56 AI software for enriching course discussion, and apps that measure aptitude instead of traditional exams: Nothing is too innovative for the Division for Teaching and Learning, founded to make a Bar-Ilan education more engaging, effective, and accessible to all. Now, one year in, the division’s ambitious range of activities underscores the University’s commitment to excellence in instruction—and to preparing exceptional graduates for Israel. Teaching as Team Effort In its first year of operations, the division recruited nine new team members, bringing the total number of staff to 12. All these hires, which include experts in pedagogy, ed-tech, and the learning-management platform Moodle, “bring a rich background in teaching technologies to the division, whichwill draw fromand adapt their successful experience in educational innovation,” say Vice Rector Prof. Arie Reich and Division Head Yuval Schreibman. Kicking Courses up a Notch Last year, thanks to a NIS 4.5 million competitive grant from Israel’s Council for Higher Education, the division announced its third call for proposals fromBar-Ilan faculty for making existing courses more interesting. Selected courses were studied carefully by the division team, and digital content—from TED talk-style videos and interactive tasks to digital escape rooms and VR—incorporated into their syllabi to enhance the learning process. From the nearly 300 proposals submitted thus far, the division has thus far revamped 70 courses across every discipline. Embracing the Future of Education Recognizing that the generative-AI train has definitively left the station, the division is helping both faculty and students adapt to a post-Chat GPT world. Alongside a series of workshops with the deans from all faculties, the division is developing recommendations for student assignments, such as having Learning: Different and Smart The Division of Teaching and Learning
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