European Universities Forum at Palacký University Olomouc

Written by Niels Hexspoor on . Posted in Academics, Events, Featured.

On the 1st and 2nd of December, Palacký University Olomouc will organize the European Universities Forum. This high-level event, organized in the light of the Czech EU presidency, will provide an opportunity to discuss and assess the role of European Universities Initiative pilot phase in the Czech higher education context and within the European aims of building the Higher Education Area.

This event will be an incubator for new ideas on the mobilisation of universities, in the broadest sense, to promote shared European values and a strengthened identity, and also to improve the quality, attractiveness and international competitiveness of Europe’s higher education establishments.

This forum will be opened by the Czech Deputy-Minister for Education, and brings together the participating universities from various Member States, the European Commission and of course all of the relevant stakeholders, in particular the alliances of European universities.

The two-day programme features:

  •       Two high-level panel sessions addressing the priorities of the European Universities’ ambitions
  •       Three “Alliance workshops” intended as spaces for exchanging best practices between Czech alliances and their top management focusing on research and education developments, offering initial feedback on their pilot phase in order to contribute to developing the next steps
  •       A closing session, reporting on the panels and thematic sessions to contribute to Czech national and European level on the future of European universities in Higher Education.

For more information on the event, take a look at euf.upol.cz.  

BEVI Training Workshops: Basic, Intermediate and Advanced

Written by Niels Hexspoor on . Posted in Academics, Events.

The Beliefs, Events, and Values Inventory (BEVI) is an accessible, adaptable, and powerful analytic tool that can be used to measure the impact of teaching, learning and training activities on the mindsets of students and staff.

When:     

  • Basic Training: 25th November 2022, 17.30 – 19.30, CET.
  • Intermediate Training: 1st & 2nd December 2022, 12.30-14.00 & 17.30-19-00 CET.
  • Advanced Training: 2023 (Dates TBD)

Where:

Basic BEVI Training: Virtual via Zoom; Intermediate and Advanced: In Person and Virtual

Target group:

This workshop is open to all Aurora academic and non-academic staff and doctoral students.

What are the requirements for Admission and Enrollment?

To do the intermediate or advanced level, you need to have done the previous stages. Although, this time, you can do the intermediate either after following a basic course last year or the year before, OR by reviewing the BASIC course videos before the 25th of November session and participating in that session.

Coordinators:

  • Hajime Nishitani (BEVI & Soka University)
  • Craig Shealy (IBAVI & WWU)
  • John Style (Aurora & URV)

These workshops are FREE.

For further information, please write to John Style (john.style@urv.cat)  if you are participating as part of the Aurora Network and Craig Shealy (craigshealy@gmail.com) if you are participating as part of IBAVI Global.

Register here!

More information can be found here

Mentorship programme for PhDs and early stage researchers at Pavol Jozef Safarik University in Kosice

Written by Niels Hexspoor on . Posted in Academics, CDS-Network, Events.

On behalf of the AURORA alliance, we are pleased to invite you to the Capacity Development Support (CDS) Training event organised by Pavol Jozef Šafárik University (Kosice, Slovakia), in collaboration with the Aurora CDS Task Team at Palacky University (UP) and Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam (VU).

The two-day training event with a focus on  Mentorship programme for PhDs and early stage researchers will take place in hybrid format on 26-27 October 2022.

The event is open to academic staff of the Aurora Associate partners and the universities in the CDS Network involved in mentoring and supervision of PhD students and young researchers as well as staff involved in the development of a mentorship programme at their own university.

In case of interest, please register to the event via this online form https://forms.gle/FDs1zZHgdBpF9xMj8. Registration is open for both in-person and online attendance.

More information about the trainers and the programme can be found here.

Aurora LOUIS-Workshop

Written by Niels Hexspoor on . Posted in Academics.

On Wednesday 12th October 2022, you are invited to the Aurora LOUIS Workshop, which will take place from 09:00 to 13:00 at the Faculty of Law, room A.01Part of the Aurora Competence Framework, LOUIS (Learning Outcomes in Universities for Impact on Society) will help you further develop the quality of your courses by focusing on the societal impact of your learning outcomes.

