PResident's RePORt 2009/2010 - University College Cork

Foreword
UCC at a Glance
Academic Developments
Teaching and Learning
Research
College Reports:
Arts, Celtic
Studies and Social
Sciences
Business and Law
Medicine and Health
Science, Engineering and
Food Science
Events
Student Experience
Sports and Recreation
Buildings and Estates
Cork University Press
Finance
Governing Body
IRIS Appendix
12
• Links with international universities were established and
strengthened in 2009/2010 – from the formal Memorandum
of Understanding (MOU) signed with the Nigerian educational
authorities who, with the Nigerian Ambassador to Ireland,
visited UCC for that specific purpose, to less formal
arrangements where visiting scholars with particular expertise
in the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning (SoTL) from the
UK, Norway and the US visited UCC for short periods and
presented public lectures. Ionad Bairre staff also participated
in three international SoTL conferences in Dublin, London and
Indiana, US at which Ionad Bairre academic staff presented
papers and posters and facilitated workshops.
• NAIRTL’s annual conference was held in Trinity College
Dublin in November 2009. Chaired by Dr John Bowman, the
panel discussion focused on the role of research-funding
organisations in shaping teaching and learning. Dr Eucharia
Meehan, Head of Research Programmes at the HEA, referring
to the HEA’s “endorse[ment of] the notion that research and
teaching are intrinsically linked and are part of the education
continuum”, praised the HEA-funded NAIRTL as an example
of the HEA’s commitment in this regard. The panel members
included members of IRCHSS, IRCSET, SFI and RIA. A video
of the discussion can be downloaded. Click here for more
information.
• In May 2010, NAIRTL held a call for applications for its Awards
for Excellence in Teaching. Nominations were submitted by
senior managers from national HEIs. A 42 per cent increase in
the number of applications from the previous year saw award
nominations coming from 18 HEIs. Five winners were selected
by a committee that included international representatives as
well as representatives of the Irish University Association, the
Institutes of Technology Ireland and the Union of Students in
Ireland.
• In June 2010, NAIRTL disbursed funding to applicants for
grants to enhance their teaching and learning practices and
pedagogies. There was a 30 per cent increase on the previous
year in the number of applications with 126 applications being
considered from 25 HEIs. Details of the types of projects
supported by the National Academy are included in a short
video. Click here for more information
• In July 2010, NAIRTL held its first Summer School at UCC,
on the theme of ‘Implementing Bologna’. Delegates from 28
countries gathered from Armenia to Chile, from Denmark to
Hong Kong. The Summer School ended with an invitation to all
delegates to join an international network coordinated by the
National Academy on Bologna Implementation to enable the
sharing of best practice and exchange of knowledge across
national boundaries.
John Bowman Chairing the 2009 NAIRL Annual Conference
UCC and Shanghai University at Shanghai Expo 2010. Pictured (L-R): Professor
Grace Neville, Vice-President for Teaching and Learning, UCC and Jennifer Murphy,
Project Manager, NAIRTL