Karlstad University to develop a strategy for advanced web-based education

During a six month period Karlstad University will be developing a strategy for web-based distance learning at advanced levels. Training courses will be developed in partnership with industry and various community stakeholders, and are based on research conducted at some of the University’s excellent and strong research groups. The project was recently awarded 350 000 SEK from the Knowledge Foundation.

National and international profiling through online courses for professionals, based on research at CTF, Service Research Center, CMM-Characterizing and modeling of materials and Computer Science. This is the concrete aim for a strategy that is being developed at Karlstad University. Several of the University’s strategic objectives are combined: to contribute to the international positioning of the research teams and together with businesses and community stakeholders develop web-based courses with high quality that can be offered flexibly.
- The project is called “Strategy for web-based courses for international positioning of strategic research groups”. The idea is to develop a university-wide strategy on how we can develop courses that are interesting for professionals. It will be innovative courses with high quality and based on leading research, says Jörg Pareigis, Project Manager.

Inspiration for the project partly comes from the Dutch TU Delft and from an earlier project, use.it, funded by the Knowledge Foundation. The project group include, in addition to Jörg Pareigis, Anders Gåård from CMM, Stefan Alfredsson, Computer Science and Mats Liljedahl, Competence Development Department.

Inventory on need of skills and the international market
The efforts on writing a strategy will continue during spring 2016 and will include among other things, workshops with companies to identify the need for skills training and an inventory of what is already available nationally and internationally through, for example, Class Central and Open Education Europe. Thereafter the intention is to make an new application to the Knowledge Foundation for the development of concrete courses and to work on matters relating to admissions, platforms, design and practical implementation.

The project “Strategy for web-based courses of international positioning of Strategic Research groups”, was granted 350 000 SEK in December by the Knowledge Foundation within the NU15 call. NU, net-based education for international positioning is a new program offered by the Knowledge Foundation, and was presented for the first time in September.

Jörg Pareigis, researcher at CTF and Lecturer at Karlstad Business School.