CONFERENCE STRUCTURE

eLearning Africa features various types of sessions in order to create the most comprehensive and cohesive agenda possible. The conference agenda is divided into:

Optional Pre-Conference Workshops, Seminars and Meetings Will Take Place on Wednesday, May 28, 2008

Pre-Conference Workshops, which will offer participants the opportunity to gain practical knowledge and insight from leading experts in a variety of specialised fields. These can be either half- or full-day workshops. The intention is that these working sessions be practical and develop participants’ skills or knowledge in a particular area. The emphasis is on activity and interaction, so the number of participants is limited.

Pre-Conference Seminars, which are typically knowledge sharing sessions focused on a specific topic. They provide in-depth insight into a particular project or set of projects, an initiative or development in the field of eLearning or an emerging issue being faced by the eLearning community. The emphasis is on knowledge dissemination; the number of participants can vary from 20 to 150 depending on the topic.

Pre-Conference Meetings, which are targeted at a specific set of participants. They are essentially private and are not announced on the conference website or brochures. Meetings can be arranged for groups of 10 to 150 participants.

The Main Conference on Thursday, May 29, 2008 and Friday, May 30, 2008 is Composed of Various Session Types

Plenary Sessions

Held during the conference, the plenary sessions feature internationally acknowledged eLearning experts.

Presentation Sessions

These sessions are organised around the main conference themes. Each session is made up of various presentations, usually between 15 and 30 minutes in length, where leading practitioners present their experiences and findings. Some of these sessions feature case studies from different organisations and enterprises.

Debates and Discussions

These take place at different times throughout the conference agenda and offer participants the opportunity to take part in debates and discussions on various key issues. Intended to be lively and thought provoking, these sessions encourage a full and open discussion on many of the topics that are crucial to the development of our society.

Special Focus Sessions

Certain topics lend themselves well to Special Focus Sessions, which include a mix of presentations and panel discussions. They feature a single topic, for example accreditation, standardisation, quality control or return-on-investment, allowing participants the opportunity to take part in a highly specialised discussion on a specific topic.

Demonstration Sessions

The objective of the Demonstration Sessions is to allow conference participants to see market-ready and almost market-ready eLearning tools and applications in action. These can include tools that have been developed for a specific application where the developers are looking for partners and others interested in further utilisation, beta versions of applications arising from collaborative projects, innovative examples of market ready tools and applications in real environments, etc.

Best Practice Showcase

These showcase sessions are intended as an opportunity to highlight excellent examples of eLearning courseware. Successful proposals are chosen on the basis of whether or not they can be considered excellent in terms of any of the following: the level of innovation shown, the scale and reach of the course, and the success of the course in reaching its aims and objectives and/or the context in which it is delivered.

Nnoboa Sessions

In order to facilitate additional networking opportunities at eLearning Africa this year, we are making space available during the conference for participants to set up Networking Sessions of their own on a specific topic. We are calling these sessions "Nnoboa Sessions". Nnoboa is a word in the Ghanaian Twi language which means "working together for the common good" and which is a good term for what will be highly interactive, informal and informative sessions addressing some of the key interests and issues of concern to eLearning Africa 2008 participants.

Additional networking sessions are organised to help participants who would like to meet people interested in similar issues and topics. These take place during the conference social agenda.

Up-Country Workshops and Lectures to Promote eLearning in the Host Country

Up-Country Workshops

The up-country workshops offer awareness and capacity development for regional educational communities shortly before or after the main conference, maximising the impact the Accra gathering has on the country. Accepted presenters can participate in and contribute to these events.

Public Lectures at Universities

The public lectures at universities extend the opportunities engendered by the conference to university staff and students in the Accra region. Accepted presenters can participate in and contribute to these events.