Event description
The conference organizers – Robert Bianchi (VCUarts Qatar), Byrad Yyelland (VCUarts Qatar), Khawla Kittaneh (VCUarts Qatar), Ryad Ghanam (VCUarts Qatar), Alan S. Weber (Weill Cornell Medicine - Qatar), and Wajdi Zaghouani (HBKU) have prepared this workshop to improve teaching skills in online environments in Qatar and to help students learn more effectively online. The workshop organizers and student researchers conducted an extensive nation-wide multi-university research project on online learning in Qatar in 2020-2023, and results of this study will be presented during the workshop.
Two keynote speakers will present their research and experiences in designing e-learning curricula.
Allan Carrington, formerly of the
University of Adelaide, and Proprietor of Designing Outcomes, will challenge instructors to design online environments from the building blocks of learning goals and student engagement. He is the inventor of the
Padagogy Wheel and he received an Australian National Office for Learning and Teaching (OLT) Citation in 2012 for his contributions to education. Fathi Aidarus is a faculty member at
The University of Doha for Science and Technology in Doha, Qatar and a PhD candidate at
The University of Portsmouth in the UK. He has completed one of the most comprehensive research studies of hybrid and blended learning in Qatar and he will be presenting his findings in the context of best practices for virtual learning environments.
Recent events such as the Covid-19 pandemic, the blockade of Qatar, the Qatar flash floods of 2018, and the FIFA World Cup all indicate that hybrid and online teaching will likely remain a viable option for higher education in Qatar when face-to-face teaching becomes unfeasible. But even when in-person teaching is possible, synchronous online learning can help create a dynamic hybrid learning environment. The one-day event entitled Effective Teaching and Learning Online for Teachers and Students will offer a variety of workshops (geared towards both faculty and students) and talks designed to improve synchronous online education in Qatar.
Participants may register for any combination of the following activities during the 1-day Saturday event: a research presentation, 2 keynote speeches, a discussion roundtable of faculty and students, 1 student workshop and 1 faculty workshop. The student workshop was designed by student researchers expressly for students. The workshop is open to all faculty and students in Higher Education in Qatar.
Who should participate?
Both faculty and students in Higher Education interested in improving their teaching and learning skills in online educational environments should attend the workshop activities. The morning workshop is designed specifically for students and the afternoon workshop is for faculty. Participants must pre-register for the event and there is no fee for the workshop. Zoom meeting links will be emailed to participants on March 9.
Sponsorship
Funding for this workshop was provided through Qatar Foundation's new grant program of Multiversity Faculty Grants.
Important dates
Registration opens: 22 February 2023
Registration closes: 9 March 2023
Conference online: 11 March 2023