On May 15, the Virtual University of Bavaria celebrated its 25th anniversary with a ceremony in the auditorium of the University of Bamberg - a quarter of a century of innovative, digital university teaching. The vhb, supported by 36 Bavarian universities, connects more than 600 committed teachers who develop and implement high-quality online courses for students as well as freely accessible courses for the public. The success of the vhb is largely based on the expertise and commitment of these lecturers, who set new standards with creative methods and interactive learning formats.
Ministerial Director Stephanie Jacobs, the new Head of Office at the Bavarian State Ministry of Science and the Arts, conveyed the congratulations of the state government at her first public appointment. She praised the courage of the universities to think ahead with digital teaching:
"25 years ago, the digital world was still in its infancy. The Bavarian universities dared to take the step of rethinking teaching and learning and established their joint virtual campus with the vhb."
A highlight of the ceremony was the presentation of awards to lecturers for special achievements. Three awards were presented in each of the three categories “Outstanding support” - CLASSIC vhb (courses for credit towards a university degree),“ ”Outstanding media didactics“ - OPEN vhb (open courses for all interested parties) and ”Outstanding overall concept/integration into teaching" - SMART vhb (digital learning units). Each award is endowed with prize money of 1,500 euros and recognizes specific contributions to digital university teaching that impress with their high quality and special student orientation.
Students praise dedicated and inspiring supervision
Prof. Dr. Markus Westner received an award from OTH Regensburg for the outstanding support he provides to students in his CLASSIC vhb course “Fundamentals of Business Administration 2 for IT and Engineering Students” (Business Informatics subject group). Online support is one of the central elements of CLASSIC vhb courses. It makes a significant difference to learning success in the digital space and is therefore supported by the vhb financially and with service offers.
The nomination for the award was made by students, who particularly emphasized the dedicated and inspiring support provided by Professor Westner. In fact, three of Professor Westner's CLASSIC vhb courses made it into the “top ten” of the student nominations. Professor Westner's courses impress with their clear structure and presentation of the learning content. In the videos he creates himself, he conveys the topics in an understandable and extremely practical way.
The quizzes at the end of each lesson deepen understanding of the topics covered and also provide effective preparation for the exam. In terms of content, the courses convey technical know-how paired with entrepreneurial thinking, theoretical principles and application skills. Students rate Professor Westner's CLASSIC vhb courses as ideal preparation for their careers.
"I am extremely pleased about this recognition from the Virtual University of Bavaria and especially about the positive feedback from the students that led to this award. It encourages me and my team to continue to focus on high-quality, practical and dedicated online courses that prepare our students in the best possible way for the demands of the modern working world. I would also like to thank the vhb for the many years of excellent cooperation and the opportunity to reach students throughout Bavaria via the platform," said Prof. Westner.
High quality of digital teaching at OTH Regensburg
Prof. Dr. Birgit Rösel, Vice President for Studies and Teaching at OTH Regensburg, congratulated the university management on this success: "This award underlines the high quality of digital teaching at OTH Regensburg and shows what a difference dedicated teaching staff make to student success. Professor Westner is an example of innovative and student-oriented teaching at our university, which is consistently geared towards practical requirements."
The staff of the Teaching and Didactics Service Office at OTH Regensburg are also delighted with Prof. Dr. Markus Westner's award. "At OTH Regensburg, the offer of the Virtual University of Bavaria is appreciated by teachers and students alike. Prof. Dr. Markus Westner's award shows that committed digital teaching is definitely noticed and appreciated. As the Teaching and Didactics Service Center, we are happy to support teaching staff in designing such formats in a didactically sound way - this is how excellent teaching is created that really reaches students," says Manuel Glondys, advisor for digital teaching technologies and contact person for the vhb at OTH Regensburg.
