The in-house multiplication training on ESP and ECTS within the frame of Erasmus+ SMARTI (Support for Innovative Methodology, Approaches and Tools for Teaching through the Medium of English in order to improve Educational Yield, Sustainability and Internationalization) Project was launched on 29 March. The participants of the training were welcomed by Tehmina Marutyan, Acting Rector of GSU, Naira Safaryan,Head of the Department of External Relations and Cooperation and local project coordinator, who emphasized the importance of such training courses in the field of higher education as they are aimed at raising the level of educators’ and students’ academic English proficiency, foster the applications of ECTS guideline and European quality assurance standards, as well as the promotion of student-centered learning.
The training was carried out from March 29 to April 14 and conducted by GSU trainers Naira Safaryan,(Head of the Department of External Relations and Cooperation and Assistant Professor at the Chair of Foreign Languages), Naira Mezhlumyan (Assistant Professor at the Chair of Foreign Languages) and Lilit Atabekyan (Associate Professor of the Chair of Biology and Chemistry) and Sona Alaverdyan (Specialist at the Department of External Relations and Cooperation). This was an in-house multiplication event following the training at Catholic University of Porto in January 2022. The training was very well attended by staff and students.
The training sessions covered a wide range of topics such as: “How to give effective presentations”, “How to write a cover/motivation letter”, “Writing a statistical report (graphs, pie charts, bar charts) and useful language for charts, graphs, tables”, “Introduction and application of ECTS/TUNING framework”, “ECTS and the European Higher Education Area (EHEA). Systematic use of ESG and ECTS Guide, CEFR Guide”, “ECTS and lifelong learning, ECTS for programme design, delivery and monitoring”, “The programme learning outcomes, learning, teaching innovative methodology and assessment”, “ECTS and quality assurance” and “Creating an Efficient and Successful Student-Centered EMI Study Programme”.
Each theoretical training session was followed by a practical one based on the assignments designated to the application of the knowledge and their presentation. This was followed by discussions and useful remarks and feedback by the trainers. It should be noted that the working language was English, which was not only challenging, but also intriguing for the trainees. (Level A1 in English was announced to be one of the pre-requisites required for the participation in the training.
On the final day of the training, the participants, who had successfully completed the course, were granted certificates. Tehmina Marutyan (Acting Rector of GSU) and the trainers congratulated the trainees for the successful completion of the training and expressed hope that the gained knowledge and experience will be best applied in the trainees’ professional career in general and the educational process in particular.
