Panel Talk EDU57
Teachers: the Driving Force
Bearing in mind that teachers can be leaders in all educational processes, what is their role in ever-changing learning environments? What kind of skills do they need to be ready for challenges? Take part in this motivating and inspiring discussion.

Brian Holmes
Director, European Commission EACEA, Belgium
Dr. Brian Holmes is the Director of the Executive Agency for Education, Audiovisual and Culture (EACEA) in Brussels. The Agency is responsible for managing certain strands of the European Commission's programmes for Erasmus+, Creative Europe, Europe for Citizens and EU Aid Volunteers.
Brian has been working on education and training for many years at the European Commission. He has been involved with European policy for innovation and lifelong learning, supported by ICT, and was responsible for co-ordinating the EU's eLearning Programme.
Brian has an MBA from a Paris business school and has been a tutor with the UK’s Open University Business School, for the MBA module on Managing Knowledge. He holds a PhD on technology enhanced learning with the University of Lancaster in the UK.
Links
http://eacea.ec.europa.euhttp://eacea.ec.europa.eu/llp/index_en…

Anu Maarit Pruikkonen
Head of eLearning Servives, Lapland University of Applied Sciences, Finland
Anu Pruikkonen is Head of eLearning Services in Lapland University of Applied Sciences and responsible for the coordination of eLearning support services and online education development work. Additionally, she works as the acting Director of the Provincial University of Lapland with the responsibility for developing higher education and the organisation of research and development work tailored to the needs of off-campus areas in Finnish Lapland. She has been involved as a leader or expert in many regional and international projects, most of which involved eLearning as an element. She has been the chairperson in many project steering committees as well. Anu Pruikkonen has written numerous articles about various aspects of eLearning in local as well as national publications.
Links

Ivan Kuzio
Lecturer, German University College Riyadh, Saudi Arabia
Involved in international educational projects for over 15 years. Currently involved in developing a new teacher training programme in the Gulf Region which has led to the introduction of technology enhanced learning and the recognition locally as the "Best use of ICT / eLearning in the Classroom" and 'Innovation in Education'. Has taken part in workshops within the region and Europe where the discussion has centred on blended learning and improving classrooom methdology. Currently working on a collaborative project with deliverers of EAL in improving and enhancing the bachelor thesis programme that would combine the development of skills in academic writing with the support of a web based learning environment.
Links
Moderator

Christel Schneider
Managing Director, CsiTrain, Germany
Christel Schneider is the founder and managing director of CSiTrain. From 2006 until 2012 she was EU project manager and director of the international language association ICC. Before this, she worked as head of the language department for the German adult education association in Schleswig Holstein. For over ten years she taught didactics and methodology at Hamburg University (Dept. of Education) and has run numerous teacher training seminars both on a national and international level. Her experience in online training stretches over a period of more than fifteen years. She designed, set up and delivered an online teacher training course for Cornelsen Publishing. As part of her project work she has been involved in teaching and learning in virtual worlds and has recently developed her skills in machinimatography. Christel worked as research assistant for the CAMELOT Project for the University of Central Lancashire, UK, while completing her MA in Virtual Education at the University of the West of England (UK), this year.