion, we used a picture of a university class in Bologna (circa 1350s).

Image 13: University class in Bologna (circa 1350s)

Finally, in the last part students were asked to brainstorm upon the qualities they appreciate in their current schooling system and the abilities they feel they are missing and could be implemented into the curricula in the more sufficient way. For this purpose, the brainwriting part, followed by a discussion was conducted.

3. Outcomes As presented on the scale in the section above, most of the students assessed the system as "not bad" overall, but not many of them are fully satisfied or feel prepared for future jobs. Thanks to this feeling, they became eager to look for improvement points.

As participants shared their views on current teaching methods, some of the comments were: ● ● ● ● ● ● ●

"We don't have enough practical skills to start working on our own" "Too many compulsory classes in the curriculum that is not flexible at all. They are often valuable, but don't seem to be enjoyable" "Some of the subjects are just unnecessary and seem like a waste of time" "We have more freedom to choose our preferred classes year by year. I think this is a good approach, works very well" "Sometimes teachers act like the only source of knowledge, using only sage-on-a-stage approach.

Doesn't encourage students to work on their own" "Some classes should be obligatory, to ensure the basic knowledge reached all of the students."

"Mixing traditional methods with innovative ones seems to be a good solution".

51

Event on Education Gliwice

BEST Educational Involvement Department

The outcomes of the brainstorm are: Table 22: What students are missing and good teaching methods What are the students missing? ➢ leadership trainings; ➢ management skills (time, team, project management); ➢ creativity boosting problems; ➢ strategic planning (creating and following schedules); ➢ practical skills (not enough internships and real-life exercises); ➢ teamwork; ➢ various soft skills trainings (e.g. communication, presentation skills); ➢ multidisciplinary knowledge projects; ➢ Languages.

Good teaching methods and principles ➢ ➢ ➢ ➢ ➢ ➢ ➢ ➢ ➢ ➢ ➢ ➢

laboratories; practical projects; feedback at classes; discussions; being able to choose optional subjects; professional experience, teachers from industry, contact with the professional world; preparation for job interviews; theory combined with practice; team projects; double diploma opportunities; case studies; combining soft skills with technical skills.

To conclude, students see many points of improvement which could help adjusting university curricula to the business environment and market needs. Simultaneously, many traditional methods are highly appreciated, so the adjustments in schooling systems and teaching methods should also include embracing good existing practices, such as discussions, laboratory classes, lectures conducted by teachers with business experience etc, case studies, team projects.

Final case study The evaluation of the participants took form of a case study. The students were divided into 4 teams. The case study preparations lasted for 4 hours, after which the teams had to present their outcomes in front of each other and some of the professors which took part of the event.

Each team was given data about a university which consisted of: number of students studying at the university, student organisations present on the campus, exchange programmes, description of the curriculum (its flexibility), extra curricular activities, focus on soft-skills, internships as part of the curriculum, laboratory work, equipment and used technologies, online learning management system, project-based learning, MOOCs as part of the curriculum, university-business cooperation, feedback system, focus on improvement of the provided education, etc.

The methodology used to analyse the universities was a SWOT analysis.

The teams made a SWOT analysis of the university which they were assigned to and created a timeline for the improvement suggestions.

52

Event on Education Gliwice

BEST Educational Involvement Department

Even though the university cased different greatly one from another, their SWOT analyses are added together for a better overview on the student’s opinions on the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats regarding an university and the aforementioned characteristics.

Table 23: Joint SWOT analysis of the different university cases ➢ ➢ ➢ ➢ ➢ ➢ ➢ ➢ ➢ ➢ ➢ ➢ ➢ ➢ ➢ ➢ ➢

➢ ➢ ➢ ➢ ➢ ➢ ➢ ➢ ➢ ➢ ➢ ➢

Numerous well equipped laboratories A moodle (learning management system) Obligatory research work with professors A career center Companies which are interested in the partnership with the university and possible sponsorships Big numbers of students Available exchange programs A flexible curriculum Regular internships Numerous research projects involving both students and professors More than one mandatory internship Company workshops throughout the year Low teacher to student ratio Big number of student organisations Many research projects involving both students and professors Numerous competitions Numerous job fairs

➢ A non flexible curriculum ➢ Extra curricular courses are not developed ➢ Laboratories are not accessible for undergraduate students ➢ No online labs ➢ University and professors ask for feedback after the courses, but do not implement it ➢ Lack of student organizations ➢ Lack of soft-skills classes included in the curricula ➢ Low level of facilities ➢ No technology enhanced learning (TEL) nor problem based learning (PBL) ➢ Low number of job fairs and no/inactive career centre ➢ Professors don’t receive feedback ➢ No online labs ➢ No ECTS credits for projects ➢ Not well developed curricula ➢ MOOCs not implemented ➢ No project based learning (PjBL) ➢ The students are not asked for feedback ➢ Low number of international student organizations ➢ Short duration of mandatory internship

Strengths

Weaknesses

Opportunities

Threats

Double-diplomas Internships provided by the university Job fairs for each faculty and competitions High local visibility International visibility Skills development Company-university cooperation Gained practical skills through workshops Practical experience in companies Development of soft-skills Work at home Better communication between students and the university staff ➢ Available job opportunities

➢ Low amount of project-based learning courses ➢ No inquiry based learning ➢ Students are not involved in the university’s life ➢ Not competitive curriculum ➢ Bad student’s environment ➢ Poor education ➢ Low number of employment of alumni’s ➢ No self-critical view of professor’s work ➢ Lack of real and practical experience ➢ Low implementation of new technologies and modern working methods ➢ No motivation for students ➢ Standardized knowledge

53

Event on Education Gliwice ➢ Increased employability through the development of skills such as teamwork

BEST Educational Involvement Department ➢ No improvement

In addition to the SWOT analysis, the students gave concrete ideas on specific problems and also developed a timeline of an implementation plan.

