E-Pal First International Conference
A Roadmap to E-Learning in Palestine: Challenges and Opportunities (REPCO-I)
4th & 5th March 2024
Hybrid Conference - Hebron & Gaza, Palestine
Palestine Polytechnic University (PPU) - Hebron/Palestine, the University College of Applied Sciences (UCAS) - Gaza/Palestine, the University of Oslo (UiO) - Oslo/Norway and Oslo Metropolitan University (OsloMet) - Oslo/Norway are glad to announce their first international conference as part of the E-Pal Project. The converence will take place in hybrid formats at PPU in Hebron and at UCAS in Gaza. The conference will be held on Monday and Tuesday, March 4 and 5, 2024.
Introduction to E-Pal:
‘Equip Palestine with E-Learning (E-Pal)’ is a six-year project funded by The Norwegian Agency for Development Cooperation (Norad). The project is a cooperation between PPU, UCAS UiO, and OsloMet.
Conference Themes
The conference tries to shed light on the current status of e-learning in Palestine and how we can meet the challenges and take advantage of the opportunities towards providing unique technology-enhanced teaching and learning in the higher education sector. REPCO I welcomes submissions on all themes relevant for technology-enhanced teaching and learning in higher education, including (but not limited to):
- Emerging practices in technology-enhanced teaching and learning
- Action research/development work related to technology-enhanced teaching and learning
- E-learning and organizational change
- Use of immersive technologies (such as virtual and augmented reality) in higher education
- Use of generative artificial intelligence (e.g. ChatGPT) in higher education
- Technology-supported simulations in teaching and learning in higher education
- Student-staff collaboration in the development of technology-enhanced teaching and learning
Conference Formats and Assessment Criteria
REPCO I aims to gather a wide range of stakeholders from higher education, civil society and the private sector. The Conference, therefore, includes different submission formats, as follows:
1. Research Papers
2. Research Symposium
3. Practitioner Papers
4. Workshops
5. ICT Demonstrations
All submissions will be assessed by a scientific committee that has members from national and international higher education institutions. Please read the assessment criteria for your format carefully before you submit your proposal.
1. Research Papers:
Research papers are for presentations of research on technology-enhanced learning in higher education. Papers sessions consist of three to four paper presentations on related themes. Empirical, theoretical and review papers are welcomed.
Paper sessions are scheduled for 75 minutes. Four presenters are given 15 minutes presentation time followed by 15 minutes for questions and discussion.
Assessment Criteria for Research Papers:
- The rationale for the research is clearly presented
- Empirical papers: The research design is clear and appropriate (research questions, context, participants, data sources, sampling, procedure, ethical issues)
- Theoretical papers: Clarity and robustness of theoretical argument, significance for theoretical debate
- Clarity of results and conclusions
- Significance for theory, policy or practice
- Overall scientific quality and originality
2. Research Symposia
Research symposia provide an opportunity for a group of researchers to present research on one topic with a coherent set of papers. The papers will typically examine the same topic from different perspectives.
Symposia are scheduled for 75 minutes. Symposia sessions include four paper presentations and one discussant. Each paper presentation is 12 minutes, followed by comments from a discussant, who provides comments across the four presentations. The final 15 minutes are for questions from the audience. Symposia are led by a symposium chair. The chair is responsible for ensuring that all individual papers are of sufficient quality at the time of submission. Symposia should include presenters from more than one higher education institution.
Assessment Criteria for Symposium Submissions:
- Organization and coherence of the whole symposium
- The rationale for the research is clearly presented
- Empirical papers: The research design is clear and appropriate (research questions, context, participants, data sources, sampling, procedure, ethical issues)
- Theoretical papers: Clarity and robustness of theoretical argument, significance for theoretical debate
- Clarity of results and conclusions
- Significance for theory, policy or practice
- Overall scientific quality and originality
3. Practitioner Papers
Practitioner papers are sessions where educators can present innovative use of technology-enhanced teaching and learning in higher education. Presentations should focus on communicating results and lessons learned in a way that makes the content useful for other higher education practitioners. Practitioner paper sessions are scheduled for 75 minutes. Four presenters are given 15 minutes presentation time followed by 15 minutes for questions and discussion.
Assessment Criteria for Practitioner Papers:
- The rationale and relevance of the practical case are clearly presented.
- The methods and results of the innovation are clearly presented.
- Significance for educational practice
4. Workshops
Workshops are sessions where participants can work interactively and hands-on with a particular challenge related to technology-enhanced teaching and learning in higher education. The sessions can be directed at research activities or at practical teaching activities. Learning-by-doing occupies most of the session, and any presentations are brief. Workshops are scheduled for 90 minutes. After a brief presentation by the workshop chair(s), most of the time should be spent on interactive and collaborative activities that will help all participants widen their knowledge on the challenge being addressed.
Assessment Criteria for Workshops:
- Goal of the workshop idea is clear
- The topic (the challenge) is clearly presented and there is a clear argument made for why this challenge is important
- There are clear methods for interactive and hands-on activities that actively engage all participants.
- There is a clear description of the outcomes of the workshop.
5. ICT Demonstrations
ICT Demonstrations provide opportunities to display, explain and familiarize users with a potentially useful teaching or research tool or method. The main objective of the session is to demonstrate a tool that is relevant for advancing technology-enhanced teaching and learning in higher education. The audience may offer their viewpoints and share their experiences with similar tools or different tools for the same purpose. ICT demonstrations are scheduled for 90 minutes.
Assessment Criteria for ICT Demonstrations:
- The relevance of the tool for teaching and learning in higher education is clearly presented
- Clear description of the tools to be demonstrated.
- Interactive session where the audience can participate and share their experiences.
Important Dates
|
Deadline for Submission |
November 15, 2023 |
|
Notification to Participants About Their Submission |
January 15, 2024 |
|
Registration Deadline |
February 15, 2024 |
|
Conference Program Draft |
February 25, 2024 |
|
Conference Program Finalized |
March 1, 2024 |
|
Conference Days |
March 4 & 5, 2024 |
Format of All Proposals
- Word (*.doc, *.docx) Calibri, font 11 points, line spacing 1.5 lines, followed line, justified text and do not use indents on the first line. A4 size.
- The submissions can be written in Arabic or English
- The name of the file will be the last name and first name of the first contributor/author.
Submission of Proposal
The proposal must be submitted not later than October 31st, 2023 by completing the submission link Click Here