In mid-September, Dortmund University of Applied Sciences will be the first university to host the DELFI conference on educational technologies. For three days, 150 experts from all over Germany and neighboring European countries will discuss digital teaching and learning opportunities for schools, universities and further education institutions.
Teachers, researchers and interested parties will be looking at exciting future topics such as virtual reality in foreign language teaching, for example, and game-based learning for adults such as "serious games" for career orientation, as well as scientific analyses of web-based learning and educational dashboards. "We have a lot of practical contributions and experiences from the Corona semesters this year," says Prof. Dr. Andrea Kienle, prorector for digitalization at Dortmund University of Applied Sciences and Arts. The pandemic has given a boost to the development of digital learning and educational offerings. These experiences must now lead to consistent further development.
FH student speaks in front of experts
Almost 100 research contributions, practical examples and analyses were submitted in the run-up to the DELFI conference. After scientific review, a large number of them will be included in the conference program in various ways. A bachelor's student from Dortmund University of Applied Sciences and Arts has also mastered the review process and will present her work alongside other lecturers from the university.
"One focus of this conference is the individualization of learning content," says Andrea Kienle. The topic has been occupying the community for several years, she says. In the meantime, she says, there are very concrete and promising ideas. "We don't always have to tell all learners the same thing, but rather adapt the content to individual needs," adds Prof. Dr. Andreas Harrer, professor of computer science at Dortmund University of Applied Sciences and Arts and co-organizer of the conference. Both are convinced that the future of learning will develop in this direction.
Digital format with many shared moments
The fact that the DELFI conference in 2021 cannot take place in person, but only digitally, is painful for the organizers at Dortmund University of Applied Sciences. However, Prof. Dr. Andrea Kienle and Prof. Dr. Andreas Harrer, together with their partners Prof. Dr. Jörg Haake from the Distance Learning University in Hagen and Dr. Andreas Lingnau from the Ruhr-West University of Applied Sciences, have put together a package that will ensure shared moments despite the distance. The participants will be sent a care package with small surprises together with the conference proceedings. The days will also start with a digital sports program, and during the breaks an expert will look after eye health.
Registrations are still possible. The program is not only aimed at scientists, but also at teachers, educational institutions and other interested parties. The DELFI conference will take place from 13 to 15 September 2021. Program information and registration at:
The DELFI conference was founded almost 20 years ago in Dortmund by members of the Gesellschaft für Informatik (GI). It serves the intensive exchange of information about the state of research on technologies in teaching and involves employees of all educational institutions. The conference motto of DELFI 2021 is "Digital teaching between presence and online operation".