As the majority of the universities and academies are closed, leaders and lecturers find themselves having to convert their courses to digital formats with immediate effect. During this one-hour conversation, we invite ELIA members to share their thoughts and experiences with their international colleagues. Guest speaker Dimitrios Vlachopoulos will explore the various implications of a speedy transition to teaching and learning online and look at practical ways arts educators can improve their practice for the future. We will also touch upon the social changes and societal challenges that COVID-19 has created for higher education in the arts, staff and students.
Dimitrios Vlachopoulos has a PhD in distance education and instructional technology. His research focuses on new and emerging pedagogies, instructional design, digital transformation, teachers’ training and quality assurance. He is a Senior Fellow of the Higher Education Academy (SFHEA) and Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts (FRSA) with over 80 publications in books and peer-reviewed journals. He is currently Program Manager with “EdTech for Social Change” at Amsterdam University of Applied Sciences.
During Virtual PIE, we encourage you to join us online and share your experiences and concerns regarding the impact of the coronavirus on your institution.Aparajita Dutta (Head of International Affairs at The Royal Academy of Art in The Hague and PIE Coordinator) outlines for us what are the main challenges that institutions are facing during this coronavirus crisis, particularly from the perspective of international offices.We will be looking at what is the impact that this situation has and will have on internationalisation.Maria Jaber (International Partnerships Head at NABA, Nuova Accademia di Belle Arti, Italy) presents the approach and the solutions that her institution has implemented to face the current situation, specifically looking at international students inquiries and showcasing the NABA Open Day Online.
These and many other questions are raising up these days:
* How should we deal with the current crisis?
* How should we ensure the wellbeing of students and staff?
* How can we run exams online?
* How can the PIE community help each other in this situation?
Our sector and members are under intense pressure at this point in time. Teaching has moved online, students and freelancers have lost part-time jobs, events, projects, performances, exams have been postponed or cancelled.
*Recent developments in response to COVID-19* *EU Emergency Measures* The EU is adopting various new measures to ensure the immediate release of funds to help member states deal with the effects of the current pandemic. Although the measures are general, we recognise that it is vital the cultural sector remains a priority within that framework. *Joint Letter initiated by Culture Action Europe* Earlier this month ELIA Executive Director Maria Hansen signed on behalf of the ELIA network, a joint letter initiated by Culture Action Europe. Sent to Commissioner Gabriel and Members of the Directorate General for Education, Youth, Sport and Culture (DG EAC), the letter contains a list of proposed ways to deal with the consequences of COVID-19 on Creative Europe and the European Cultural and Creative Sectors. Proposed support measures include: – Extension of eligibility period of Creative Europe projects that had to cancel or postpone events and other activities due to the crisis. – Eligibility for compensation of costs already made for planned events and projects that had to be cancelled. – Allowing physical events to be replaced with other formats and activities more suited to the current situation. – “Provide the possibility to apply for additional funding to mitigate losses and support the rescheduling of events where appropriate”.
*Response from Commissioner Mariya Gabriel* CAE received a swift response from Commissioner Gabriel. In her letter she outlines the following core points: – She agrees that there is a need to ‘urgently implement measures to mitigate the impact of COVID-19 amongst Creative Europe beneficiaries and beyond’ – The Commission and Croatian presidency of the Council are organising a summit of European Ministers of Culture to discuss these issues and how to move forward together. – DG EAC and EACEA are exploring extra flexibility measures regarding ongoing Creative Europe projects. These are good signs however ELIA will continue to campaign alongside others to ensure these good intentions are turned into practical measures. *Letter and Open Petition initiated by Green CULT MEPs signed by ELIA* Supported also by Culture Action Europe this letter demands immediate and unbureaucratic initiatives such as the following: – Offer financial aid to the Cultural and Creative Sectors and the whole cultural ecosystem, including through the Corona Response Investment Initiative, proportionally to the size of the CCS in our economy. – Ensure access to unemployment and other social benefits for all cultural professionals, with particular attention to freelancers, self-employed and others in atypical forms of work, including creators coming from cultural minorities, and grant them compensation for the discontinuation of income. – Provide emergency aid to cultural professionals, especially the independent ones, as well as to small and medium-sized cultural companies, for example in the form of tax relief, loans, (micro-)credits, compensation for losses and non-recoverable costs.
