Dr. Catherine Dean from the School of Humanities and Social Studies presented a paper at the IICE-2013 conference which was held in Dublin (Ireland) from 21^st to 23^rd of October 2013. As indicated in the proceedings, it “provides an opportunity for academicians and professionals from various educational fields with cross-disciplinary interests to bridge the knowledge gap, promote research esteem and the evolution of pedagogy”. The committee received 402 papers from 57 countries of which 167 papers were accepted after the first review and 127 papers were finally accepted for presentation, 4 Posters and 4 Workshops. The participants came from the U.S.A., Qatar, South Africa, Malaysia, Germany, Rumania, Ireland, Canada and other countries.

 

Dr. Dean was invited by the Chair of the Steering Committee to chair one of the paper presentation sessions on the first day of the conference. She gave her own paper, ILO 4 and the Tomodachis, during the same session. As she explains in the abstract:

 

This paper presents a project which I designed for first year students in Information Technology and Tourism and Hospitality Management. I was teaching them Philosophical Anthropology. The students were asked to try to live out certain values while preparing a group research presentation throughout the semester. I present the overall outcome of the project and discuss a group called the “Tomodachis” because of their success in living by the proposed values. I show that students can learn to work together in ways which facilitate their personal growth if they are encouraged to do so. This project was part of my doctoral research in which I developed an educational theory that explains how I live my values in my teaching practice.

 

The Infonomics Society of the UK (http://www.infonomics-society.org/) runs this and other conferences on education once or twice a year in Dublin, London and Canada to provide opportunities to post-graduate students, new and experienced researchers to present, publish, and deepen their understanding of academic research. Participation is beneficial as the quality is high and the paper selection and review is rigorous. The Infonomics Society also runs specialized conferences in the area of information technology.