ICODeL or International Conference on Open and Distance e-Learning provides a forum for distance education and e-learning scholars, practitioners and policy makers to share and reflect on experiences, and collaboratively create and explore spaces and possibilities for open, distance and e-learning for development.

ICODeL 2021 will be held as a virtual conference which means that all presentations will be delivered online. Paper presenters are required to submit video recordings or  slide presentations with recorded narration before the conference. Asynchronous and synchronous interactions between the presenters and the participants will take place in a designated online platform.

ICODeL was launched on 22-24 February 2012 in Manila, Philippines to provide a forum for distance education on and e-learning scholars, practitioners and policymakers to share and reflect on experiences, and collaboratively create and explore spaces and possibilities for ODeL for development. The second ICODeL was held in Manila in 2014. In 2018, UPOU partnered with National University of Kaohsiung to organize the third ICODeL in Taiwan.

Rationale

The recent global health crisis has highlighted the need for universities to be agile amidst disruptions. Educational institutions that had taken steps towards technology-enhanced instruction and flexible learning have proved to be more resilient in these challenging times. Beyond  adaptations to the pandemic, these developments could be seen as opportunities for universities to strategically face the challenges of the future.

Parallel to this challenge is the increasing call for universities to be more concerned with issues of sustainability — accessibility, inclusion, equity, relevance, diversity, and quality. In addition, various threats to sustainability have cast doubt on existing models of development and put a spotlight on the importance of lifelong learning and constant re-tooling. The changing economic structures, work trends, and recent effects of pandemic have shown that the way education is delivered to learners needs to be revolutionized to remain relevant. Over the years, open and distance e-learning (ODeL) has carved out alternative paths for universities to make education more accessible to more diverse sets of learners. This conference aims to provide a virtual space for local and international ODeL practitioners, students, policy makers to discuss spaces and possibilities that ODeL has opened up as the educational sector envisions and prepares for the challenges of the University of the Future. 

Subthemes

• Surviving the Disruption
• Technological Innovations in Open and Distance Learning
• Equity, Diversity and Inclusion in Education
• Education for Agile Work Environments
• Remote/Flexible Teaching and Learning
• Accessible Education for Sustainable Development
• Gender Considerations in Online Learning
• Empowerment in Online Education
• Education in Volatile, Uncertain, Complex, and Ambiguous Contexts
• E-learning Models in Health
• Future Foresight and Strategic Governance
• Flexible Learning Pathways for Lifelong Learning
• Ensuring Quality in Online and Distance Learning
• Wellness and Mental Health in Virtual Learning Environments

Submission Guidelines

Individuals who are interested in making a paper or presentation should submit an abstract of not more than 350 words on or before 7 July 2021. The proposed paper or poster should be relevant to the conference theme and one of the sub-themes. Papers should be research-based. Authors of accepted abstracts shall receive a notice of acceptance from the conference organizers by 14 August 2021. Only accepted abstracts can be submitted for full paper review.

Organizers

This conference is co-organized by the University of the Philippines Open University (UPOU), Philippine Society for Distance Learning (PSDL), and UPOU Foundation, Inc. 

Contact

All questions about submissions should be emailed to icodelsecretariat@upou.edu.ph.