Author: rostanetek

Study Together Online | StudeerSamen

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To help support our students and teachers during these difficult times, StudeerSamen seeks to bring online educational support to the foreground.

StudeerSamen (Study Together) started as an initiative at the Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam to address the increasing study pressure and burnout rate among students. In the academic journey, it is essential to make study support more accessible and flexible for students. In doing so, they create an environment whereby students at the university can more easily share their acquired knowledge and experience with other students.

By making online educational support more accessible, StudeerSamen helps universities to facilitate education during these challenging times. The platform helps students to get in touch with each other to make educational support possible. Students are able to use StudeerSamen to find a study buddy and contact them to arrange a buddy session online. The platform of StudeerSamen is now also available to all universities of the Aurora network. University students can sign up free of charge by clicking the button below to support a fellow student.

StudeerSamen aspires to expand its contribution to education at universities further. Therefore, they look forward to working more closely with partner universities. Interested? You may reach out at partner@studeersamen.nl.

Impact of COVID-19 on Erasmus+ Webinar

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The current pandemic COVID-19 poses severe implications on worldwide student mobility, especially for Erasmus+ students.

The Erasmus Student Network and European Students’ Union hosted a Q&A Webinar to discuss the implications of COVID-19 for international students. Both organizations had a chance to address questions to the European Commission regarding the challenges international students are facing due to the COVID-19 outbreak.

Guests of the webinar included Oana Dumitrescu and Elena Tegovska from the European Commission’s Directorate-General for Education and Culture (DG EAC), as well as representatives from the Erasmus+ National Agencies of Italy and Germany.

The recording of the webinar, as well as the transcription, are available by clicking here.

The fight against the COVID-19 pandemic

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On 25th March 2020, 61 organisations including patients, consumers, healthcare professionals, trade unions and public interest organisations published a letter.

The signed letter expresses views on the importance of the role of public support to research and development during the current pandemic.

Since January, the European Commission and national governments have mobilised millions of Euros to promote research on COVID-19. Together we believe that an effective response requires that all these necessary medical tools are free of charge at the point of delivery, particularly for vulnerable populations.

We strongly recommend that the EU institutions and national governments incorporate collective, pro-public safeguards, such as transparency regarding public contributions, accessibility and affordability clauses and non-exclusive licences for the exploitation of end-result products, in current and future funding calls and investments. These measures will eventually ensure the vaccines and treatments for the coronavirus reach those who need them and save numerous lives.

Aurora Meets European Commission on Social Sciences and Humanities (SSH)

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Horizon Europe is the 9th EU Framework Programme to support research and innovation (R&I), succeeding Horizon 2020. It will run from 2021-2027 with the first Calls for Proposals expected in 2021.

Although a budget and full specific programme has not yet been agreed upon, the European Commission has reached an agreement with the Council and European Parliament on the key features. The Horizon Europe strategy sets out three pillars for funding, each of which will be supported by activities to widen participation and strengthening the European Research Area (more details see here). Specific attention will be given to citizen engagement and social sciences and humanities (SSH).

At the initiative of Pim de Boer (EU Brussels liaison officer for both VU and Amsterdam UMC ) researchers from the University of Duisburg-Essen and Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam met with staff from European Commission’s DG Research and Innovation on the 2nd of March, to discuss the role of SSH in pillar 2 of Horizon Europe, i.e. dealing with clusters or global challenges. Here are some highlights from that discussion.

Horizon Europe aims to have a dual approach to incorporating SSH. On the one hand, SSH will have a dedicated programme of work under (mainly) the second cluster (culture, creativity and inclusive society) and third cluster (civil security for society) in pillar 2.

On the other hand,  SSH is intended to be embedded across all other clusters in pillar two and all other parts of the Horizon Europe Programme. SSH may offer new perspectives on the challenges at hand, may provide designs with and implementation of new interventions beyond the current mainstream – often technology centred – perspectives on the urgent problems that Europe faces today.

