In November 2018, the second project trip took place as part of the KoLeArn project funded by the German Federal Ministry of Education and Research. The trip focused on the question of how digital teaching and learning methods can be used to counteract the shortage of skilled workers in China.

In the KoLeArn joint project, the departments of Business Informatics and Business Didactics at the University of Kassel, the BZ Kassel Vocational Training Center, Wirtschaftsförderung Region Kassel GmbH and Smartransfer GmbH are working together to develop digital training and further education courses for the Chinese market. As part of the project, innovative learning services are being developed that are individually tailored to the learner. In addition to the development of models, methods and e-learning tools, the project focuses on taking the context of the learners into account. "Every learner has a different background and therefore needs individual support in order to provide them with the best possible training and further education," says Prof. Dr Jens Klusmeyer from the Department of Business Education.

The division of labour within the joint project is based on the respective research and competence focuses of the project partners: The Department of Business Informatics, headed by Prof. Dr Jan Marco Leimeister, is concentrating on the development and design of the individualized learning services and is coordinating the project. The Department of Business Didactics, headed by Prof. Dr. Jens Klusmeyer, is developing target group-specific didactic concepts for workplace-related training and further education courses based on the requirements. Dr. Ute Urbon and her team from Bildungszentrum Kassel GmbH contribute their many years of didactic and practical expertise as well as their industry experience in the field of vocational training. Wirtschaftsförderung Region Kassel GmbH, represented by Managing Director Kai Lorenz Wittrock, and in particular the Hessen-China network based there, will contribute their specialist expertise and open up access to China for the practical and network partners. The work of SmarTransfer GmbH, headed by Dr. René Wegener, focuses on the technical implementation and platform development of the KoLeArn learning system.

"Ideally, the individualized learning services and tools to be developed can adapt to different learners and thus offer each learner individual, optimal learning content," says Prof. Dr. Jan Marco Leimeister. The sustainability of the research findings is ensured in the project through the development of innovative business models, which are already taken into account during the development of the learning services.

From November 12 to 22, 2018, the second project trip of the joint project KoLeArn, which deals with innovative education and training concepts in China, took place. The aim of the trip was to survey requirements and collect initial data from the participating project partners in China. This involved visiting and analyzing production facilities spread throughout China. It turned out that companies often have to train their employees themselves due to the dual training system, which is unknown in China. The training offered in vocational schools is often very theoretical and difficult to adapt to the individual background of the employees. The research project focuses on the needs of employees in training and further education. The aim is to develop systems that are individually tailored to employees so that they only receive the information that is relevant to them. This individualized approach is intended to improve the employees' learning experience and thus ensure better and faster absorption of information.

This included a visit to the internationally active pharmaceutical and medical technology manufacturer B.Braun, which is based in North Hesse. B.Braun, which has been operating in China since 2005, employs around 550 people at its site. Close contact with the partner companies in China over the course of the three-year funded project is an important prerequisite for developing practical solutions. These solutions will be individually adapted to the respective application and should not only be efficient, but also more cost-effective than existing systems.

Contact:

Dr. Andreas Janson

University of Kassel

Department of Business Informatics

Phone: +49 561 804-6321

E-mail: andreas.janson@uni-kassel.de

Prof. Dr. Jan Marco Leimeister

University of Kassel

Department of Information Systems

Head of department