IVETA, together with Warnborough College Ireland and SkillNET, hosted an eConference on April 28th on “Sustainable Innovative Teaching + Learning“.
The eConference saw 24 international speakers share their knowledge, expertise and experience on the theme. Topics were practical, relevant, and useful for most of the attendees.
Dr Kenneth Vella, IVETA Europe Vice-President, opened the conference with a preamble about the theme. This was followed by Warnborough College President, Dr Brenden Tempest-Mogg, who welcomed the participants warmly. Our President-Elect, Dr Julian Ng, was the moderator for the eConference.
Dr Kenneth Vella 
Dr Brenden Tempest-Mogg 
Dr Julian Ng
Due to the global nature of the event, and the fact that speakers came from around the world, the conference was structured in blocks. The first part was dedicated to speakers from Australia and Asia due to the timezone differences. Dr Vicky Roberts started off by sharing how teachers could be prepared to effectively cascade their Training of Trainer (TOT) skills. From Bangladesh, Md Saiful Bari and Md Humayun Kabir showcased their vision of e-Primary education as a form of sustainable development and empowerment for developing nations.
Dr Vicki Roberts 
Md Saiful Bari 
Dr Issariya Woraphiphat
The Siam Business Administration College (SBAC) field three speakers (Michael Belgica, Piriya Boonphokai and Dr Issariya Woraphiphat) who explained how they managed to blend course content and design to shift learning online in the wake of the pandemic. Dr Ardian Setiawan from the State Polytechnic University of Malang spoke, also, about the same issue from the Indonesian perspective.
Dr Ardian Setiawan 
Antonio Fernandez Perez 
Mehdi Belkhair
Next, the participants were challenged to get their hands (and brains) dirty with a mathematical and ethical puzzle to solve by Hans Bernd Richter from Germany. Professor Noel Kufaine from Namibia examined the factors influencing effective teacher training. This was followed by Antonio Fernandez Perez and Mehdi Belkhair who amazed participants with an eye-popping display of Augmented Reality (AR) in the teaching of vocational subjects.
Hans Bernd Richter 
Prof Noel Kufaine 
Dr Irina Ainoutdinova
Dr Irina Ainoutdinova and Dr Tatiana Tregubova from Kazan, Russia, presented lessons learnt from their teacher training course on how to deliver e-learning. Meanwhile, Dr Urs Hauenstein surprised everyone with his unique Swiss take on X-preneurship, or the entrepreneurial skills needed as a key competency for sustainable and holistic development.
A short break convened before IVETA president Dr John Gaal addressed the virtual room and welcomed participants back.
Dr Urs Hauenstein 
Dr John Gaal 
Dr Benjamin Irikefe
Dr Benjamin Onoriode Irikefe launched into an impassioned presentation about how TVET can be a useful tool for combating violent crime and volatile activities in Nigeria. From the University of Wroclaw in Poland, Md Hussin Alam analysed the role of technology in formal and traditional education settings.
Dr Maurice Dimmock 
Md Hussin Alam 
Dr Giovanni Crisona
Many participants identified with Dr Maurice Dimmock, chair of IVETA associate, ASIC, when he described his trials and tribulations of getting an education, while explaining how accreditation audits could still be conducted during a pandemic. Dr Giovanni Crisona of our SkillNet Alliance challenged participants to think outside the box by discussing the concept of Virtual Mobility for students.
Dr Tulio Barrios Bulling 
Laura Barrios Valenzuela 
Dr Julie Furst-Bowe
From South America, Dr Tulio Barrios and Laura Barrios showed how vulnerable schools could still implement effective assessment practice. From Wisconsin, USA, Dr Julie Furst-Bowe demonstrated how specially-designed instructional kits were used to supplement online learning during the pandemic. Prof Dr Frank de Jong of Aeres University of Applied Sciences in Wageningen exemplified how a unique form of Regional Learning involving students with local businesses and government became effective at resolving real-world issues. Last but not least, Dr Sandra Poirier and Dr Mary Ann Remsen shared some interesting models on online instruction that were sustainable and expandable.
Dr Frank de Jong 
Dr Sandra Poirier 
Dr Mary Ann Remsen
The event had great feedback, overall, with most people citing the atmosphere as ‘friendly’ and that they found the presenters to be knowledgeable and good, and the content to be relevant, practical and interesting.
We would like to thank Warnborough College Ireland staff for managing the whole event, including all the administrative work and keeping the event running smoothly. Thank you also to the participants who responded with feedback to help us improve. We hope to see you all again at another IVETA event, soon!
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