Kosovo Erasmus+ Office in cooperation with Kosovo Higher Education Reform Experts team (HEREs) organized a round table on Student-Centered Learning, Opportunities, and Challenges in higher education in Kosovo”. The event took place on 21 February 2023, at the University of Applied Sciences in Ferizaj and was Chaired by HERE Prof Bujar Pira.
The aim of the seminar was to explore the paradigm of Student Centred Learning (SCL)- the concept, legislative framework, and its challenges in applicability in practice in the Kosovo context.
This activity raised great interest and discussion among the academic community of public and private higher education institutions in Kosovo.
The keynote presentation on the Student-Centered Learning topic was presented by SCL expert Prof. Xhavit Rexhaj, who thoroughly explained the concept and legal framework as well as the challenges to adopting this modality in HE institutions in Kosovo.
This rather new concept in Kosovo is increasingly gathering traction as more and more academic staff from different profiles are recognizing this area as crucial for reforming the ways of teaching in higher education institutions in Kosovo. Especially when it comes to HEI delivering applied sciences degrees the SCL model should be essential.
Following discussions on the systemic approach towards implementation of SCL and what that could mean for the teaching staff at each University, few recommendations were gathered by the HERE prof Pira and summarised at the end of the event.
-As this is a mental rather than an administrative undertaking, its application in Kosovo may need a country-tailored approach
-Internal regulation could be developed and adopted on SCL for all HEI in Kosovo
-There is a need for governmental support on the adoption of SCL in public HEIs as this may have budgetary and staffing implication
-The role of the lecturer needs to be defined well in the SCL approach
-Participants were eager to continue exploring this topic further in other roundtables and/or workshops, some of which can be organized by HEREs
