Online Learning – Page 33 – Digital Learning Dispatches

If you’re interested in online learning and transforming lives and societies through education, then Dublin is the place to be in November. The official opening of the ICDE World Conference on Online Learning is less than 100-days away when we expect to welcome to Dublin around 1000 delegates from over 50 countries. Our NIDL team has a great social and cultural programme planned for delegates along with an engaging mix of hot topics and topical themes for discussion during the conference. If you haven’t already done so, then make sure you register as soon as possible for this year’s ICDE World Conference.

However, if for some reason you can’t get to Dublin in person then we would like to let you know about the opportunity to submit a Virtual Paper which still gives people from around the world a chance to participate in this major international event. Virtual Papers will be included in the conference programme and formal proceedings with the same validity as other paper categories. The conference website contains further information about the requirements for Virtual Papers and authors need to submit a short abstract (250 words) through the conference submission system by no later than Friday 23^rdAugust.

Lastly, for a more detailed conference update make sure you check the information in last week’s dedicated ICDE World Conference Newsletter and keep an eye out for next week’s edition. The World Conference Newsletter will be published fortnightly as we countdown to the event, with newsworthy items, brief profiles of our major speakers, links to significant reports that will be discussed at the conference, as well as providing valuable tips and information of how delegates can make the most of the event and your time in Dublin.

Last week, Dublin City University (DCU) announced a total of 20 new scholarships to mark World Refugee Day. This announcement builds further on DCU’s designation as Ireland’s first University of Sanctuary.

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Five scholarships support campus-based undergraduate study and five will be provided for online study for Irish-based refugees and asylum seekers through DCU Connected. world-refugee-day-photos-download-1-1080x675 A further ten scholarships are offered through a strategic partnership with FutureLearn. The DCU-FutureLearn scholarships will enable Irish-based refugees and asylum seekers to access short online courses on FutureLearn’s upgrade model and will enable recipients to pursue Certificates of Achievement.

To date, there have been more than 60 scholarships offered by DCU to people from a refugee or asylum-seeking background through either undergraduate on-campus study or online distance learning. A number of these scholarships have been supported through philanthropic contributions from supporters of DCU Educational Trust. The President of Dublin City University, Professor Brian MacCraith said:

“The awarding of these scholarships indicates the strength of DCU’s commitment to our status as a University of Sanctuary, and to the values of social justice and inclusion. I am particularly delighted that our partnership with FutureLearn has allowed us to harness the power of online learning to provide educational access to students from our refugee and asylum seeker communities.”

Professor Mark Brown, Director of the National Institute for Digital Learning said:

“These scholarships build on DCU’s strong commitment to promoting access to higher education and our considerable expertise in designing new models of online learning. In November, DCU will be hosting the ICDE World Conference on Online Learning in the Convention Centre Dublin.”

Mark Lester, Managing Director, Universities and Educational Partnerships at FutureLearn commented: Unknown

“Our mission at FutureLearn is to transform access to education so we’re delighted to be part of this initiative from DCU and to be extending our relationship with a partner who’s aligned with our mission.”

Applications are also sought for the innovative MA Refugee Integration, a one year full time course; offering two partial scholarship, worth €4,000 each, to cover 50% of fees. The closing date for the DCU Connectedand DCU-FutureLearn Scholarshipsis Monday 12th August. You can read more information about the Scholarships and find the application formon the following DCU Connected webpage:

https://www.dcu.ie/connected/university-sanctuary.shtml