NEWS
University of Bahrain Reviews its Experience in Distance Learning and Digital Transformation at the Digital Universities Conference
Sakhir – University of Bahrain (Ali Al-Sabbagh)
October 4, 2022
The University of Bahrain reviewed its experience in digital transformation and its future plan for e-learning and distance education, during the Digital Universities Conference recently held in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates.
Dr. Shaikha Fai bint Abdullah Al Khalifa, Director of the E-Learning Center at the University of Bahrain, and Dr. Diana Abdulkarim Aljahromi, Director of the Unit for Teaching Excellence and Leadership participated in the conference organized by Times Higher Education.
During a workshop on how to improve learning using the latest digital tools and technologies, Dr. Shaikha Fai bint Abdullah Al Khalifa briefed the attendants on the University of Bahrain’s experience in digital transformation. The attendants admired the University of Bharain’s successfull experience during the Coronavirus (Covid -19) pandemic.
The Director of the E-Learning Center touched on the challenges the e-learning team at the University of Bahrain faced during the pandemic, and the current challenges they face in the post-pandemic period and the integration of different learning styles.
In a session with a group of academians, Dr. Fai talked about the different patterns of bias in e-learning and distance education and some technical tools and strategies the University of Bahrain used during the pandemic to improve the level of students’ access to electronic content. She also talked about the future plan for e-learning and distance education at the University, and the efforts made to reduce discrimination in the educational process by using modern teaching techniques and technology in education.
Dr. Al-Jahrami participated in the panel discussion titled “Innovation to ensure the sustainability of education and lifelong learning”. She referred to the patterns that universities will adopt in the wake of the pandemic and the accelerating digital change in higher education.
Dr. Al-Jahrami talked about the importance of universities in the Middle East and North Africa being prepared to fully transition to hybrid learning so as not to return to traditional methods of teaching and learning.
Dr. Al-Jahrami stated, “The pandemic has given us an incentive to innovate. To achieve this, educational institutions must put comprehensive frameworks in place that include developing policies, infrastructure, teaching curricula, academic practices, and continuing professional development programs, as well as ensuring sustainable financing, so that educational institutions can become lifelong learning societies that fulfill the labor market’s expectations. And focusing on enhancing and developing students soft skills in an innovative and flexible manner, by integrating these skills in the academic programs.
Dr. Al-Jahrami referred to the University of Bahrain’s pioneering experience in digital transformation during the Coronavirus pandemic period and beyond, being one of the first universities to use cloud computing technologies, blockchain, and big data, in addition to the sustainability of benchmarking for its academic programs.
Khalifa University of Science and Technology in Abu Dhabi hosted the conference, in which 71 international universities, a group of pioneers in the educational field and top education companies participated.
Companies concerned with providing the latest technical means to develop teaching and learning in the period of digital transformation and hybrid education participated in the event, titled “Global Education for a Digital Future.”
