Digitally Connecting Real and Virtual Environments | DEvision
Project Coordinator: Ainura Nazarkulova
Coordinating Institution: University of Salzburg
Partner Institutions: National University of Architecture and Construction of Armenia (Naira Gyurjyan), Yerevan State University (Arsen Aproyan), Kyrgyz State University of Construction, Transport and Architecture (Tatygul Urmambetova)
Partner Countries: Armenia, Kyrgyzstan
Project Duration: 1 March 2022 – 28 February 2025 (36 months)
Project Overview
The DEvision initiative aims at the integration of geospatial online and blended learning modules into bachelor and master level curricula of multiple disciplines at partner institutions. The initiative implements the Digital Earth vision and digital transformation concepts impacting societies, economies and environments.
The project partners have identified an urgent need and supply gap for education in and open access to current digital, online and participative technologies. In parallel, research capacities at the interface of real world problems and virtual representations need strengthening to serve as foundations for integrated regional development, meeting the needs of economy and societal responsibility for SDGs.
DEvision aims at educating Digital Earth citizens across curricula by implementing a set of core learning modules on Digital Earth Basics, Geospatial Models and Representations, Geovisualisation and –communication, Remote Sensing & Image Analysis, and Spatial Analysis with integrated elements for Application Development.
These Open Educational Resources support an integrated syllabus covering one full semester’s equivalent of student engagement, and serve as focal elements in multiple disciplines ranging from technical to environmental subjects, including social, economic and governance perspectives.
By showcasing and fully implementing a role model for digital transformation in education and ultimately professional practice, the collaborative DEvision initiative is expected to have substantial impact within and beyond all participating institutions: "The future is not something to predict. The future is something to build."
Project website: https://devision-zgis.hub.arcgis.com/
Reporting
Digitally Connecting Real and Virtual Environments Devision DEvision | Report of the First Year
DEvision aims at bringing 'Digital Earth' competences into an array of disciplines beyond 'core' geospatial study programs like Geoinformatics, Geodesy/Surveying or Cartography. During the first project year, development teams were formed contributing to the establishment of Moodle-based open educational resources (OER) for teaching&learning modules on Digital Earth Basics, Geospatial Models and Representations, Geovisualisation and –communication, Remote Sensing and Image Analysis, and Spatial Analysis with integrated elements for Application Development. By April 2023, these modules have become openly available for the general Digital Earth education community through the project website, with teachers having privileged access to feedback channels as well as dedicated teacher resources.