Away from paper - into the web: In order to make basic teaching content from the first two semesters of science subjects digitally accessible, interdisciplinary and easily adaptable, Dortmund University of Applied Sciences and Arts has launched the "ALepa" project together with five partner universities.
With the aim of constantly improving the quality of teaching, the exchange between universities, but also between disciplines, is to be improved. The Ministry of Culture and Science in NRW is funding the project on Adaptable Learning Sequences for Basic Physical-Technical Education (ALepa) with almost one million euros. State Secretary Dr. Dirk Günnewig has now handed over the funding decision in Dortmund. Under the leadership of Prof. Dr. Inga Saatz(Opens in a new tab) from the Faculty of Computer Science at Fachhochschule Dortmund, the Cologne University of Applied Sciences, Hamm-Lippstadt University of Applied Sciences, Aachen University of Applied Sciences, RWTH Aachen University and Ruhr University Bochum are participating in the project.
Driving digitalization forward
"As a university of applied sciences, we have always focused on teaching," emphasizes Rector Prof. Dr. Wilhelm Schwick(Opens in a new tab) . Advancing digitalization in this area is one of the university's concerns. Fachhochschule Dortmund shares this concern with the Ministry of Culture and Science in NRW. The "ALepa" project was one of 18 to receive funding. In total, more than 50 ideas applied for funding.
"There are good local collections of tasks in basic physics and technology education," says Prof. Saatz. The aim of the project is to categorize, digitize and exchange these tasks. "We want to create learning sequences that explain a physical problem and map a complete learning path with tutorials, exercises and test tasks." The spectrum of tasks ranges from mechanics and kinematics (e.g. acceleration and movement) to electromagnetism, alternating current theory and optics.
The learning sequences will be integrated into the state portal for freely available teaching and learning content "ORCA.nrw" and can be integrated into the university's own learning platforms. They are available to students and lecturers alike. The digital evaluation of the learning sequences is intended to further improve the quality of teaching. The "ALepa" project will initially run for two years.