Discussions

Name and Title: Francisco Ibanez-Carrasco PhD, Scientist/Director, Education and Training Unit

Organization Name: The Ontario HIV Treatment Network /Universities Without Walls

Co-Presenter Name(s): Cathy Worthington PhD, University of Victoria.

Country from Which You Will Present: Canada

Language in Which You Will Present: English

Target Audience: graduate and higher education specialists, online education practitioners, adult educators, HIV/AIDS and health researchers.

 Short Session Description (one line): Universities Without Walls is more than a training program for an emerging cadre of academic HIV researchers in Canada; it is an educational lab to test the limits of online education of higher education students in highly complex topics and environments.

Full Session Description (as long as you would like):  Universities Without Walls (UWW) is a national, interdisciplinary HIV health research training program that embraces CBR principles and practices and uses blended delivery (that is, a blending of face-to-face, synchronous on-line and individualized learning components) to promote learning. UWW is funded by a Strategic Training in Health Research (STIHR) grant from the Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR), and is housed at the Ontario HIV Treatment Network (OHTN) as the training arm of the CIHR Centre for REACH (Research Evidence into Action for Community Health) in HIV/AIDS. UWW is currently funded for a 6 year period to support six cohorts of fellows through the Program.

As a program that operates outside of traditional university structures, UWW has the ability to work beyond geographical and disciplinary boundaries, and engage a group of fellows who are passionate about a stigmatizing and marginalizing social issue, namely HIV (human immunodeficiency virus, the virus that causes AIDS). CBR and adult learning principles foster co-learning and the development of communities of practice among fellows and mentors. UWW is one of several emerging academic training programs for advanced students and promising researchers in the health field that have only recently begun to be assessed (Kirmayer, Rousseau, Corin & Groleau, 2008; Manson 2009).

The milestones reached in the implementation of the Universities Without Walls STIHR grant have surpassed the goals set in the original STIHR application. Initiated in 2009,  UWW has made enormous progress by a) sustaining an inspired and responsive network, b) achieving high levels of recruitment and retention of trainees (UWW Fellows) chosen from the most advanced HIV emerging researchers in Canada and engaging actively faculty and mentors from policy, academic and frontline sectors, c) fostering professional achievement (e.g., advancement in studies, professional appointments) and products (e.g., conferences, papers), and d) innovating with in efficient, high-quality, and diverse “blended delivery” (a carefully planned combination of online instruction and in-person mentorship) of training for advanced academic students in HIV research.

UWW has reached a milestone in the area of interdisciplinarity by developing innovative research collaboration using web technologies and social media that include our active mentoring of trainees as well as faculty, thus making this enterprise mutually beneficial. UWW is a model for new forms of ‘blended delivery’ of education (in person and online) to HIV research programs across Canada. Our faculty expertise is frequently called upon to contribute to the training of students and other stakeholders. We are particularly proud of our adaptation of conventional and traditional pedagogical formats to online delivery; we have implemented fishbowl conversations, UnConferences, seminar discussions, and other activities and we want to share our experience and lessons learned with everyone!

Websites / URLs Associated with Your Session (if any): www.universitieswithoutwalls.ca