Events
HERE team Annual Conference (12-13.12.2019, Prague, Czech Republic)
Title of event: HERE Annual Conference for national higher education reform experts ‘From social Inclusion to skills: Pressing themes in higher education policy making’, conducted with the support of the EU
Dates: December 12-13, 2019
Venue: Charles University, Prague, Czech Republic
Programme and materials: https://supporthere.org/prague2019
Participants: representatives of higher education institutions (HEIs), Ministries of Education, National teams of higher education reform experts (HERE) of the countries neighboring with the EU, National Erasmus+ Offices, EU experts and partner countries experts, representatives of the Charles University, Prague, Czech Republic. Total number of participants to the event: 30 persons.
Azerbaijan was represented by:
Shahin Bayramov, rector of Mingachevir State University
Yashar Omarov, Head of HE sector of Ministry of Education, Republic of Azerbaijan
Jala Garibova, vice rector of Azerbaijan Languages University
Parviz Baghirov, coordinator of National Erasmus+ Office in Azerbaijan
Short report:
The purpose of the conference was to familiarize the representatives of national HERE teams with the actual concept of social inclusion in higher education; identifying links between social inclusion, internationalization and mobility; with experience of different countries of the European Higher Education Area in reforming higher education at institutional and national levels, understanding of the role of higher education in changing the landscape of the labor market in the current context.
The conference was a platform for exchanging experience in reforming national higher education systems, implementing credit mobility programs, and provided valuable guidance and advice on how to address specific issues of building higher education capacity. Participants also had the opportunity to demonstrate and evaluate the potential and performance of national HERE teams, the role of students in facilitating reforms.
The conference was the final stage to assess the contribution of national HERE teams in the development and support of national higher education reforms, the relevance and usefulness of specific measures to strengthen the institutional capacity of national teams, and to identify the goals and strategy of the SPHERE Team for 2020.
HERE Study Visit “Inclusion in Internationalisation and Mobility” (21-22.11.2019, Brussels, Belgium)
Dates: November 21-22, 2019
Venue: Vrije Universiteit Brussel, Belgium
Programme and materials: https://supporthere.org/brussels2019/page/background-information-24
Participants: representatives of higher education institutions (HEIs), Ministries of Education of the countries neighboring with the EU, National Erasmus+ Offices (HERE), EU experts and partner countries experts, representatives of the Vrije Universiteit Brussel. Total number of participants to the event: 30 persons.
Azerbaian was represented by vice-rector of Azerbaijan State Pedagogical University Nigar Abbaszade and Khazar University Director of Development Razia Isayeva
Short report:
The study visit aimed at getting insights by the national HERE team representative on the good practices of Flanders in regard to strategies of internationalization, inclusion and academic mobility by the example of the Vrije Universiteit Brussel. Given the relative novelty of the topics of inclusion and mobility for most universities, another goal of the study visit was to review these topics from the perspective of the institutional strategy and the national policy-making. Hence, the event gathered together various stakeholders, who have actively been working on these issues in a number of ways, both on the HEIs’ and on the national level.
During the study visit the participants have become aware of the notion ‘inclusion’, categories of persons with social inclusion, nation-wise distinctive features of persons to those with social inclusion, issues with implementation of the inclusive mobility programmes (including credit mobility), and opportunities to tackle those challenges across different academic cultures and institutional settings.
The results of the study visit are to promote discussions on the issues of inclusion and mobility as the current EU priorities, their representative within the EU programmes, and facilitate the research by the SPHERE TEAM on responses/adaptive mechanisms in use by the partner counties.
Therefore, the study visit provided an opportunity to share experience on implementation of mobility programmes for students with special learning needs and allowed for acquiring valuable recommendations and practical solutions.
HERE Study Visit on Competence-Based Learning (9-10.9.2019, Vienna, Austria)
Title: Competence-Based Learning
Dates: 9 - 10 September, 2019
Location: Vienna (Austria)
Program and Materials: https://supporthere.org/vienna2019/
Description and key information
Participants of the event: representatives of higher education institutions, European Ministries of Education, HERE team members from neighbouring EU partner countries, representatives of the National Erasmus+ Offices, experts of European countries and partner countries, representatives of the host organization (FH Campus University Wien University of Applied Sciences). In total, about 35 people from 20 countries took part in the event.
Azerbaijan was represented by Vusala Qurbanova, leading HE adviser from Ministry of Education and Elvin Azizbayov from Baku State University
Short report:
The main goal of the event was to familiarize with the institutional practice of competence-based learning, in particular at an Austrian university specializing in applied sciences.
The main results of the study visit. The seminar discussed issues of different definition of competence based learning, approaches to formation in different disciplines and curricula.
Accordingly, it was necessary to examine how solving of this issue affects the establishment of the mission and strategy of the institution, the role of stakeholders. An important part was determining the role of assessment in the implementation of competence based learning.
Eastern Partnership Conference on Common Values through Education and Culture (25-26.06.2019, Tbilisi, Georgia).
Event title: Eastern Partnership Conference – Promoting Common Values through Education and Culture
Date: 25 - 26th of June 2019
Venue: Holiday Inn Tbilisi, Georgia
Programme and materials: https://ec.europa.eu/education/events/promoting-common-values-through-education-and-culture-eastern-partnership-conference_en
Event participants
Decision-makers, administrators, practitioners and academics from the six EaP countries, EU Member States and the EU administration. The conference’s opening session features the EU’s Commissioner for Education, Culture, Youth and Sport, Tibor Navracsics, the Georgian Minister of Education, Science, Culture and Sport Mikheil Batiashvili, and the EU’s Ambassador to Georgia, Carl Hartzell. In general, about 250 participants took part in the event.
Participants from Azerbaijan (National Erasmus + office, HERE Team) was represented by:
Nigar Abbaszade, vice-rector of Azerbaijan State Pedagogical University
Raziya Isayeva, director of development Khazar University
The conference was one of the anniversary events devoted the ten years of the Eastern Partnership.
The purpose of the conference was toconsiders how cooperation in the fields of education, youth and culture can strengthen citizenship, common values and inclusiveness, looking both at policies and practice. The member of HERE team Nigar Abbaszade delilvered a specific presentation on the situation in Azerbaijan
