Cooperation and networking
A key function of the IZeF is to facilitate greater networking among scholars and to encourage new collaborations as well as deepen existing ones. Thereby, the IZeF promotes cooperation between the participating research and teaching areas of research in education at the University of Cologne and beyond. A central concern is the communication between active participants in the IZeF as well as affording the opportunity for participation of further interested parties.
The collaborations can be subdivided as follows:
Fields of Activity of the University of Cologne
The large number of projects in the IZeF is characterised, among others, by its diverse orientation in terms of content. The following professors are involved in projects at the University of Cologne:
- Psychosomatics and Psychotherapy – Professur Christian Albus
- Mercator Institute for Language Support and German as a Second Language / Professor of the German Language and its Teaching - Professor Michael Becker-Mrotzek
- Teaching of Physics– Professur André Bresges
- Conception and Evaluation of School Funding with a focus on learning – Professur Matthias Grünke
- School Research with a focus on primary school research and pedagogy – Professur Petra Hanke
- Middle and Modern History and the Teaching of History – Professur Wolfgang Hasberg
- Education Assistance and the Promotion of Social and Emotional Development – Professur Thomas Hennemann
- Empirical School Research, qualitative methods – Professur Petra Herzmann
- Media Teaching and Pedagogy – Professur Sandra Hofhues
- Media Pedagogy and Teaching – Professur Kai-Uwe Hugger
- Social and Media Psychology – Professur Kai Kaspar
- Empirical School Research, quantitative methods – Professur Johannes König
- Foundations in Special Needs Pedagogy – Professur Conny Melzer
- Art and Art Theory – Professur Torsten Meyer
- Media Pedagogy – Professur Peter Moormann
- General Teaching and Pedagogy for the Grammar and Comprehensive School and the Teaching of the subject Pedagogy – Professur Wilfried Plöger
- Institute for the German Language and Literature, working group textuality – Professur Thorsten Pohl
- Teaching Theories and the School System – Professur Matthias Proske
- English Department II – Professur Andreas Rohde
- Research in Intercultural Education – Professur Hans-Joachim Roth
- Pedagogy and Teaching with a focus on learning development – Professur Alfred Schabmann
- The Teaching of Biology– Professur Kirsten Schlüter
- Cognitive Mathematics / Cognitive Information Technology – Professur Inge Schwank
- The Teaching of History – Professur Holger Thünemann
- Developmental Psychology – Professur Birgit Träuble
- Geography Department – Dorothea Wiktorin
Institutions and Offers at the University of Cologne
The Graduate School of the Faculty of Human Sciences - Managing Diversity & Transition - Shaping Diversity & Change
The faculty-wide interdisciplinary Graduate School "Managing Diversity & Transition - Shaping Diversity & Change" is an institution of the Faculty of Human Sciences integrates research topics that address the social and individual challenges of social transformation processes. Together with the Graduate School, the IZeF executes various measures to promote young researchers, such as organizing collective methodology workshops. The aim of the Graduate School is to improve the underlying conditions for doctoral training at the faculty. In doing so, it pursues in particular the following objectives:
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the development of innovative and transdisciplinary perspectives on complex problems of societal change
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the optimal preparation for an academic career or non-academic career
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the intensification and quality assurance of doctoral supervision
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the promotion of the internationalisation of doctoral training
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the rapid integration of young academics into the scholarly community
The Graduate School was established as a measure of the university-wide future concept within the framework of the Excellence Initiative of the Federal Government and States and will be funded by the Excellence Initiative until December 2018.
Homepage of the Graduate School
Centre for Teacher Education (ZfL)
As a central academic institution, the "Centre for Teacher Education" (ZfL) at the University of Cologne coordinates, moderates and organizes teacher training across the university and its faculties. The team advises and supports prospective teachers from the orientation internship in the first semester to the completion of their studies as well as during the doctoral phase. The ZfL and the IZeF cooperate with each other at different points: joint projects are carried out, ZfL staff are active in the workshops and services of the IZeF and together events are organized, for example, for students or teachers.
Under one roof, the ZfL houses the joint examination office, the Graduate School, the advisory centre and the coordination offices for future-oriented aspects of teacher education. The ZfL is actively involved in the development and design of structural, conceptual and organisational framework conditions and cultivates dialogue with institutions within the university as well as with practical teacher training institutions and with the relevant ministries. The ZfL deals with progressive issues with respect to school and education and through its projects confronts current challenges and developments such as inclusion, internationalisation and diversity in society, school and education and initiates possible future perspectives.
Future Strategy for Teacher Education Cologne (ZuS): Field of action “quality assurance”
Since 2015, the University of Cologne has been participating with a location-based project in the nationwide "Quality Offensive for Teacher Education" funded by the Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF): The "Future Strategy for Teacher Education in Cologne: Shaping Inclusion and Heterogeneity" (ZuS) deals with the challenges of teacher education, in particular the requirements of inclusion as well as the specific framework conditions at the University of Cologne. Measures are implemented in four sub-projects with funds from the "Quality Offensive for Teacher Education":
- Competence labs
- “Studies inclusive”
- Promotion of young academics
- Quality assurance
The activities are linked to the IZeF at various points. Further information may be found here.
Institute for Research in Education (IfB) of the University of Wuppertal (BUW)
The "Institute for Research in Education" (IfB) is part of the School of Education of the University of Wuppertal. The IfB has two functions: the implementation of empirical school research and teaching in the educational science segments that focus on the preparatory studies for the teaching profession.
More information on the IfB can be found here.
Establishment of research cooperation
A research collaboration between the IZeF and the Institute for Research in Education (IfB) in the context of teacher education and inclusion was established in 2016. Since then, regular cooperation meetings have taken place, whereby the research approaches and projects of each institution are presented, so that an intensive exchange between the participating actors with respect to overlapping research is stimulated. Specific areas of overlap which are suitable for profiting research cooperation have been identified in the area of interdisciplinary research on heterogeneity in schools and teaching, with a particular emphasis on adaptiveness with regard to the pupil and teacher level as well as the professional competencies of teachers.
*Literature tip: Joint issue of the journal “Unterrichtswissenschaft”: "Adaptiver Umgang mit Heterogenität im Unterricht" ("Adaptive Dealing with Heterogeneity in Teaching"), edited by Cornelia Gräsel & Johannes König.
Approval of first joint projects
The cooperation has now culminated in two joint third-party funded research projects. These include the project "PARTI - Participation and Recognition in Response-To-Intervention (BMBF funding)", as well as the project "WibaLeS - Professional Knowledge of Teachers, Teaching Quality and Learning Progress of Pupils in Basic Reading and Writing (DFG funding)". Several other projects are currently in the concrete planning stage and some of them are about to be applied for. Cooperation meetings take place every six months. The aim is a long-term interdisciplinary cooperation of educational science, psychology and special needs pedagogy.
The cooperation, in which more colleagues from both locations are involved, will result in additional proposals (individual funding) being submitted to the DFG. A second phase of the cooperative application to the DFG is planned for 2020 in which the application for and establishment of a multi-site DFG research group in 2020 is intended.
Participation opportunities
New project ideas are welcome! Under Events as well as in the newsletter of the IZeF information is regularly provided about upcoming meetings, to which all interested parties are cordially invited!
