Abstract:

This paper aims at demonstrating the development of the “ELITE” course with the collaboration of European and Israeli Higher Education institutions and the support of an extended communication platform (LPS: Learning Portal System) that was built especially for the course and its participants. The course and the communication platform are the results of a multinational TEMPUS project, namely EFA: English for all in Academia, (510941-TEMPUS-1-2010-1-IL-TEMPUS-SMHES (2010-3378/001-001)) aimed to foster teaching in English as a scientific and social language in Higher Education through the use of collaborative online tools and innovative learning approaches. The rationale for the development and implementation of this particular TEMPUS project was to advance communication among the participants via the enriched functionality of the LPS, implement innovative curricula development approaches within the education-innovation-research triangle, and promote cooperation and uniformity among institutions of Higher Education in European Union countries. The use of the LPS enabled lecturers to produce and disseminate materials and students to deliver assignments, receive feedback and enhance social media learning activities online. The development and implementation of the “ELITE” course with the support of the LPS as well as the evaluation by students are presented herein.

Keywords:

Online Teaching and Learning, Communication Technologies, Innovations and Methodologies applied to Education, Collaborative Learning and Teaching, Learning in Dynamic Spaces.