Table 24: Correlation between the possible solutions for the identified problems within the university Problem within the university

Possible solution

Non flexible curriculum

More elective courses

Extra curricular courses are not developed

Workshop, case studies, more activities which require teamwork

Lack of soft-skills classes included in the curricula

Mandatory soft skills classes on the 1st year and soft-skills elective courses on the next years

Labs are not accessible for undergraduate students

More mandatory labs in curricular

No online labs

Encourage professors to prepare online labs, MOOCs

University and professors ask for feedback after the courses, but do not implement it

Establish a committee for professors assessment

Image 14: Three-year plan of improvement of the undergraduate level studies

The following were pointed out as necessary for the improvement of the graduate level education: ➢ ➢ ➢ ➢

A lot of flexibility; MOOCs; University-business cooperation projects; Mostly practical, career based projects.

Ideas for a general improvement of the university were also mentioned:

54

Event on Education Gliwice ➢ ➢ ➢ ➢ ➢ ➢ ➢

BEST Educational Involvement Department

Creating a student board in order to improve and assess education; Continuous improvement on teaching methods; Development of the university-business cooperation; Alumni meetings and a platform for sharing; Epistemic games; Online labs and gamification.

R&D department.

The second group of students created a 10 year strategy on for improving the university given in the following table. They divided the progress into three stages: 0-3 years, 3-6 years and 6-10 years according to the recognised problems and proposed solutions.

Table 25: Ten year strategy on the implementation of an improvement plan within the given university 0 - 3 years Problem: ➢ Lack of student organisations

Problem: ➢ Professors don’t ask for feedback

Solutions: ➢ Teachers promote associations in their own field ➢ The students involved in the organisations get ECTS ➢ University facilitate money, offices, logistics for events.

Solutions: ➢ Surveys ➢ Bonus system 3 - 6 years

Problems: ➢ Lack of the soft skills classes ➢ Low number of job fairs and competitions

Solution ➢ Big associations organise competitions, extracurricular courses, workshops, conferences, job fairs…

6 - 10 years Problem: ➢ Low level of facilities

Problem: ➢ No TEL nor PBL

Solution: ➢ As a consequence of the job fairs companies get closer to the university getting money for laboratories and new technologies.

Solution: ➢ After the facilities have been improved new techniques as TEL or PBL are implemented.

55

Event on Education Gliwice

BEST Educational Involvement Department

The third group gave proposals on solutions for the three downsides of the university which they found as most important. They are given in table 26. The shortcomings of the university are: lack of practical skills development, lack of new teaching methods, low connection with real life problems.

Table 26: Proposed solutions on the identified shortcomings of the university Shortcomings of the university

Proposed solutions

Lack of practical skills development

➢ First internship shorter than the second one ➢ Courses for the professor to improve their knowledge ➢ Give credits as motivation

Lack of new teaching methods

➢ ➢ ➢ ➢ ➢

Low connection with real life problems

➢ Connection between universities, NGO, Erasmus ➢ First internship shorter than the second one

One year obligatory courses, the other ones flexible Optional courses, motivation with credits Credits for motivation Promotion Attractive quizzes

To conclude, the students were able to give a critical opinion based on the knowledge they had gained during the symposium. They had the possibility to learn about different methodologies and approaches which are used in various European universities. Through the discussions, they had demonstrated critical thinking and creative approach in facing the challenges of their current education systems and institutions.

Evaluations The event was evaluated by in three different ways. First, a survey was sent to participants on the very last day of the event to see how they would reflect on the week of activities they had. Here are some of their impressions right after the event (15 people answered the survey).

Would you take an initiative to change your local educa tional system?

56

Event on Education Gliwice

BEST Educational Involvement Department

How much would you like to take an initiative to change your local educational system?

Average: 4.26/5

How practical do you find the knowledge you gained throughout the EoE? Average: 4.26/5

Top-3 topics that interested students the most

A bit after the event, the official evaluation was available for students to evaluate and all attendees filled the questions mandatory to get their deposit back. Also, a survey was sent 6 months after the event to evaluate the impact of the event on the students, 15 students out of 19 filled it again.

Do you see your education with a different perspective after the EoE?

57

Event on Education Gliwice

BEST Educational Involvement Department

Did you increase your communication with your teachers after the EoE?

Did you join or create any initiatives related to education in your university after the EoE? (question sent 6 months after)

Did you join or create any initiatives related to higher education and its development after the EoE?

58

Event on Education Gliwice

BEST Educational Involvement Department

Did the EoE make you think about pursuing a career related to teaching?

Top 3 most useful sessions according to students

Top 5 skills developed according to students

59

Event on Education Gliwice

BEST Educational Involvement Department

Thank you!

As the content team of the EoE, the authors would like to thank some amazing people without who the event would not have been the same, or even possible:

● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ●

LBG Gliwice, Prof. Dr. Marek Pawelczyk, Prof. Dr. Jerzy Rutkowski, Dr. Thomas Kiefer, Prof. Dr. Carlos Delgado Kloos, Prof. Dr. Seweryn Spalek, Silesian University of Technology The Educational Involvement Department, with all it’s members and trainees, The whole of BEST, All the participants for the invaluable input, ideas and energy given over the 11 days of event together!

Authors Dragana Manasova, Adrien Merlier, Agata Wippich, Nenad Trajkovikj, Aleksandra Guliaeva Many thanks to every eduCat who contributed by providing feedback for the report!

60