Evidential account, 2010 – 2021
Alumni Seminars and Summer Schools are key to realising “Change by Exchange – Wandel durch Austausch“, a slogan of the German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD). They do promote exposure and a culture of inquiry. They also promote internationalisation, a compelling agenda of modern education and research in the digital era of Education 4.0.
My experience participating in DAAD-funded Summer Schools and Alumni Seminars traces an arc shooting from Accra in 2010, through Mbale, Uganda in 2012, to Dresden, Freiberg, and Halle (Saale) in Germany over the period 2017-2019, and finally closing in on Kenya over the period 2020-2021.
Sharing evidence using story maps
GIS and story maps are transforming the art of storytelling, cutting through the tiring noise of textual communication with the fascinating clarity of visual maps. It has been said that if a picture is worth a thousand words, then a map is worth a thousand pictures. The current youthful demographic is also more comfortable with digital multimedia forms of communication as digital transformation continues to reshape business landscapes progressively, platformification being a key example.
The need to communicate a convincing location-based storyline has inspired the use of ArcGIS story map to share a true story on how exposure activities beyond the classroom can empower university staff and students to be critical and solution-oriented thinkers.
The link to the full story map with events from 2010 to 2021 is here: https://storymaps.arcgis.com/stories/707f51db0f1341f9a1533b68596b8b8a
Part of the experience shared is on CEMEREM Summer Schools, five of them already accomplished by November 2021. CEMEREM activities are mainly focused on mining and natural resource management. “Cutting through the complex mining landscape with innovation and environmental responsibility” has, consequently, been used to brand the key message.
DAAD alumni seminars
The alumni seminars shared here are mainly DAAD-funded seminars. The German Alumni Water Network (GAWN) has featured prominently in the account.
Summer schools
The summer school experience shared here is mainly drawn from CEMEREM Summer Schools in Germany and Kenya, but it also borrows from other summer schools attended in Spain and Finland.
Summative lesson
All the participants, especially students, have found the alumni seminars and summer schools empowering, setting them above the competition in terms of industry exposure and global citizenship.
Convincingly, summers schools and alumni seminars are an effective way of enhancing the employability of graduates and arousing curiosity for inquiry-driven and solution-oriented education and training. With digitalisation, Education 4.0 can only grow better in a borderless post-pandemic world.
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