On behalf of ourselves and our Partner Blackboard, we warmly invite the university management, e-learning administrators and educators to a unique online event which is BbWorld 2021. This annual Blackboard conference brings together education leaders from around the world and is a great opportunity to exchange experiences and best practices in distance learning and digital transformation of universities. It is also a great forum for discussing changes in education and the directions of higher education development.

This year’s edition of BBWorld will take the form of a series of several dozen sessions of various lengths taking place over two weeks, from 13 to 22 July. The sessions will cover the implementation of the hybrid education model, the involvement of students in online learning, the use of data and analytics to improve the learning outcomes, and much more. The issues of building inclusive education as well as modernization and optimal use of IT solutions in education will also be discussed. All sessions will be conducted in English.

We especially recommend a speech by Dr. Freeman A. Hrabowski III, Rector of the University of Maryland. In 2012, Dr. Freeman was appointed by President Obama as Chairman of the President’s Advisory Board on Educational Excellence. In his speech, the Rector will address the complex challenges faced by higher education today and the importance of extending access to education for all.

Among the many interesting sessions, we especially recommend a selection listed below:

  • 13 July“What’s Next in Higher Education Post-COVID: What Does the Future Hold?”. Doug Lederman, editor and co-founder of Inside Higher Ed, will interview leaders of higher education from around the world about the future of higher education in the post-covid era.
  • 13 July “Igniting Innovation: The Hybrid Future of Teaching & Learning”. At this session, the hosts will present vision for education in hybrid model at the University of Southampton and will indicate how can it affect the key pedagogical aspects of education.
  •  14 July “Taking Control of Your Online Future: Leaders in Online Education Share Lessons from the Journey”. While the pandemic has brought a sudden shift towards remote learning, creating quality online programs requires careful planning and strategy. Leading universities will share their experiences in developing online learning programs.
  • 21 July “Motivation Matters: How Characteristics and Self-Directed Learning Are Highlighted Due to COVID-19”. The speakers will present the results of research showing how to ensure the effectiveness of teaching when personal contact with the student is limited, and what is the importance of self-learning in effective education and its necessary elements.
  • 21 July “Transforming Course Materials Delivery to Create a Superior Student Experience in the LMS”. Removing barriers that prevent students from accessing educational materials is a key step in providing students with an appropriate learning environment. At this session, you will receive tips on how to ensure the accessibility of materials in remote courses.
  • 22 July „Should I Stay or Should I Go? Conducting a Comprehensive LMS Review at Your Institution”. At this session, you will discover what aspects should be taken into account in the process of evaluating the LMS platform used by the university. The speakers will present ready-made tools that can be used for this purpose.
  • 14-15 and 21-22 July 10-minute “Ed-talk” sessions. Among the topics there will be tips on how to create courses that meet different educational needs, how to use YouTube videos in educational materials, and much more.

We also encourage you to check out the whole program at https://www.blackboard.com/bbworld/sessions. You can filter the sessions to, for example, display only sessions addressed to various recipients (management staff, e-learning designers, educators) or sessions that take place on a given day.

The exact hours of the sessions will be known closer to the dates of the conference and we will inform about them on our websites and social media.

The conference is free of charge for all participants. Register here: https://www.blackboard.com/bbworld/register

Join us a the BBWorld 2021!