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International Staff Training Weeks

 

2024

From June 3rd to June 7th, 2024, the building of the SUT Library was home to he fifth edition of the International Staff Training Week conference. As usual, the event was organized by two units of the Silesian University of Technology in Gliwice: the Foreign Languages Centre (Dr Małgorzata Rachwalska-Mitas, Grażyna Duda, MA, and Janusz Sroka, MA) and the International Relations Office (Dr Grzegorz Kłapyta & his team).

The main theme of this year's sessions was Critical Pedagogy and its implementation in higher education institutions.

The lectures were presented by speakers invited from various universities home and abroad:

  • Prof. Kiruthika Ragupathi from the National University of Singapore
  • Prof. Małgorzata Kurek from Jan Długosz University in Częstochowa, Poland
  • Prof. Anna Turula from the National Education Commission University in Krakow, Poland
  • Prof. Juliana Lavrysh from Igor Sikorsky Kyiv Polytechnic Institute, Ukraine
  • Katarzyna Radke from Adam Mickiewicz University in Poznań, Poland
  • Hubertus Weyer from the Business School in Wiesbaden, Germany
  • Alastair Creelman, ex-Linnaeus University in Kalmar, Sweden
  • Olha Tsubowa from Lviv Polytechnic, Ukraine

The Silesian University of Technology was represented by:

  • Prof. Melanie Ellis from the  Faculty of Organization and Management, Department of Applied Linguistics
  • Dr Grzegorz Kłapyta from the International Relations Office
  • a team of lecturers from various faculties
  • Dr Ludmiła Żukowska from the International Mobility Office

The Foreign Languages Centre at SUT was represented by:

  • Anna Gazda
  • Anna Smajdor and Maria Nowicka (in collaboration with Hubertus Weyer from the Business School in Wiesbaden, Germany, Darlen Kilian, and Dr. Marek Jacob from the Technical University in Freiburg, Germany)
  • Bożena Stefanowicz
  • Grażyna Duda & her students (in collaboration with Mija Cirvenii from the University of Osijek in Croatia)
  • Dr Hanna Brdyś
  • Iwona Rocznik
  • Iwona Seta-Dąbrowska (2 presentations – CLIL and a telecollaboration presentation with Prof. Daniela Caluianu from Otaru University of Commerce in Japan)
  • Iwona Terlecka-Żabińska
  • Janusz Sroka
  • Renata Pelka

The conference was attended by participants from the following countries:

  • France
  • Spain
  • India
  • Poland
  • Suriname
  • Sweden
  • Ukraine
  • Uzbekistan

As every year, our conference was an excellent platform for exchanging thoughts and experiences related to university education and an opportunity to establish new acquaintances and collaborations with academic teachers from other countries.

The full programme of ISTW'24 can be found here

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2023 

From June 12th to June 16th, 2023, once again the Silesian University of Technology was home to the International Staff Training Week. This event, organized for the fourth time by the Department of International Cooperation and the Foreign Languages Centre, was attended by approximately 50 guests from all around the world.

This year, the discussions focused on high-quality education understood as a goal of sustainable development. The main topic of the conference was "Sustainable collaboration in a rapidly changing society." During the debates, issues related to teaching based on CLIL projects, as well as international and national telecollaborations, were addressed. These educational approaches enable our students to acquire knowledge and competencies necessary for functioning in the 21st century.

Our conference gathered representatives of the academic community from various parts of the world, including Albania, Algeria, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Mozambique, Libya, Jordan, Austria, Georgia, Uzbekistan, Suriname, Spain, and Ukraine.

Lectures, on the other hand, were presented by speakers from Finland, Sweden, the United Kingdom, Australia, Japan, France, Hungary, and Poland, including a large group of lecturers from the Foreign Language Centre of the Silesian University of Technology.

ISTW’23 provided an excellent opportunity to confront different perspectives on the future of education and to establish new contacts, not only during the sessions and debates but also during numerous additional integrational  events, such as a trip to the Koszęcin palace, an evening in the 'Mrowisko' Students’ Club, or a grill party.

