The first ENLIGHT interdisciplinary course Designing Research on Different Dimensions of Equity
From 12 to 16 September 2022, the Faculty of Social and Economic Sciences of Comenius University hosted the first ENLIGHT interdisciplinary course Designing Research on Different Dimensions of Equity.
Students from partner universities from Göttingen, Ghent and the University of the Basque Country met with teachers from Groningen, Bratislava, Göttingen, Ghent and the University of the Basque Country to reflect together on the topics of equality, diversity, equal opportunities in different areas of life, from the university environment to access to healthcare. It was the opening week of the BIP (a Blended Intensive Programme course format that combines short-term mobility and collaboration in virtual space).
Until the end of the semester, students will work in small groups online to develop research in their chosen field. They will be accompanied by teachers as mentors who will support them, but the main work will be done by the student team.
The course also included lectures from partners from the Regional Academy and thanks to this ENLIGHT course Comenius University have expanded cooperation with the regional academies even more.
Nina Spišiak from the Bratislava City Hall introduced the topic Integration at local level: challenges and opportunities for the Bratislava city;
Marta Králiková from the non-profit Mareena told the students about the integration of refugees into society (topic of her lecture: Refugee inclusion as a set of practices: perspectives from the field),
and Andrea Böhmová from the Migration Office introduced the students to the process that refugees have to go through to get to Slovakia ((topic of her lecture: Seeking international protection in Slovakia – equality vs. Differences).
Refugees were the central theme of the lectures given by the partners from the Regional Academy. Until the beginning of the war in Ukraine, Slovakia had very little experience in dealing with the issue of refugees. Since 24 February 2022, the situation has unfortunately changed and our guests brought the students closer to the current issues related to the refugee phenomenon, which we are facing at all levels. The discussion between the students and the Regional Academy was extremely enriching and some students contributed their life experiences. Based on the discussions about refugees, it only confirmed to us that ENLIGHT courses are extremely useful and address the current issues we are facing in Europe.
And what did the students enjoy most about the introductory course? Emma from Ghent University: "I really liked that we started with activities where we got to know each other. We were one mixed group - teachers and students, with no hierarchical structures."