Conference recording
e-Inclusion interactive e-conference
e-Inclusion: Moving from diversity to inclusion through digital education
7 February 2023, 11:00-16:00 (CET)
Hosted by the Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam
The irreversible shift towards digital education created an opportunity to rethink inclusive education within all sorts of digital environments.
From October 2020, partners of the EU funded e-Inclusion project, have extensively reflected on the lessons learned from the pandemic. In collaboration with international experts, we have explored how to merge inclusion and the digital to get an understanding of how to make use of the opportunities the digital has to offer when it comes to inclusion in higher education.
In this recording from the opening panel session we shared our findings, introduced the developed deliverables and invited teachers, students, educational management, and others interested, into the conversation.
PART 1. 11:00-12:10. Extend your knowledge and awareness (plenary session)
11.00 – 11.10 Introductory welcome
11.10 – 12.10 e-Inclusion, WHY? // e-Inclusion, WHAT?
– Keynote 1: Saran Stewart, Associate Professor, Higher Education and Student Affairs, and Director of Global Education at The Neag School of Education at the University of Connecticut
– Keynote 2: Fabio Nascimbeni, Human Capital Development Expert at European Training Foundation
– Keynote 3: Marieke Slootman, Assistant Professor at the Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam (VU) Sociology Department and e-Inclusion project coordinator
– Panel Q&A
International experts on inclusion and the digital will be setting the scene: why the need for e-Inclusion, followed by the coordinator of our Erasmus+ e-Inclusion project, who will be presenting: what is e-Inclusion.
You will gain insight into the complexities and opportunities of inclusive digital education, and be introduced to the e-inclusion tools developed during the project.
PART 2. 12:50-14:50. Experience and design (choose one of three interactive workshops*)
A prerequisite for making your own digital education (more) inclusive is to experience the discomfort of social and/or digital barriers yourself, and reflect on these experiences. During our interactive challenge-based workshops, you will gain understanding and come up with interventions for your own teaching: how to e-Include.
PART 3. 15:00-15:50. Reflect and moving on (plenary session)
Through a closing panel and from the lessons learned during the workshops, we will reflect on our aspirations for our own teaching and investigate where there is room to grow. We will conclude by asking the question: e-Inclusion, what’s next.
Workshops Description
Choose one of the following 2-hour workshops, maximum 30 participants per workshop:
Workshop 1: The discomfort of online social interaction and reflexivity
The anonymity and lack of ‘social presence’ in online courses reduces engagement. Creating an inclusive and safe environment, in which students (and teacher) feel free to participate, starts with getting to know one another, and with growing awareness about their own positionality.
In this workshop, participants take part in an introductory activity, which they can use as inspiration for their own teaching. To better relate to students, we will reflect on hesitations and experienced discomfort in these social interactions. We try to better understand the social and digital barriers in our courses and come up with ways how to lower these barriers and increase engagement.
Workshop 2: The challenges and opportunities of diversity in online collaboration
Collaboration is an important part of learning. However, collaborating online can be quite a challenge. More than offline, it requires clear instructions – and it can be uncomfortable for students to collaborate with others who they hardly know.
In this workshop, participants take part in a challenge based exercise for which a variety of different kind of resources will be presented. Through required collaboration, the groups will collaboratively work towards a collective outcome In the process they will co-construct the knowledge needed, and come to value the diversity of the group members.
Workshop 3: Exploring other formats and media to strengthen student participation
Students vary in their talents, needs and learning styles. The use of multiple formats and media – beyond written text and auditory lectures – enhances the accessibility and engagement for a greater number of students. This gives students diverging opportunities to express themselves, participate and show their talents. It also broadens learning for all students and gives access to other kinds of knowledge and learning. However, for those accustomed to the standard academic formats (for teachers and students alike) expressing oneself through other media, such as audio or film, can be uneasy.
In this workshop we embrace the challenge and closer examine the benefits and barriers for using film. Through recording and sharing our own contributions, we can better understand student’s experiences, and recognize the value of varying media use. Together, we design ways how to include different communication formats into our own teaching, and how to reduce barriers.
