Qatar's ICT thought leaders present technology road map in education

Doha, Qatar - 5 April 2008: College of the North Atlantic - Qatar (CNA-Q) and the Supreme Council of Information and Communication Technology (ictQATAR) are co-sponsoring a one-day conference today to highlight information and communication technology in education.

The 'ICT Conference 2008: Exploring ICT in Education' will be hosted at the CNA-Q campus and will bring together educators, school administrators and ICT professionals to discuss best practices for ICT in education.

The guest speakers at the conference include international experts in the field such as Dr. Mahmoud Watad, Associate Professor of Management at William Patterson University in New Jersey and Dr Elizabeth Murphy, Associate Professor in the Faculty of Education, Memorial University, Newfoundland. Dr Watan will focus on Knowledge Management for higher education in his presentation, while Dr Murphy will be stressing on instructor practices aimed at strengthening students' second language communication skills. 

The other highlights of the conference include interesting pointers to an innovative 'Tablet PC-based system' for learning mathematics by Amer Hasan Ali Obeidah from Carnegie Mellon University, and a presentation on 'Webquests' as a powerful web-based approach to  teaching and learning by Carol Tapsell & Robert Bianchi from College of the North Atlantic-Qatar.

ictQATAR's e-Education Manager, Dr Ghadah Fakieh, says the conference will provide an opportunity for participants to share their experiences about how technology is impacting students, parents and teachers. "ictQATAR is working to bring creativity and innovation to Qatar's classrooms and make lifelong skill development possible. The ICT Conference 2008 is another step in this direction, " Dr Fakieh said.

The drive for ICT in education is clearly reflected in the wealth of expertise that the guest speakers bring with them.  Dr Watad holds a distinguished list of international degrees in engineering, public affairs, and management. His research in knowledge management, telecommuting, cultural issues in IT and strategic management have been presented at some of the leading academic conferences around the world. Dr Murphy holds a Ph.D. in Educational Technology from Université Laval in Québec City. She was the 2007-2008 winner of the President's Award for Outstanding Research at Memorial University.

Dr. Harald Jorch, President, College of the North Atlantic - Qatar says, "This conference will bring the best and brightest of IT professionals from around the world to Doha. CNA-Q is committed to introducing the newest technologies and teaching methods into our classrooms. We strive to provide our students with the best and most up-to-date learning environment available."

The conference also hosts ICT exhibitors from the public and private sectors including CNA-Q's Teaching and Learning Center, ictQATAR, Carnegie Mellon University - Qatar, Pearson Education, ITWorx and LP+.
 
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About CNA-Q
The College of the North Atlantic - Qatar is Qatar's premier post-secondary school for technical training.  Based on the Canadian educational model, CNA-Q has been training students since 2001 in the areas of Engineering Technology, Information Technology, Business Studies and Health Sciences. With students from over 30 countries, CNA-Q is offering world-class education to an international student body. Working closely with local industry ensures that our students receive the training they need to be successful.

For more information please contact:
Diane Martin
Public Information Officer
College of the North Atlantic 
Qatar
T +974-495-2035
Email: diane.martin@cna-qatar.edu.qa

© Press Release 2008