Master courses: Quaternary GeoEnvironment – ArchaeoGeomorphology ; Analysis and Management of Anthropogenic Natural Hazards and Disasters Erasmus Project

Project Title

Master courses: Quaternary GeoEnvironment – ArchaeoGeomorphology ; Analysis and Management of Anthropogenic Natural Hazards and Disasters

Project Key Action

This project related with these key action: Cooperation for innovation and the exchange of good practices

Project Action Type

This project related with this action type : Strategic Partnerships for higher education

Project Call Year

This project’s Call Year is 2015

Project Topics

This project is related with these Project Topics: Open and distance learning; Environment and climate change; New innovative curricula/educational methods/development of training courses

Project Summary

The continuous development of science and the growing new techniques necessitate a significant change in the educational syllabus of postgraduate university programs. Taking into consideration the specificity of the students, as well as the need of proper preparation for the labor market, educational material changes targeting to specific topics designed to address problems in a better way, provide solutions and create new applications.
“Quaternary Geology and Geo-Archaeology” and “Analysis and Management of anthropogenic – natural hazards and disasters” were two newly introduced courses during the two (2) years Master’s Degree Program at the National and Kapodistrian University of Athens-NKUA. Τhe program aimed at a more specialized knowledge and capacity building for students, which will make them more competitive in the labor market.
The partnership of this project consisted of: the National and Kapodistrian University of Athens (NKUA) from Greece, the University of Aix-Marseille (AMU) from France and the University of Trieste (UNITS) from Italy. The choice of partners was made according to their particular well-known expertise on the field, their teaching experience and their background of application of research activities. NKUA was the responsible tutor for the two master courses in this project. AMU was the leader in Holocene relative sea-level research applying many new methods for the analysis of geographical and environmental data. UNITS team has a strong background in methods and techniques in physical geography. The partners’ expertise complemented each other and provided multidisciplinary approaches to various subjects; this played an significant role for the final development of the two Master courses.
The program was enriched with renowned scientists from international institutions who shared their expertise with our students. Also, the collaboration with organizations (SMEs, Laboratories, and NGOs) helped the students develop the skills that are required after they graduate. The Intensive Study Programs (ISPs), were implemented twice each year (four in total), and offered the participating students a condensed experience by applying what they’ve learned, on fieldtrips combined with targeted lectures and activities. At the end of the program, a conference took place, where students had the opportunity to present their experience and skills, which they gained through our project. The conference participants were mainly scientists from universities, public agencies, companies, and research institutions. The conference aim was to promote the results of McAgenda and to bring together students, early career scientists and future employers.
The program was structured so that the courses were conducted in spring semesters and Intensive Study Program activities followed in the summer. In total, 42 international students, coming from the institutions of the project partners participated in the 4 ISPs (L/T/T), from which they earned ECVET credit units. The ISPs were carried out to characteristic places (Naxos and Paros Island, Kyllene, Corfu Island) where the combination of geological, geomorphological and archaeological aspects provided the most suitable environment.
To achieve our objectives, an open e-class platform was developed. The platform works as an on-line part of the courses, available in English. New educational material (texts, ppts, multimedia) were developed and uploaded into the platform. The educational material is available to the students, not only those enrolled the course but also to anyone who is interested on the subjects. The developed educational material includes instruction and teaching material, guidance to methodologies and fieldtrip guides. Innovative educational and training modules were also developed e.g. training videos for both laboratory and field work techniques, e-lectures and also GIS modules videos to be used for different kinds of modelling. The platform remains open and will continuously be updated with new educational material not only from the original partnership but also from Universities out of the project consortium.
In a nutshell, this project was composed of five independent and interrelated step-lines:
-Modernization of the NKUA Master Program Degree, through the expertise of renowned scientists from international institutions.
-Introduction of new educational methods, which lead to a higher quality of education.
-Strategic use of Information and Communication Technologies, through an on-line e-class, with innovative multimedia teaching educational materials.
-Skill development for the participating teaching staff and students through the Intensive Study Programs.
-Preparation of highly trained students on the courses’ subjects, in order to raise the graduates’ chances for finding a better and more fulfilling employment.
The activities were: Long-term teaching or training assignments (150 students in total); ISPs, 4 in total (44 studentsn total).

EU Grant (Eur)

Funding of the project from EU: 199214 Eur

Project Coordinator

ETHNIKO KAI KAPODISTRIAKO PANEPISTIMIO ATHINON & Country: EL

Project Partners

• UNIVERSITE D’AIX MARSEILLE
• UNIVERSITY OF HAIFA
• UNIVERSITA DEGLI STUDI DI TRIESTE