The full programme of our ISTW'23 can be found here.

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2021

On 18th – 22nd October 2021 another "International Staff Training Week 2021" took place at the Silesian University of Technology. It was organized by the International Relations Office and the Foreign Languages Centre. This year's event - due to the pandemic situation - had to adapt to the conditions. We offered our participants a hybrid form (partly on-site and partly using the ZOOM platform). There were 47 participants from abroad and many representatives of the academic staff of the Silesian University of Technology. The organizers did not know the number of foreign guests to the last moment, but 33 foreigners who came to Gliwice in this already difficult period were more than welcome. There were so many participants in auditorium A at the Education and Congress Centre (CEK) that the hybrid form proved to be fully justified.

The recent SUT ISTW 2021 entitled "International Learning - Innovative Educational Practicies" provided an excellent platform to share experiences and good practices in internationalization and implementation of modern teaching methods. The thematic areas, in addition to a wide range of issues related to virtual exchange and telecollaboration (remote collaboration that allows students to learn to work in international and multicultural teams), also included issues of interdisciplinary collaboration (CLIL, PBL). Such important issues as engaging students in research and assisting students with disabilities were also highlighted.

ISTW - a joint venture of 2 units - was organized under the watchful eye of the management, Grzegorz Kłapyta, PhD (head of the International Relations Office) and Małgorzata Rachwalska – Mitas, PhD (director of the Foreign Languages Centre).

The event also had two coordinators and speakers: on behalf of the Foreign Languages Centre this role was performed by Grażyna Duda, MA, and the representative of the International Relations Office was Grzegorz Kłapyta, PhD. 

Numerous speakers from abroad accepted the invitation to the conference and graced it with their presence:

- from Sweden (Linnaeus University): Alastair Creelman, specialist in e-learning and distance education;

- from Japan (Otaru University of Economics): prof. Daniela Caluianu - professor of linguistics;

- from Hungary (Budapest Business School - Budapest University of Economics): Ildiko Dosa, PhD, head of the Foreign Language Centre at the Faculty of Finance and Accounting;

- from Ukraine (Lviv Technical University): Olha Tsubova, lecturer at the Department of Foreign Languages;

- from Denmark (Aarhus University): Ana Kanareva-Dimitrowska, PhD, head of the European Centre for Modern Languages;

- from the Russian Federation: Oleg Kolpaschchikov, chairman of the non-profit organization "White Cane" for people with disabilities, Vladimir Gryaznov, PhD, and Stanislav Eroshenko, PhD from the Department of Automated Electrical Systems, Ural University;

- from Great Britain (Warwick University) prof. Teresa MacKinnon, educator.

In addition to aforementioned speakers, we hosted high-class specialists - representatives of Polish universities:

- Małgorzata Kurek, PhD, specialist in Virtual Exchange from Jan Długosz University in Częstochowa;

- Marcin Witkowski, PhD , specialist in international marketing and intercultural communication from Adam Mickiewicz University in Poznań.

Our University was represented by:

- Dariusz Buchczik, PhD, from the Faculty of Automatic Control, Electronics and Computer Science, manager of educational projects carried out using the PBL method at the Silesian University of Technology;

- prof. Melanie Ellis, PhD, DSc, professor at the Silesian University, educator and language teacher at the Institute for Research in Education and Communication;

- Grzegorz Kłapyta, PhD, head of the International Relations Office;

- Ludwina Żukowska, PhD, Erasmus + Programme coordinator, head of the International Mobility Office.