This implies a need to incorporate SSH in all other clusters addressing all challenges. SSH particularly has a role to play in how research is designed (for example, through citizen/user engagement in the choice of research questions and research design), as well as in ensuring societal impact. Such an effect needs to be measured. Examples of measurements have been published in the ‘pathways to SSH impact’ document.

We discussed various examples of how SSH can be embedded across the clusters with ‘action research’, ‘living labs’, ‘stakeholder involvement’ being cited as examples of good practice for addressing, among others, behaviour, disinformation, inequalities, education, polarisation, urban planning, health (like the COVID-19 infection) and governance aspects.

Simulation games promote development of most in-demand career skills

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Researchers at the URV and UOC have evaluated the impact of simulation games on the learning processes of students enrolled on bachelor’s and master’s degree programs, observing that, in addition to increasing student’s levels of motivation, these simulators also deliver improvements in terms of the learning process and skills acquired.

Over recent decades a new approach has been developed that casts students in a more active and prominent role concerning their learning experience. Several technologies have been created to support new tools for teaching and learning. The question that remains is: Are they competent enough to provide tangible benefits for learners? 

Researchers at the Universitat Oberta de Catalunya (UOC) and Universitat Rovira i Virgili (URV) aimed to answer this question with the use of the ‘serious games’ approach applied within the field of economics. Specifically, their focus has been to evaluate the impact of business simulation games on the learning processes of students enrolled on bachelor’s and master’s degree programs, observing that, in addition to increasing student’s levels of motivation, these simulators also deliver improvements in terms of the learning process and skills acquired.

The study involved the participation of 115 students (62.61% male and 37.39% female), with an average age of 36, who played simulation games as part of their bachelor’s or master’s degree management course curriculum. They were divided into teams of four or five and competed against other teams to simulate a real company scenario. The teams completed a total of eight rounds with each round representing an economic period. At the end of the process, the researchers asked participants to complete a questionnaire to evaluate their learning process and the skills acquired.

The researchers analyzed several skills during the usage of simulators. The indicated skills included both generic and cross-disciplinary that can be applied to any education, such as decision-making, teamwork and communication, and study-specific such as in this case, the interpretation of financial reports.

The results of the study reveal that generic skills exert a positive influence on learning outcomes. The students were better equipped to process and analyses information and possessed improved skills concerning teamwork, innovation and creativity, as well as communication and technology use. These relate to specific cross-disciplinary skills that are highly valued by the labour market, serving to prepare individuals to adapt to any workplace successfully.

The researchers further concluded that these types of tools also help to overcome time and space constraints to learning. As Hernández pointed out, “they are more flexible and promote ubiquitous learning and the generation of learning communities”.

Aurora becomes Endorsing Partner Network of the SDG Accord

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The Aurora Sustainability Group has identified the SDG Accord, an initiative of the Global Alliance, as a light-touch way for Aurora members to show their commitment to the SDGs and report on their work regarding the SDGs.

The SDG Accord is administered by the Environmental Association for Universities & Colleges [EAUC] and endorsed by the UN’s HE Sustainability Initiative.

The SDG Accord invites institutions to sign up (at the most senior level) to a series of commitments around the SDGs and, as part of those commitments, to compile a light touch report. Those reports are aggregated annually across the global HE/FE sector and presented to the UN. They demonstrate the scale of the impact of tertiary education against the SDGs. As of May 2019, over 110 institutions from 80+ countries had officially signed. The Board acknowledges that Aurora institutions are all at different places in their SDG journey.

We believe that signing the SDG Accord provides a clear, unambiguous baseline commitment that we should all be able to support. Therefore, we invite you to sign the Accord as a shared, collective and demonstrable public commitment to the SDGs. Meanwhile, as a sign of support, we have become an Endorsing Partner Network.  The University of Aberdeen, the University of East Anglia, the University of Naples Federico II, the University of  Rovira i Virgili, University of Innsbruck and Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam have all signed the Accord.

Simultaneously, the Aurora Student Council has requested the Aurora Board that the member universities of the Aurora Universities Network declare a climate emergency.

