Collaboration to support quality teaching and learning

The Australian Council for Educational Research (ACER) and Emirates College for Advanced Education (ECAE) in September signed a memorandum of understanding enabling the two organisations to work together in the development of assessment and evaluation programs and professional development for educators.

The aim of the partnership is to improve assessment and evaluation in education and training. ACER and ECAE aim to jointly offer professional development programs and courses for educators, and undertake educational research in the United Arab Emirates.

ECAE Vice-Chancellor, Professor Mohamed Yousif Baniyas, welcomed the opportunity to work with ACER and acknowledged the important contribution ACER can make to professional development and research on assessment and evaluation in education.

ACER Institute Director, Dr Elizabeth Hartnell-Young said both ACER and ECAE recognised the importance of a global outlook.

‘ECAE as a provider of undergraduate and postgraduate programs in education, and ACER as a provider of postgraduate programs in education, have a common interest in improving pedagogy and assessment, as well as whole-school improvement,’ Dr Hartnell-Young said.

‘By sharing knowledge and expertise, our mutual aim is to support teachers in formal study, as well as to research and publish their own practice, through the provision of forums for the sharing of ideas such as ACER’s Excellence in Professional Practice Conference.’

ACER also signed a memorandum of understanding with Universitas Nusa Cendana in Indonesian West Timor and Universidade Nacional Timor Lorosa'e in Timor Leste in September.

ACER Director of International Development Peter McGuckian said the partnership will see ACER working in Indonesian West Timor and Timor Leste on joint research projects to investigate approaches to early years education.

‘The memorandum of understanding proposes to bring together researchers from ACER, Universitas Nusa Cendana and Universidade Nacional Timor Lorosa'e for the purpose of sharing research data, capacity building, and undertaking and publishing research in support of quality teaching and learning,’ Mr McGuckian said.

Professor Kathryn Moyle, who will lead ACER’s team in the collaborative project, said the anticipated educational benefit of the memorandum of understanding was significant in itself, but noted that the collaborative effort was also important in the development of strong relations between Indonesia and Timor Leste.

‘The research partners at Universitas Nusa Cendana and Universidade Nacional Timor Lorosa'e, and the teachers and students of Indonesian West Timor and Timor Leste share much in common. ACER is very pleased to be working with partners to build research capacity and undertake educational research in support of improved education across the island,’ Professor Moyle said.