A large group of speakers were lecturers from the Foreign Languages Centre, who presented their projects carried out with the participation of students of the Silesian University of Technology:

- Grażyna Duda, MA, Iwona Seta-Dąbrowska, MA, Renata Pelka, MA, Bożena Stefanowicz, MA- international telecollaborative projects involving our students and students from universities in Japan, Ukraine and Hungary;

- Gabriela Szewiola, MA (the Foreign Languages Centre), Krzysztof Kafka, PhD (the Faculty of Architecture), Iwona Seta-Dąbrowska, MA, Janusz Sroka, MA (the Foreign Languages Centre), Małgorzata Gołaszewska, PhD (the Faculty of Civil Engineering) - CLIL (Content and Language Integrated Learning) projects conducted by the Foreign Languages Centre using the PBL method at the Faculties of Architecture and Civil Engineering;

- Anna Gazda, MA, Iwona Terlecka-Żabińska, MA, Małgorzata Zyk, MA, Janusz Sroka, MA - English in research and scientific communication for students and PhD students of the Silesian University of Technology.

The issues of teaching Polish language to our international students were presented by Beata Kurzawińska, MA and Maria Nowicka, MA.

The activity areas of the Foreign Languages Centre were presented by Iwona Rocznik, MA.

The five-day programme was filled with morning sessions grouped thematically and afternoon sightseeing tours or accompanying events (e. g. meeting with employees of individual departments interested in cooperation). The development and successful implementation of the programme was supervised by the team of the International Mobility Office of the International Relations Office under the leadership of Ludwina Żukowska, PhD.

As in previous years, lectures, presentations and workshops of SUT ISTW 2021 enjoyed great interest of guests from abroad and representatives of the academic staff of the Silesian University of Technology. The event provided an opportunity for direct contacts with our foreign guests and partners and was a unique opportunity to exchange experiences, discuss and plan joint activities or future projects.

The event became an opportunity for direct contacts with our foreign guests and partners and was a special occasion for exchanging experiences, discussing and planning joint activities or future projects.

Undoubtedly, it also influenced the further integration of our scientific and didactic staff and was an incentive to implement innovative solutions to the curricula.

The success of SUT ISTW 2021 is also evidenced by the numerous correspondence from its participants and speakers with expressions of appreciation and declaration of cooperation in future editions of SUT ISTW.

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2020

From October 19th to 22nd, 2020, the International Staff Training Week took place for the second time at the Silesian University of Technology, organized jointly by the Department of International Cooperation (DIC) and the Foreign Language Center (FLC). Due to the epidemiological situation, the event was held in a virtual format using the Zoom platform.

The theme of this year's ISTW 2020 was "Internationalisation of Higher Education - Perspectives of International Learning," providing an excellent opportunity for the exchange of experiences and best practices in modernizing higher education study programs. The thematic areas covered a wide range of topics related to virtual exchange and telecollaboration, which enable students to learn and work in international and multicultural teams online. The event also considered issues of interdisciplinary collaboration among teachers from different fields. With the aim of equipping students with skills that are useful and highly valued in the job market, the participants focused on the topic of "soft skills," particularly problem-solving, teamwork, decision-making, and critical thinking.

The conference invited and featured distinguished speakers from abroad, including:

- From Sweden (Linnaeus University):

  • Alastair Creelman, an e-learning and distance education specialist
  • Yael Tågerud, an intercultural communication specialist
  • Corina Löwe, Deputy Director of the Center for Foreign Languages

- From Japan:

  • Daniela Caluianu, a professor of linguistics at the Otaru University of Commerce

- From Hungary:

  • Ildiko Dosa, Head of the Foreign Language Center at the Budapest University of Economics

- From Ukraine:

  • Olha Tsubova, a lecturer at the Foreign Languages Faculty of Lviv Polytechnic National University

Representing Polish universities were:

  • Małgorzata Kurek, a virtual exchange specialist from Jan Długosz University in Częstochowa
  • Barbara Loranc-Paszylk, an expert in Content and Language Integrated Learning (CLIL) from the University of Bielsko-Biała

Representing our university were:

