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“The Global Economic Crisis and its consequences on the national educational systems: Can online education contribute to overcome the crisis?”. This is the main question that the VI International GUIDE Conference 2013, to be held in Athens (Greece) on October 3-4, 2013, will try to answer.

Abstract submission through the Call for Papers form by May 31.

Organized under the patronage of the Ministry of Education, Culture and Sport of Greece, the event will provide a comparative analysis of the effects of governmental policies on new training and research strategies in response to the economic crisis. In particular, the Conference will highlight the role of digital technologies in providing cost-effective equal learning opportunities, while maintaining a high quality university education.

In order to do so, the Conference will be opened by several high-profile keynote speakers, who will give a extremely valuable insight on these questions:

• Welcome address, by Prof. Alessandra Briganti (Marconi University, Italy)  
• The Impact of the Crisis on the Structure of Higher Education Systems, by Prof. Andrea Gentile (Marconi University, Italy)
• Surviving Economic Crises through Education, by David R. Cole (University of Western Sydney, Australia)
• Distance Learning and Labor Market Flexibilty, by Christodoulos Stefanidis (University of Pireus, Greece)
• Global knowledge, information technology and the humanities: can intellect exist? A historian's view, by Dr. William Mallinson (Ionian University, Greece)
• OER and MOOCs in a Time of Economic Crisis, by Sir John Daniel and Stamenka Uvalic-Trumbic (Academic Partnerships, USA)
• Economic crisis and online education, by Panagiotis E. Petrakis (National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, Greece)
• MOOCS: Disruptive Force or Disorienting Distraction?, by Dr. Arthur F. Kirk Jr. (St. Leo University, USA)

Besides, many experts coming from across the world will discuss new trends and developments in technology-enhanced learning, such as:

• Distance learning as a Strategy for National Development: Blended Education that serves the Mission, Muhammed el Sadanni  (MISR University for Science & Technology, Egypt)
• On the Effectiveness of Virtual Labs in Universities - Case studies from an Indian National Mission Project, by Shyam Diwakar (Amrita University, India)
• Distance learning impact on the public agenda setting, by Krzysztof Gurba (Pontifical University of John Paul II in Krakow)
• The elearning as a response to social challenges: Portrait of a situation, by Maria de Fátima Goulão (Universidade Aberta, Portugal)
• MOOCs and Global Distance Learning: Compatibility or Conflict?, by Paul Edelson (Stony Brook University/SUNY, USA)
• The civil society and the complexity of crisis: cooperation for educational change towards an open system of learning,  by Antonis Lionarakis (Hellenic Open University)
• Improving the efficiency of educational process by immersion in virtual reality, by Mikhail Lavrentyev (Novosibirsk State University, Russia)
• Online Learning for All. Accessiblity in Distance Education, by Pilar Orero (Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, Spain)
• Building Better Online Education Programs Using a Formal Quality Model, by Robert W. Robertson (Argosy University, USA)

You can check the working list of confirmed speakers here.

Please visit the official website of the conference for more information and updates.

The survey, funded and guided by Jisc and Research Libraries UK and conducted by Ithaka S+R, covers a range of areas: from how academics discover and stay abreast of research, to their teaching of undergraduates; how they choose research topics and publication channels, to their views on learned societies and university libraries, and their collections.

The Survey of Academics 2012 confirms that the open web is the first port of call for academics starting research. It also confirms that libraries have an important role to play in both surfacing open content on the web and ensuring open content is accessible through library systems.

Key findings include:

Access limitations – While 86% of respondents report relying on their college or university library collections and subscriptions, 49% indicated that they would often like to use journal articles that are not in those collections.

Use of open resources - If researchers can’t find the resources or information they need through their university library, 90% of respondents often or occasionally look online for a freely available version.

The Internet as starting point – 40% of researchers surveyed said that when beginning a project they start by searching the Internet for relevant materials, with only 2% visiting the physical library as a first port of call.

Following one’s peers – The findings suggest that the majority of researchers track the work of colleagues and leading researchers as a way of keeping up to date with developments in their field.

Emergence of e-publications – The findings show that e-journals have largely replaced physical usage for research, but that contrasting views exist on replacement of print by e-publications, where print still holds importance within the Humanities and Social Sciences and for in-depth reading in general.

Edited by EUROCALL's President, Ana Gimeno, member of the Department of Applied Linguistics, Universidad Politécnica de Valencia (UPV), the publication includes regular section offering information about Computer-Assisted Language Learning (CALL) issues, upcoming events, special interest groups (SIGs), on-going projects, recommended websites, reports and good practice examples in language learning, among other subjects.

EUROCALL aims to:

• promote the use of foreign languages within Europe
• provide a European focus for the promulgation of innovative research, development and practice relating to the use of technologies for language learning
• enhance the quality, dissemination and efficiency of CALL materials
• support Special Interest Groups