The Higher Colleges of Technology yesterday officially launched its 2014/15 academic year as it convened its 27th Annual Conference for faculty and staff at the HCT-Dubai Men's College.
The one-day event, held under the theme of Learning by Doing – The Road Ahead, was a premier opportunity for the HCT community to plan for the academic year ahead, as well as to learn of new developments in teaching methods and pedagogy.
The HCT Chancellor, Mohammad Omran Al Shamsi, delivered the opening address in front of more than 1,500 faculty and staff members who travelled from the HCT's 16 other campuses throughout the U.A.E. for the convocation ceremony. In keeping with tradition, all new faculty members were introduced to the Chancellor.
Al Shamsi addressed the gathering on a wide range of issues which will be relevant to the HCT community for the 2014/2015 academic year.
In welcoming new and returning faculty and staff he stressed the importance of maintaining focus on HCT's goal to become the U.A.E.'s number one applied technology institution. He noted that several initiatives had been undertaken in pursuit of this including adherence to the Learning by Doing philosophy, technology integration throughout the colleges, Emiratisation and the 170@17 teacher training scheme, and initiatives arising from the newly created Industry Advisory Council.
The Chancellor thanked the nation's leadership for their ongoing support and encouragement of HCT, and commented that HCT would continue to do its best in achieving its goals in higher education, which focus around nurturing graduates who have the skills and knowledge to enter the workforce and make important contributions to the nation. He urged all delegates to work hard throughout the coming year so that HCT achieves its goal of being the number one ranked institution in the U.A.E.
The event was also highlighted by the presentation of the Nikai Award for Student Excellence & Innovation in Teaching with special guest Mr Paras Shahdadpuri, Chairman of the Nikai Group. Another feature of the day was the presentation of 25-year service certificates to HCT faculty and staff members.
The conference was divided into a series of highly popular concurrent sessions run in the morning and afternoon and covering sub-themes such as: Quality is Job One! The Power to be Your Best Think Outside the Box The Relentless Pursuit of Assessment for Learning Better Teaching and Learning Through Applied Research and Service is our Passion.