The goal of this workshop is to equip the participants with knowledge and skills necessary for implementation of LOUIS Tool into their classes. That would allow them to project, design and innovate their own courses. After completing this course, the participants would be also able to train others in using the LOUIS tool.

LOUIS matrix is designed in such a way, that both the university teachers and their students are be able to measure the progress in the classes, as well as understand the necessary steps to take in order to get to the higher level of a specific transversal competence.The workshop will be very interactive, therefore the participants are asked the bring an annotation of their own course in order to focus on the implementation in a specific context. 

You can enrol to the programme on the oficial website of Lifelong Learning Department: czv.upol.cz, or by scanning the QR on the poster. 

Aurora LOUIS Workshop – Poster

 

Infoday on MSCA Doctoral Networks

Written by Niels Hexspoor on . Posted in Academics.

As member of AURORA, it is a pleasure to invite you to the Infoday on MSCA Doctoral Networks that take place on 22nd of September at 10 a.m. Rovira i Virgili University is organizing this exclusive virtual event with Xavier Eekhout, Researcher mobility and career development project manager at EURAXESS Spain & MSCA NCP Spain.

It will be a great opportunity to learn more about the funding opportunity of the currently open 2022 call and find the best AURORA partners to collaborate on these projects. 

If you are interested in the event but can’t attend, you should register anyway and we will send you the video and session materials. 

War in Ukraine: Support to our Aurora partner V. N. Karazin Kharkiv National University

Written by Niels Hexspoor on . Posted in Academics, CDS-Network.

UPDATE 01.09.2022: Overview of Support to our partners at V. N. Karazin Kharkiv National University:

A full, updated overview of our support to our partners at V. N. Karazin Kharkiv National University can be found here. 

PDF – UP Aurora Ukraine Support Efforts Overview

UPDATE 15.03.2022: UP Coordinated aid for Ukrainian Students: 

Any Ukrainian student interested in studying at Palacky University Olomouc can fill in the following questionnaire: 

Questionnaire – Ukrainian Students interested in studying at UP

At the moment, no limit has been set on the amount of Ukrainian students that Palacky University Olomouc can welcome. 

We can offer Ukrainian Students the following: 

  • Ukrainian Students are eligible for a scholarship of 10 000 CZK a month offered by the Czech government, and paid by Palacky University Olomouc.
  • The students will be accepted as exchange students.
  • Students can attend Czech language classes, and classes in English for Erasmus students. 
  • Teachers will be asked to give all Ukrainian students a chance to finish their classes successfully and receive credit, if necessary with some extra work. 
  • Each student is eligible for two semesters of such support. 
  • National legislation currently allows entry into studies only through the standard admission procedure. A new special procedure for Ukrainian students is currently being prepared. 
  • Ukrainian Students can apply to study at Palacky University as permanent students if they pass the test and get B1 level of Czech. 

________________________________

UPDATE: As we speak, V.N. Karazin Kharkiv National University is facing massive damages to its buildings. Our colleagues from Kharkiv made the following video and ask for your help! 

Video – Help V.N. Karazin Kharkiv National University!

________________________________

Coordinated Aurora support to Karazin University

Given the leading role our university has in the Aurora Capacity Development Support Program, UP has taken a coordinating role to help colleagues at V. N. Karazin Kharkiv National University on behalf of the Aurora universities.

The Aurora UP office ​is currently undertaking following short-term (humanitarian) actions in collaboration with VU and Aurora Network:

  • Ensuring the immediate protection and securing relocation, employment, and accommodation at UP for Aurora focal points at International office of Karazin ​University 
  • Supporting online teaching of Karazin Kharkiv per internal fundraising and purchase of equipment by Aurora universities 
  • Continuous assessment of needs and fundraising for Karazin staff and students and info-sharing among Aurora universities
  • Systemic and collaborative bottom-up support development: Implementing range of support actions ​for Karazin institution and its students and staff as per continuous assessment of needs in collaboration with Karazin Intenational office. 

For more details on full scope of our planned actions (short-term, mid-term and long-term), see our Action plan (April update). 

UP will continue planning ahead and communicating these available protection resources to V. N. Karazin Kharkiv National University staff and students and has set up a website in Czech, English, Ukrainian that is a focal point of official info-sharing https://www.upol.cz/en/ukraine/.

