Quality assurance conference in Sri Lanka 2019

En route to Sri Lanka for a conference on quality assurance? 

Quality assurance is an important issue in higher education and is becoming even more so in the technology-enhanced society that we are living in. Therefore it is good to attend a conference on this topic. The International Network of Quality Assurance Agencies in Higher Education (INQAAHE) will host the 2019 conference on Quality assurance, qualifications and recognition: Fostering trust in a globalised world in Colombo, Sri Lanka from 25 to 28 March. The conference venue is the Bandaranaike memorial international conference hall (BMICH).

Online registration for early bird discount will open soon, but the call of papers is already open. Presenters are invited to present in an interactive manner that would guarantee a high level of participant engagement. The due date for proposals is 30 October 2018. Proposals must be aligned with one of the following sub-themes that will also from the four tracks of the conference: 

  

New technologies, innovation and quality assurance: how to consider QA and its key principles in a world of disruptive technology and change in the Academy.

Thinking and acting globally: the role of QA in qualifications frameworks and student and talent mobility: challenges and opportunities.

Ensuring and promoting trust in a globalized context.

Challenges and solutions to recognition Issues: new opportunities for a QA contribution to recognition within the frame of global developments.

On 25 March pre-conference workshops will take place and on 28 March a conference excursion will allow conference attendees to visit the so-called “Sigiriya eighth wonder of the world”, the ancient palace and fortress complex built by King Kassapa I (477–95). It lies on steep slopes and the summit of a granite peak stands 180m high. The fortress complex includes the remnants of a ruined palace, surrounded by an extensive network of fortifications, vast gardens, ponds, canals, alleys and fountains. A series of galleries and staircases emerging from the mouth of a gigantic lion constructed of bricks and plaster provide access to the site.

Exploring more options for 2019 conferences

Beautiful Dubai, one place we normally book a stayover on our way to or back from a conference, but the IAFOR also uses Dubai as a conference venue.

The International Academic Forum (IAFOR) is a Japan based organisation, established in 2009. The IAFOR do much more than just conferencing and it is worthwhile to visit the web page. The web page states the mission of the organisation as to promote international exchange, to facilitate intercultural awareness, to encourage interdisciplinary discussion and to generate and share new knowledge; all of which are important to academics in general.

 To me, the different locations where conferences take place and the variety of topics, are of importance. Conferences are linked to the following categories: Education and language, Social Sciences and sustainability, Arts, Humanities, Media and Culture.

The conferences take place in Asia, Europe, the Middle East and North America which means that academics have a huge choice about where they want to go and what they can afford. The Asia conferences are held in Hong Kong and Japan. Within Japan, there are three conference locations: Tokyo, Osaka and Kobe. In Europe, the conference venues are Brighton in England and Barcelona in Spain. The Middle East conferences take place in Dubai and in North America there are also more than one conference venue to choose from: New York, Honolulu in Hawaii and Roanoke in Virginia.

Good news for PHD students and early career academics (who completed their PHDs in the past five years), is that there are also travel and accommodation grants and scholarships available to attend and present at these conferences.

Personally, as yet, I did not attend one of these conferences, but I am looking for new and exciting conferences and conference venues for 2019 (when the IAFOR will be celebrating ten years of providing these and other services to academics worldwide) and the options provided by the IAFOR are inviting. But the question remains: Where do you want to go in 2019 and at what forum do you want to present?