EDEN Network of Academics and Professionals (NAP)

1. The NAP Steering Committee ballot was opened on 11 February. There have been seven NAP members nominated, from among them those six receiving the highest number of votes, will become members of the Steering Committee. The voting period will last until 10 March. See for details the announcement on the NAP Members Area: www.eden-online.org/nap.
NAP members are invited to support by their votes the procedure.

2. EDEN will organise its Fifth Open Classroom Conference 5-7 October in Poitiers, France, in co-operation with CNED, Centre National de l'Enseignement a Distance. The Conference, entitled: "Teachers' Professional Development – eLearning, Innovation & Quality in Schooling", will address the ever-increasing needs of teachers' professional development, in search for Innovation and Quality in School Education, as these needs are imposed by the emerging e-learning paradigms, the search for new, more effective school structures and the broader challenges that societies are facing in their way towards what has been identified as the Knowledge Economy.
The EDEN Executive Committee organised their meeting in January in Poitiers and discussed the preparation of the Open Classroom event with CNED colleagues. The Rector of CNED, Olivier Dugrip, received the Executive Committee.

3. Claudio Dondi, Vice-President of EDEN was invited to hold a presentation with the title "Lifelong Learning Policy, Citizenship and ICT" at the Microsoft Government Leaders Forum, attended by high-level governmental representatives and policy makers, on 1-2 February 2005, in Prague.

4. In EURODL - the European Journal of Open and Distance Learning, with support of EDEN - since December again a number of new interesting articles have been released. The articles cover a wide range of different aspects of the distance and e-learning field, under the following titles:
Problem Based Management Learning-Better Online?
The Training of Teachers and Trainers: Innovative Practices, Skills and Competencies in the use of eLearning
The Virtual University: From Turf to Surf-Same Journey Different Routes
Online Faculty Support and Education Innovation – A Case Study
A Learning Object Approach to Personalised Web-based Instruction
Visit the new titles at: www.eurodl.org
Let us draw your attention on the structural and technical improvement on the site which e.g. allow online submission.

5. As a courtesy of Professor Jacques Vauthier and the HEAL (Higher education E-Learning courses Assessment and Labelling) programme, the book "Livre Blanc – Towards a virtual Erasmus" accompanied by a CD-ROM, is available in limited number for members. There are chapters in the publication in French, Italian, German and English. Would you wish to recieve a copy, please send a message to the EDEN Secretariat.

6. The ICL 2005 conference, to be organized by the EDEN member Carinthia Tech Institute (School of Electronics) in Villach/Austria, on 28-30 September, aims to focus on the exchange of relevant trends and research results as well as the presentation of practical experiences gained while developing and testing elements of interactive computer aided learning. Pilot projects, applications and products are welcome. Details can be found at: www.icl-conference.org.

7. The Hosting Service Agreement between EDEN and the Budapest University of Technology and Economics was extended for a further three years until 30 June 2008, on 6 January 2005. The Executive Committee expressed its high appreciation towards the institute for their hosting the EDEN Secretariat.

8. EUCEN – European Universities Continuing Education Network, will organise the conference entitled: "From Bologna to Bergen…..and beyond" on 28-30 April, 2005 in Bergen, Norway. EDEN will contribute to the organisation of the conference by supporting a strand about open and distance learning/e-learning with key contributors and rapporteurs.

9. Personal news from the Secretariat

- We are pleased to announce that, upon the proposal of the President, the EDEN Executive Committee at their meeting of 27-28 January, in Poitiers, resolved to extend the assignment of the Secretary General, Dr. Andras Szucs for a further period of three years, until 2008.

- At the plenary session of the European Economic and Social Committee, held on 15-16 December 2004, Dr. Andras Szucs was assigned as member to the Consultative Committee on Industrial Change (CCMI) until the period of October 2006.

- With the starting date of 1 February 2005, following a three months trainee period, Ms Eva Suba has joined the EDEN Secretariat, as Administrative Assistant. Her short CV and photo can be seen at the Secretariat page of the EDEN web site.