As indicated in the title, the ERASMUS Intensive Programme, “New Tools and Approachesto Better Integrate Learning and Experiencing Knowledge” (“NewTooKnow”, 01-14 September 2013) aims to contribute to supporting innovative educational practices at the tertiary level.

Coordinated by the Johannes Kepler University Linz in participation by employees at the Center for Distance Learning Vienna (which initiated and coordinated the program), the Institute of Organization and Global Management Education, and Department of International Management (which hosted the program on their premises), expert partners at the four academic institutions addressed highly specialized issues.

This two-week program involved implementing an innovative interdisciplinary approach geared towards building learning skills. The program involved combining reflections and experiences from the fields of education (pedagogy), communication science, linguistics and digital arts (with design and implementation of interactive computer systems for different applications). By doing so, NewTooKnow is also clearly addressing the European Lifelong Learning Program's wider operational objective, namely to develop innovative ICT-based content, pedagogy and action to support lifelong learning.

Most notably, students and educators in the NewTooKnow program learned more about how the concept of learning ought to shift from a solely cognitive input-output dynamic (production of "knowledge", as the title states) to a more complex process involving the learner as a whole individual. From the perspective of the IP partners, this type of process - relying heavily on personal skills - is what can result in building "competence" (internalized knowledge). More specifically, they analyzed factors including self acceptance, stigmas and taboos as components influencing the learning process in its complexity. The participants analyzed and practiced the roles of non-cognitive resources during the learning process (such as team and organizational behaviour and intercultural communication, including linguistic aspects). Participants indentified the positive effects on learners' personality development in terms of innovative learning practices, including reflections on group organization and the influence of gender-specific factors when organizing the learning environment. The international learning environment (including an institution from a non-EU country) provided an optimal laboratory in which to practice aspects of intercultural human resource management supported by an interdisciplinary approach. All of the participants, both students and educators, appreciated this aspect, based mainly on contributions by the Johannes Kepler University Linz.

Some recent, promising results of Distance Education research have been also applied to the IP learning context: aspects of learning organisation related to virtual multicultural teams and virtual collaboration have been treated and about two thirds of the IP have been devoted to the presentation, analysis and applications of Communication Science and Digital Art. These results and products have been considered in particular in their applications to intercultural contexts (with main contributions of the partners from Anadolu University, Turkey and Universidade Aberta, Portugal, respectively). Focusing on aspects of reception and fruition dynamics and on the identification of issues influencing art and education in multicultural societies was intended to open further new learning perspectives, also based on (and nurtured by) an interdisciplinary approach.

Finally, the students have been introduced to foundations of Digital Arts, with the opportunity to programme small digital artifacts for learning applications under the assistance of teaching staff. These learning activities were combined with the one-day visit of the Ars Electronica Festival 2013, which was devoted to the topic “Total Recall – the Evolution of Memory” (http://www.aec.at/totalrecall/en, öffnet eine externe URL in einem neuen Fenster). The visit, introduced by a presentation of Mr. Andreas Bauer, Head of Ars Electronica Center, provided the IP participants with several interdisciplinary inputs on cognitive sciences, science, technology and visual arts. The creative contact between performing arts and their connections with movies and digital technology have been also analysed later on by the participating teachers in the framework of workshop activities (main contributions: Universidade Aberta, Portugal).

During the entire duration of the IP, new ICT-supported learning opportunities have been presented to the students, which were further broadened and differentiated with the contributions of Communication Sciences (cf. contributions on meta-communication referred to mass communication from Tallinn University of Technology, Estland; graphic, visual and page design; news writing; elements of radio journalism from Anadolu University, Turkey).

Overall, the NewTooKnow learning and teaching experience has been evaluated as a very positive contribution to innovation in learning methodology in academic environments.

This project has been funded with support from the European Commission. This communication reflects the views only of the authors, and the Commission cannot be held responsible for any use which may be made of the information contained therein.