We are grateful for joint efforts and Aurora’s collaboration in supporting the colleagues at V. N. Karazin Kharkiv National University and look forward to your continuing support.

If you wish to help and support our partners at V. N. Karazin Kharkiv National University or wish to reach our colleagues from Ukraine, please contact our Institutional Coordinator Selma Porobic.

Presentation: Dr. M. C. Reig Current research in Anthropology

Written by Niels Hexspoor on . Posted in Academics, Events.

We would like to invite you to an online meeting with our colleague dr. Mireia Campanera Reig from the Department of Anthropology, Philosophy and Social Work University Rovira i Virgili, Tarragona, Spain, which will take place on Tuesday, September 13, 2022 from 1 p.m.

Dr. Mireia Campanera Reig came to the Faculty of Health Sciences of the Palacký University in Olomouc as part of a joint international project “Active aging – a healthy lifestyle”, which is part of the AURORA project, guaranteed by the Palacký University in Olomouc. The main researcher of the project is the Department of Preclinical Subjects at the Faculty of Health Sciences in Olomouc. Dr. Mireia Campanera Reig will have an online presentation on the topic: Current research in Anthropology and Social Work at University Rovira i Virgili. Strengthening collaboration with Palacký University. The goal of this lecture is to present the pedagogical and scientific focus of her department (Department of Anthropology, Philosophy and Social Work) as well as of the University Rovira i Virgili in Tarragona, Spain.   She will present the possibility of establishing further cooperation with other departments at Palacký University in Olomouc. The lecture will last about 15 – 20 minutes, followed by a discussion.

Join Zoom Meeting
https://cesnet.zoom.us/j/98748431834?pwd=cHd3SG9yVXBUM1BVV1ZZQ1hnalZkdz09

Meeting ID: 987 4843 1834
Passcode: 144487

Open Aurora Courses at the Universität Innsbruck.

Written by R N on . Posted in Academics, Events, Featured, Students.

Open-Aurora-Courses_WiSe22_23_Universitat-Innsbruck_

 

On the Universität Innsbruck Aurora Homepage the students can find all necessary information about the application process and the registration link. Below you will find a list of courses for WiSe 2022 / 2023. In particular, we would like highlight the first course listed, as it is part of the Joint Programme: Understanding Europe.

 

This course is the first part of the Joint Programme: Understanding Europe, formed by the Pilot Domain 3.4.4 – Cultures: Diversity & Identity.  

Video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lAK_2d7-VuE

This course introduces students into studying the visions and challenges of Europe and European integration in the making. Trans-European conflict, cooperation and integration is addressed from a historical and contemporary perspective: We look at the historical constitution of Europe, its political institutions, societal objectives and symbolic representations in media, film, literature, popular culture and arts. In six learning units, we will cover:

  • The European Union: History and Current Challenges
  • Migration and Mobility
  • Philosophical and Political Concepts of Europe
  • War and Conflict in Europe
  • Imagined Others and Memory Cultures
  • Narratives of Europe in film, literature and arts

Although the official deadline is September 4th, students can still apply and their details will be processed manually.

 

 

Should you need any further information, please do not hesitate to contact the Aurora Innsbruck Office team: Aurora@uibk.ac.at / www.uibk.ac.at/international/aurora/

Workshop Outcomes – Peace Education for Karazin University, and GRT inclusion in higher education.

Written by Niels Hexspoor on . Posted in Academics, Events.

On 30 June 2022, two workshops titled ‘Developing a Peace Education Programme for Karazin Kharkiv National University in Ukraine’ and ‘Removing barriers to Higher Education for Gypsy, Roma and Travellers’, were organised and moderated by Dr Spyros Themelis (UEA) and Dr Selma Porobic (Palacky University Olomouc) at the University of East Anglia (UEA). The two workshops, implemented under the framework of the Culture: Identity and Diversity pilot domain were a great success and will produce concrete outcomes in the future.

‘Developing a Peace Education Programme for Karazin Kharkiv National University in Ukraine’

One of the developing features of Aurora support to Karazin Kharkiv National University is peace education programme. Peace education is an emerging field focusing on peacebuilding efforts through education in situations of collective trauma such as war, mass displacement, and genocide. This pedagogy focuses on the creation of safe environments for teachers and students to foster dialogue and reflection by enabling sharing of their own traumatic (and often conflictual) narratives and supporting perspective-taking.  

