VIA University College is Denmark’s second largest university of applied sciences. With more than 19.000 full-time students divided in more than forty educational programmes and approximately 27.000 registered participants annually in our continuing education programmes, diplomas, courses etc. VIA becomes the largest provider in Northern Europe of professional development of practitioners. VIA develops educational programmes in close cooperation with employers – companies, municipalities, regional, national and international institutions. VIA’s Research and Development Centres employ a staff of more than 500 researchers and developers that underpin the ambition to be a research-based university college and ensure that our educational programmes are based on the latest knowledge.
Our interest in the project
VIA has an interest in STRIDE from two perspectives. Firstly, it tackles enduring challenges related to inclusion and educational inequalities by evaluating the effectiveness and impact of various policy interventions and reforms. STRIDE will therefore give crucial knowledge that VIA, in close collaboration with educational stakeholders, will be able to employ to provide socially viable solutions for the future.
Secondly, STRIDE facilitates collaboration among researchers with diverse approaches, offering valuable insights for policymakers at the European level. While VIA has been a major presence at the national level in Denmark for some years, the hope is that VIA with participation in this project will be able to further cultivate cross-country collaboration on research and development at the European level and thereby contributing to a sound development and bolstering of inclusive education.
Our role in the project
VIA has two roles in the project. We will be co-leading the deliverable of an Overview of significant national and regional education reforms aimed at rectifying inequalities in education and learning outcomes and to promote equity and inclusion over the past 25 years in Europe. This is done by the Mapping of a policy overview and meta-analysis of longitudinal studies and evaluations following the key educational reforms, and will result in a Comprehensive analysis of education reforms across Europe, highlighting efforts to reduce inequalities and promote equity in education.
VIA will also be leading the translation of the research findings of STRIDE into actionable insights for policymakers in consortium countries and the European Commission. We will produce a Comprehensive policy toolbox that synthesizes research findings and provides practical tools and techniques to assess and address educational inequalities. This Toolbox, developed through extensive collaboration and expert input, will be a valuable resource for policymakers across Europe, helping to shape more equitable educational outcomes and support student learning effectively over time.
Website of the VIA University College: https://en.via.dk/
Find out about the other STRIDE project partners here.
