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The conference will take place on:<\/p>\n
Attendance at the conference has no charge, but you must please register in advance. To register, please complete the short form here: H890 Research & Scholarship in Digital Education Online Conference 2026 Registration \u2013 Fill in form<\/a><\/p>\n The H890 ‘Research and Scholarship in Digital Education’ online module<\/a> is part of the MA in Online Teaching<\/a> programme run by the Institute of Educational Technology (IET) at the Open University UK. This online conference is presented using the Open University\u2019s Online Rooms, powered by Adobe Connect.<\/p>\n We are delighted that our conference will be opened on the Friday by Sukaina Walji<\/strong>, Director Centre for Innovation in Learning and Teaching, University of Cape Town, South Africa (and one of our very own alumni). We are equally thrilled that Saturday’s session will feature a keynote presentation by Tim Coughlan<\/strong>, Professor of Learning Innovation and Accessibility, The Open University, UK, and that our final session on the Monday will be kicked off by a fascinating presentation from Allison Littlejohn<\/strong>, Professor of Learning Technology at University College London, UK.<\/span><\/p>\n Professor Tim Coughlan is Associate Director for Research and Knowledge Exchange and Professor of Learning Innovation and Accessibility in the Institute for Educational Technology at the Open University. His research crosses the areas of Education and Human-Computer Interaction. He is particularly focused on the design and evaluation of systems that support inclusion, creativity, and openness in learning. He also led creation of the postgraduate microcredential:\u00a0Accessibility and Inclusive Learning<\/a>. He led the development of\u00a0Our Journey<\/a>, a platform to support students to represent and reflect on their study journeys, and in\u00a0ADMINS<\/a>, led creation of a virtual assistant to support disabled students. More recent work has focused further on the ways in which AI assistants can support online study, and the use of VR simulations and AI to support healthcare training.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Professor Allison Littlejohn is Pro-Vice Provost for UCL\u2019s Grand Challenge Data Empowered Societies and is Professor of Learning and Technology in the UCL Knowledge Lab at University College London. Her research expands our understanding of the socio-technical effects of digital transformation at work and how it impacts work and learning. Allison has held senior positions at various UK universities: she was previously Director of the UCL Knowledge Lab, University College London; Dean (Learning & Teaching) at the University of Glasgow; Academic Director for Digital Innovation at the UK Open University; and Director of the Caledonian Academy at Glasgow Caledonian University. She has held visiting professorships at the National Institute of Education, Singapore, Open University of Catalonia and Oslo University.<\/p>\n The student presenters are due to submit their abstracts by 16th March 2026<\/b>. Shortly after this the programme below will be updated to link to their abstracts, upon which comments and questions are invited.<\/p>\n<\/div>\nKeynote Speakers<\/h3>\n
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Sukaina Walji is the Director of the Centre for Innovation in Learning and Teaching (CILT) at the University of Cape Town (UCT). She oversees operational functions to support and shape digital education, blended and online learning, working with multiple university stakeholders to create inclusive and equitable teaching and learning experiences that respond to diverse student and staff needs. As a strategic advisor to university senior leadership, she brings experience in educational policy development, having facilitated the development of UCT’s recently revised Assessment Policy, Digital and Online Education Policy, and most recently UCT’s AI in Education Framework through participatory and consultative stakeholder engagement. She has led a number of institutional digital education and assessment projects, currently serves as the lead for a University Capacity Development Project on Assessment and AI literacy, co-leads an AI Teaching Innovation grants programme and convenes the university\u2019s AI in Education Community of Practice. Her research interests include artificial intelligence in education, digital education strategy, MOOCs, higher education business models and assessment practices. She has a Master\u2019s Degree in Online and Distance Education at the Open University, UK, and a BA (Hons) from Oxford University.<\/div>\n<\/div>\n![\"Photo](\"https:\/\/www.open.ac.uk\/blogs\/H890Conference\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/b187986a88912b2dd4a2723f877f5c86-c.png\")
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Conference Programme<\/strong><\/h3>\n
\nFriday 10th April (Times given are BST)<\/strong><\/div>\n