  • Eng. Dariusz Buchczik, Project Manager of the Problem-Based Learning (PBL) projects at the Silesian University of Technology
  • Grażyna Duda, MA, Chair of the CLIL and PBL Commission at the Foreign Language Center
  • Hab. Melanie Ellis, Prof. SUT, a language expert at the Institute for Educational Research and Communication at the Silesian University of Technology
  • Eng. Grzegorz Kłapyta, Head of the Department of International Cooperation
  • Eng. Ludwina Żukowska, Erasmus+ Program Coordinator, Head of the International Exchange Section
  • Eng. Małgorzata Gołaszewska - Faculty of Civil Engineering (CLIL)

Additionally, our Foreign Language Center lecturers presented their international telecollaborative projects involving students from the Silesian University of Technology and partner universities in Armenia, Estonia, Finland, France, Spain, Japan, Ukraine, and Hungary:

  • Grażyna Duda, MA
  • Iwona Seta-Dąbrowska, MA
  • Renata Pelka, MA
  • Bożena Stefanowicz, MA
  • Janusz Sroka, MA

The conference was coordinated and moderated by Mgr. Grażyna Duda and Dr. Eng. Grzegorz Kłapyta. All lectures, presentations, and workshops of the ISTW 2020 received significant interest from international guests and academic staff representatives from various faculties of the Silesian University of Technology. The International Staff Training Week 2020 also served as a platform for direct contact with our international guests and partners from all around the world, providing a unique opportunity for discussions and planning joint activities and projects. It also allowed for familiarizing ourselves with the topic of innovation and internationalization of education at our university and utilizing this knowledge for further integration of our academic teaching staff in implementing innovative solutions into study programs. The SUT ISTW 2020 was an event that can be described as a success, particularly given the current epidemiological situation, as evidenced by the numerous correspondences from participants and speakers expressing appreciation and declaring cooperation in future editions.

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2019

On 21 – 25 October 2019, the Foreign Languages Centre of the Silesian University of Technology and the International Cooperation Department organized an International Staff Training Week for employees of various universities from around the world. This year's topic was virtual exchange as an innovative form of distant learning and internationalization in higher education. The rich program included fascinating lectures, workshops and discussion panels, which were devoted to: virtual exchange and its role in teacher education in the 21st century, the Erasmus+ virtual exchange program, global class, telecollaboration projects, language competences as irreplaceable tools in projects, methodology and didactics of foreign language teaching on the example of international telecollaboration projects implemented by lecturers of the Foreign Languages Centre at the Silesian University of Technology, programs and organizations supporting telecollaboration projects, and – last but not least – webinars and how to organize and conduct them.

The participants of the International Staff Training Week not only listened to interesting lectures, but were also able to work in small groups, testing and evaluating simple online collaboration tools.

A wide range of topics with theoretical and practical examples could be covered thanks to wonderful lecturers and professionals such as:

  • Alastair Creelman - e-learning specialist in the unit of higher education development at Linnaeus University in Sweden
  • Małgorzata Kurek - researcher and lecturer at the Institute of Foreign Languages ​​at Jan Długosz University in Częstochowa
  • Corina Löwe - assistant professor in German and literature at the Language Department of Linnaeus University in Sweden
  • Melissa de Wilde - specialist in implementing innovative projects at Ghent University in Belgium
  • Lecturers of The Foreign Languages Centre: Grażyna Duda and Janusz Sroka, Bożena Stefanowicz, Iwona Seta-Dąbrowska in cooperation with Daniela Caluianu from Otaru University of Commerce in Japan and Renata Pelka in cooperation with Corina Löwe from Linnaeus University in Sweden, all of whom presented their international telecollaboration projects.

The program also included the possibility of contacting the participants of the International Staff Training Week with employees of the Silesian University of Technology, as well as establishing contacts with colleagues from our partner institutions. In addition, the participants, who represented various universities from around the world, had the chance to discover the campus of the Silesian University of Technology and the region. After a week of intensive training, the participants returned to their countries and universities, satisfied with their visit to SUT and full of new ideas.

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