Aurora position paper on future mission area “Cancer”

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The European Commission has established five missions and installed their boards. The missions need to be defined by goals, deliverables and a work plan in collaboration with stakeholders.

Therefore, the European Commission brought together stakeholders at national levels and beyond to debate and shape the future research and innovation landscape.

Aurora has developed a position paper with statements on the future mission area “Cancer” in order to help shape this mission in view of the European research and innovation program Horizon Europe. Please click the button to find the paper.

Amsterdam Aurora Biannual 2019

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On October 27th -29th, the 7th Biannual of the Aurora Universities Network was organized by the Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam at the Griffioen and the university campus. The nine Aurora universities discussed the future of the Aurora Network and specifically the proposed Aurora European Universities Alliance.

This Aurora European Universities programme will be part of the EU funded European Universities initiative which aims to revolutionize the quality and competitiveness of European Higher Education. The biannual consisted of a plenary, a general council meeting, 11 parallel Aurora working groups spread across two days; and also a social program.

During the plenary session, VU associate professor Nana de Graaf interviewed some leaders of key groups in Aurora: on the students’ activities (Elisabet Brynjarsdottir), the Sustainability group (Tavis Potts) and the Diversity group (Karen van Oudenhoven-van der Zee) as well as the groups of vice-rectors for education (Neil Ward), and research (Jon Atli Benediktsson).

At the second part of the plenary session, some tips of the veil of the Aurora Alliance proposal were unveiled and discussed, yielding relevant input on what is currently lacking within the network and how the Aurora Alliance can create an environment including a study experience, career opportunities that Aurora might bring and that is not presently there.

The Biannual saw the third Diversity and Equality award being won by Inserlab during an informal reception at the Stedelijk Museum in Amsterdam.

The working groups continued on the second day of the biannual. The students, as well as the Aurora communications officers, spread out over the working groups to learn and experience the intergroup dynamics. The day ended with a lunch and an inspiring farewell speech from Aurora Board member and VU Amsterdam President Mirjam van Praag at the new homely and green study space on the second floor of the Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam. This study space is a co-created by the University Library (UBVU) and students to experiment with furniture, decoration, and furnishing.

Next Aurora Biannual: Reykjavik, May 2020 (dates to be announced).

Please view the video and pictures below to re-experience the Amsterdam Aurora Biannual.

Adaptation to Climate Change, Including Societal Transformation

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The Research and Innovation Days was the first annual policy event of the European Commission, bringing together stakeholders to debate and shape the future research and innovation landscape.

Aurora has developed a position paper with statements on the future mission area “Adaptation to Climate Change, including Societal Transformation” in order to help shape this mission in view of the European research and innovation program Horizon Europe. Please click the button to find the paper.

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Aurora Endorses Open Letter to European Commission R&I

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Ecsite, a European network of science centres and museums, invites all organisations carrying out science and research engagement to sign an Open letter to the European Commissioner for Research and Innovation, Carlos Moedas.

In this Open Letter, Ecsite urges the European Commission to meaningfully engage with citizen and be more ambitious on science engagement. To do so, the Commission should rely on cost-effective actions led by experienced and committed science engagement organisations, all over Europe. A statement from Ecsite:

Despite the mobilisation of the science engagement field in the past years, there is no equivalent of the current ‘Science with and for Society’ (SwafS) strand in the new framework programme, Horizon Europe. The involvement of citizens in the co-creation and co-design of the R&I agenda has nonetheless been made one of the objectives of the programme by the EU Commission. Ecsite strongly supports this co-creation initiative. However, we have identified critical gaps in the citizen involvement strategy as currently planned by the Commission, which is why we are inviting all science engagement organisations to sign an Open letter to the European Commissioner for Research and Innovation, Carlos Moedas.

Through the gesture of signing,  AURORA acknowledges the urgency and supports the initiative. This will allow citizens to participate in the Research and Innovation days taking place in fall this year, as well as to engage them in the full process of strategic planning and programming of Horizon Europe. This is in line with our previous statement of 5 December 2018 

Find the Open letter below. Signing is possible till 27th of June 2019.