University of Silesia in Katowice

On 24-27 October, Vytautas Magnus University hosted the first “Transform4Europe International Conference-Hackathon for the Innovative Teaching and Learning Methods in Higher Education”. A four-day conference aimed to foster the exchange of ideas on innovative teaching and learning methods in higher education and combine the capacities of all Transform4Europe alliance partners. The conference brought together researchers from more than 10 universities from all over the world.

At the four-day conference, the attendees had the opportunity to take part in a wide range of enriching activities. During an opening event, the first Transform4Europe Innovative Teaching prize winners were presented and awarded. On the following days, the participants enjoyed plenary presentations by the keynote speakers Prof. habil. dr. Gintautas Mažeikis, Prof. Stefanija Ališauskienė, and Anthony F. Camilleri and had the opportunity to practice mindfulness with experienced professionals. Later, the participants gave presentations in five different thematic conference sessions, observed poster presentations, and shared ideas in a hackathon. On the fourth day of the conference, researchers took part in workshops and training sessions to expand their knowledge of innovative educational practices and their applications.

During the closing event of the conference, members of the VMU Folk-Dance Ensemble “Žilvitis” invited the audience to join them in Lithuanian folk dances, the VMU theatre troupe entertained with modern dance and acting performance, and students of the VMU Music Academy amused everyone by captivating songs in different languages.

VMU Vice-Rector for Studies Dr. Simona Pilkienė highlighted the importance of searching for innovative ways of learning and expressed her satisfaction with the implementation of the event. “Despite the fact that these days were really busy, everything went wonderfully well, and I am happy to see the great emotions of colleagues, our guests and partners, – said the Vice-Rector. – This event draws attention to new teaching and learning methods and motivates us to find innovations in higher education, which is the main goal we are all striving for together.”

The University of Trieste, a member of the Transform4Europe alliance, will host the next conference in 2023. “Together with the team, we would like to thank you for the warm welcome and the rich days we spent together in Kaunas. We have a great example for next year’s conference, – said Professor Tullia Catalan. – It will be a great honour to welcome everyone to the University of Trieste next year.”

Transform4Europe initiative aims to transform and gradually integrate Transform4Europe universities into a single sustainable European alliance sharing a common governance structure, support systems, and centralized services. Transform4Europe key objectives include joint degree programmes, entrepreneurship, multilingualism, student and staff mobility as a norm, and an empowered European knowledge and innovation ecosystem.

Information prepared by Vytautas Magnus University