Under the guidance of Dr. Selma Porobić, this workshop brought together 14 experts from over 9 different institutions, and aimed to  explore a collaborative model focusing on the development of peace education programme for Karazin Kharkiv University. During the group discussion two set of questions were addressed. Group A focused on how to develop Peace education (PE) as integral part of general competences for academicians at Karazin, while Group B focused on researching PE in the ongoing war situation in the city of Kharkiv and in the Eastern Ukraine.

Among the most significant outcomes of this workshop, are the establishment of the International Expert team for peace education platform at Karazin University and initial planning of peace education programme including timeline for different components, research methods, staff training and COILs.

Thanks to the SPACE Network, represented in the workshop by Elke Kitzelmann (UIBK), an initial donation was made towards the realization of the Peace Education platform and further Aurora collaborations with Karazin University. In addition, collaborations with UIBK’s new MA Peace Studies program, under prof. Andreas Oberprantacher were initiated as well.  As part of International Summer School in Refugee Law and Rights, co-organized by Palacky University and Karazin University, on August 24th, students from UIBK’s Peace studies  program will engage with Karazin University’s MA students in the plenary session ‘ Prospects for Peace Building, Recovery & Reconstruction.’

We look forward to engagement from more Aurora universities. Enquiries about the PE program at Karazin University can be sent to Dr. Selma Porobić, coordinator for Aurora support to Karazin University.

‘Removing barriers to Higher Education for Gypsy, Roma and Travellers’

Gypsy, Roma and Travellers (GRT) are the largest ethnic minority and at the same time the most marginalised in Europe. It is little surprise, therefore, that they are also one of the most, if not the most, underrepresented group in higher education.

This workshop explored the types of barriers facing Gypsy, Roma and Traveller students in accessing Higher Education and experiences of inclusion and exclulsion. In total 15 participants attended the event, including academics, practitioners, reseach students, as well as inclusion leaders in schools and local councils. Participants were of Roma and non-Roma origin and they shared perspectives from a variety of European countries (including Germany, Greece, Iceland,  Sweeden, the Czech Republic, Romania and the UK) and institutional contexts, including, schools, universisties, musuems and local couincils.

One of the outcomes of this workshop, was the decision to create a network of Roma inclusion research in higher education. It was also agreed that this network will aim to map national and international policies of inclusion and examine national and international reports relevant to the topic. Finally, it was agreed that the network will explore the possiblity of setting up courses on Roma education across the Aurora network and more broadly, and work with outreach officers to explore innovative practices on access.

Dr. Spyros Themelis, who led the workshop, will explore options for hosting a face-to-face meeting at the start of the new academic year. If you have any suggestions or would like to get involved, please email Spyros at: s.themelis@uea.ac.uk.

We welcome contributions from across all Aurora universities.

 

Aurora at the Campus of European Universities

Written by Niels Hexspoor on . Posted in Academics, Events.

On the 30th of June, 2022, Aurora was present at the Campus of European Universities, organized in the framework of the French Presidency of the Council of the European Union. Palacký University was represented by a strong delegation, consisting of Rector Martin Procházka and the Vice-rector for Science and Research, Lucie Plíhalová.    

The Campus marked the final Higher Education Event organized under the French Presidency before handing this role over to the Czech Republic. Radka Wildová, Czech Deputy Minister of Higher Education provided one of the closing speeches for the event, further highlighting the importance of European Universities alliances during the Czech tenure of the Presidency of the Council of the European Union.

Radka Wildová, Czech Deputy Minister of Higher Education at the Campus of European Universities.

 

The event aimed to “promote the European Universities alliances and transnational cooperation in the fields of higher education, research and innovation,” inspired by the Council Recommendation on “building bridges for effective European higher education cooperation.”

The event featured both plenary sessions and workshops, in addition to the “Village of Alliances”, an exhibition space where each of the 41 European University alliances was represented with a dedicated booth.

Aurora President Jon Atli Benediktsson stated that the Campus proved a great opportunity “to share our experience and discuss the future with other delegates and alliances”.

More information on the event can be found here.