Programmes: Distance learning

Distance learning ?

The Institute for Continuing Education (IVPV) of the faculties of Engineering (FirW) and Bioscience Engineering (FBW) regularly organizes training programmes by means of e-learning techniques. These techniques allow for an easier access to post academic and permanent education enabling the candidates to take the courses at the pace, time and place that is most suitable to them.

Advantages of e-learning:

  • Time (the course materials can be studied whenever one wants to)
  • Place (the course can be followed wherever there is a computer available)
  • Pace (the chapters can be studied before the practical exercises but at one's own pace)
  • Content (candidates can skip or rehearse parts of the courses at their own convenience)
Minerva
  Go to the e-learning platform Minerva.

In the past, the IVPV has organized training programmes through videoconferencing at both domestic and foreign sites, enabling the students to follow the courses from the university on the premises of their company in the evening. In another training programme, the courses were recorded beforehand in a so-called 'streaming video' handed over to the students on a CD.

The courses could be studied at one's own pace and were supplemented with a clear work scheme and follow-up plan combined with forum discussions over the Web. The students were expected to attend the practical exercises and the exams at the university on Saturday's.

In today's society and in view of 'lifelong learning', the significance of e-learning becomes more and more important. At the same time the access to e-learning increases: examples are the improving interactive multimedia techniques over the Web and the increasing Internet bandwidth available at home (ADSL / TV-cable / satellite …).

You can watch a demo of the streaming video.

E-learning project

The IVPV will explore these opportunities even more in the years to come. Not only will new training programmes be organized based on these methodologies, but also the method itself will be refined and adapted. Stimulated by the worldwide recognition of the IVPV's e-learning training programmes, the e-learning environment will be adapted to a platform-independent system as part of a new educational project, supported by modern multimedia techniques. The objective is to reach a fully integrated, easily transferable and adaptable system that contains the complete cycle of an electronic learning process: registration, monitoring, coaching, evaluation, discussion forums, documents, workbooks, referrals, streaming 'live' courses, contacts with the teachers, practice sessions, … in short an ideal environment for asynchronous learning within the framework of post academic and permanent training programmes.

Information:

  • E-training programmes IVPV: Jan Lammertyn - tel: +32 (0)9 264 5581