Hebron University Participates in Dubai Conference on Excellence in Teaching and Using Technology to Reach Globalism

 

Prof. Ahmad Atawneh, President of Hebron University, participated in "Dubai Conference on Excellence in Teaching and Using Technology" that was held in Dubai for MENA universities. The conference was attended by presidents of universities, deputies, and experts in science and technology from 42 countries like Europe, America, and the MENA region. Prof. Atawneh's presented a paper titled: "Teaching Electronic Courses and its Impacts on Motivating Teachers and Students on Using Modern Technology for the Excellence of Teaching in Education: Hebron University Experience". 

The theme of the paper focused on using technology such as the smart board and establishing the electronic page that helps creating an educational environment and a podium for exchanging critical comments and opinions on the topics covered in lectures. The papers also tackled the possibility of having students' comments over lectures, in addition to posing questions that will be the discussion point between teachers and students. This method of teaching is considered as a medium step between open and traditional learning due to the fact that modern technology in education helps teachers and students to save their time, and opens the field to exploit information resources from the internet. Unlike the traditional method in teaching that depends on memorization, using technology makes the process of education centered on students.

The conferences themes were diverse to include managing universities and education through technology that exceeds limits in the open education. Researches have been presented on the standards of quality and excellence on various university matters on a national and international levels. They have also investigated the importance of training teachers on modern methods in teaching so that teachers will not remain restricted to the traditional teaching that is considered as a boring resource and non-responsive to students.

One of the most important themes in the conference was the scientific research that was presented by Dr. Sultan Orabi, Head of Arab Universities Union. The research indicated that the first university in the world was established in MENA region (one in Morocco, one in Egypt (Al-Azhar) and another one in Baghdad) that was leading the international thinking. Today, there are 500 Arab universities, 9 million students, 250 teachers who constitute 78% in humanities and 22% in science. The scientific research is a bit backward from the western world because Arabs do not invest the budgets of scientific research in the universities. Therefore, the percentage would be less than 0.5% from the budgets of the Arab world while it reaches 5% or 6% in the developed countries. It is worth mentioning that, each dollar invested in scientific research brings back 100 dollars as an income to the universities in some countries.

In the context of international universities development, expert Professor Laurance Jonson, from America, talked about the hardships and closures that face universities due to the political conditions such as Cairo University during the revolution. Prof. Ahmad, President of HU, commented on the creativity of cooperation between students and the administration overcoming the military closure of Hebron University that lasted for four years, in addition to the process of lecturing students in houses, and nearby families' guest houses, and the evening lectures in the governmental schools. The comment was shocking for everybody who knows nothing about the conditions of Palestinian universities under the occupation.   

At the end of the second day, presidents of universities have been chosen to enter a closed session so as to provide practical recommendations that could be applied in all countries of the union and on all themes of the conference in terms of using technology and training teachers in a specialized center that is supported by all people to raise the quality of education. In addition to enhancing the scientific research budgets, encouraging teachers on doing research and finding incentives in cooperation with universities' administration. Recommendations and papers presented in the conference will be published on the internet on the union's page.

At the end of the conference, MENA Union of University Presidents has been formed for the continuation of communication to participate in drawing the future policies on the modern style.