CHANGE IN CLASSROOM:

Promoting Innovative Teaching & Learning

to Enhance Student Learning Experience

in Eastern Partnership Countries

External Evaluation of the PRINTeL Project

10 Oct 2019

The External Evaluation of the PRINTeL Project took place on 2-4 October, 2019.

Within the frames of the ERASMUS+ CBHE 585760 PRINTeL Project it is foreseen to make the Project external evaluation - the fourth activity assigned as “Annual external quality control activities” envisaged by the Quality Control & Monitoring, the 5th work package of the project.

For this purpose Nathalie Bouldoukian, Director of the Quality Assurance and Institutional Effectiveness Office (QAIE) within The Holy Spirit University of Kaslik (USEK) in Lebanon was selected as an external evaluator. Ms. Bouldoukian has been leading the Erasmus+E-Taleb Project in their university, the main goals of which are quite consonant with those of PRINTeL Project.

The project external evaluation was carried out from 2 to 4th of October 2019 (see the attached agenda).

On the 2nd of October a meeting between PRINTeL Project Management Team, Ms. Bouldoukian and Elina Asriyan, the Vice-Rector for Humanities and Social Sciences of YSU took place. The issues on the project implementation, including topics on YSU teaching staff development were discussed during the meeting. Ms. Asriyan mentioned that within the project framework, 16 YSU lecturers have been trained in EU partner universities and have been sharing their knowledge and skills among their peer teachers. It was also observed that, YSU Quality Assurance Center has initiated the development of 2019-2021 Activity Plan of Postgraduate Additional Education Department, which was further approved by the Academic Council of YSU. This plan involves the module of “Innovative methods of Teaching & Learning” that encompasses the following 5 training courses:

  • Active and Collaborative Learning in the classroom
  • Active Learning and ICT-enhanced teaching: M-learning and gamification
  • Video as a Teaching Tool
  • Active Learning in the Flipped Classroom
  • Blended teaching & learning

The meeting participants noted that systematic get-togethers with the trained lecturers are held, at which characteristics of introduction and application of new methods are discussed.  It was attributed great importance to providing project permanence and its role in forthcoming teaching and learning processes.

The external expert Ms. Bouldoukian also visited Vanadzor State University on the 3rd of October where she had a meeting with Susanna Tumanyan, Acting Rector of VSU, Anush Gevorgyan, the Project Local Coordinator, Head of VSU Educational-methodological Department, as well as the trained VSU lecturers.

Besides, Ms. Bouldoukian had meetings in the National Polytechnic University of Armenia on October 4th with Arthur Zaprosyan, Head of Continuing Education and Faculty Development Centre, Gevorg Margarov, Chair of Information Security and Software, Eduard Hakobyan, Chair of Electrical Engineering, as well as the lecturers trained in 5 EU partner universities.

On the same day the external evaluator had a meeting with Zhasmen Aghasyan, Head of Postgraduate Additional Education Department of YSU, as well as with the trained YSU lecturers.

 At the summing-up meeting with Armen Budaghyan, Head of PRINTeL Project and Mari Santurjyan, the Project Coordinator it was resolved to carry out an online survey of all project partner universities, as well as generalization of findings, to prepare the corresponding report afterwards.