Curtin Sarawak hosting 3rd International Higher Education Teaching and Learning Conference

Miri – 24 November 2015 – Curtin University, Sarawak Malaysia (Curtin Sarawak) is hosting the 3rd International Higher Education Teaching and Learning Conference (HETL 2015) this Thursday and Friday.

Themed ‘Rethinking Assessments for Student Engagement and Learning’, the conference is jointly organised by the Office of Teaching and Learning at Curtin Sarawak and Curtin Teaching and Learning at Curtin University’s main campus in Perth, Western Australia.
The conference provides a unique opportunity for university leaders, educators, experts and scholars, both regionally and internationally, to convene and share innovative ideas on key issues and trends in higher education development, particularly in the area of assessment.

Among those attending are deans and directors of Teaching and Learning from the Curtin Perth campus and academics from both private and public institutions of higher learning in Malaysia and overseas.

The conference’s keynote speakers are Professor Julianne Reid, Associate Deputy Vice-Chancellor – Teaching and Learning, Curtin University; Professor Cees van der Vleuten, Scientific Director of the School of Health Professions Education, Maastricht University, Netherlands; Professor Zainal Ariffin Ahmad, an Associate Fellow with the Academic of Sciences Malaysia; and Professor Sue Fyfe, Adjunct Professor in the Department of Health Sciences Research and Graduate Studies, Faculty of Health Sciences, Curtin University.

Among the topics to be discussed at the conference are higher education pedagogies and practices; formative, summative and authentic assessments; scholarship of teaching and learning; transnational education and internationalisation; and learning and teaching with technologies.

Pro Vice-Chancellor and President of Curtin Sarawak, Professor Jim Mienczakowski, commented that the conference’s focus on assessments for student engagement and learning reflects well on recent developments in higher education, particularly the need to design and implement assessment methods that are formative, current and authentic to improve student outcomes and contribute to the improved performance of institutions of higher learning.

He said that Curtin Sarawak, Curtin University’s largest international campus, has been a leader in higher education in the region for more than 15 years and is proud to contribute to enhancing higher education in the region and beyond through the conference.

Meanwhile, conference convener and Dean of Teaching and Learning at Curtin Sarawak, Associate Professor Beena Giridharan, added that Curtin Sarawak is happy to host the conference as it is committed to providing an engaging, learner-focused teaching and learning environment for students and its academic staff are dedicated to providing inclusive and continual transformational learning opportunities.

Professor Cees van der Vleuten of Maastricht University among keynote speakers at 3rd International Higher Education Teaching and Learning Conference.