The TH Köln prepared and conducted the visit very diligently, engaging staff from many parts of the institution. All sessions took place in a very open and collegial atmosphere, and there were many opportunities for exchanges also during the social events. The TH shared its own reflections and take-aways of the visit on its website.
24 November
Maria Sol Dominguez Parrado, European Education and Culture Executive Agency (EACEA)
Dominguez Parrado welcomed the participants and provided a short introduction to the work of the European Commission with National Erasmus Offices (NEOs) and Teams of Higher Education Reform Experts (HEREs) in more 20 countries of the Eastern and Southern Neighbourhood, and Central Asia.
Michael Gaebel, SPHERE Team: Introduction to the topic and the programme
Recent European Union Policies, such as EU’s Competitiveness Compass and the Union of Skills (both launched in 2025) underline the importance of Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) for Europe’s economy, its ability to innovate and transform, and to retain its resilience and its global competitiveness. A STEM Education Strategic Plan was launched as part of and along with the Union of Skills.
These European policy developments reference the Draghi report (2024) which explored on how to enhance Europe’s economic competitiveness. Among the measures to be taken is investment in education and training to overcome shortcomings, such as shortage of STEM skills, but also persistent gender imbalances, lack of inclusion, and barriers between education sectors (higher education, adult education, VET, and secondary).
Session 1: On the path towards transformation- Strategic organizational development
Sylvia Heuchemer, President: Changing the institution - the path to a new understanding of teaching and learning
President Prof. Heuchemer introduced her institution, its mission and vision.
She characterised the profile of her institution as “shaping social innovation” and “unfolding societal impact through knowledge”: The approach is to promote the transformative role of science, which enables a shift from merely observing change to actively shaping it.
As the largest and most diverse university of applied sciences in Germany, the core mission of TU Köln is to serve society. It sees itself as embedded in society, and as a bridge between academia and the non-academic world. Therefore, every study programme combines the educational goal of employability and global citizenship. The institution engages in dialogues and collaborates with companies and other external parties.
The institution values teaching and achievement in teaching. Teaching is understood as an academically collaborative task; it is as much as possible project- , inquiry- and problem-based. The institution develops its teaching approaches in a similar way as research, i.e. with a sound theoretical and methodological framework, and based on evidence. Its research is education oriented; it aims to explore how learning and teaching work best, in view also to employment and professional practice. As a university of applied sciences, across the different departments, the institution aims to put science into actions, to bring knowledge into effective use.
Newly appointed teachers have a reduced workload in order to participate in a 18-month mandatory coaching programme, which also supports research networking. Hence, teaching is based on:
staff competency development in HE didactics;
the development of study programmes through a structured process, ensuring coherence of teaching profiles and curriculum development;
organisational development, which ensures adequate support for teachers, but more importantly, enables structural and cultural change, supported by the Centre for Academic Development;
and quality assurance, to ensure reflection on the impact of teaching.
Concrete steps have been the Development Plan 2017-2023, which enabled Guidelines for teaching and learning, reaching out to teachers, and then recently (2025) the Digitalisation Strategy, developed by a small group of experts. The self-accreditation (Systemakkreditierung) has been a major driver for this process, and a tool for innovation.
The Bologna Process reforms played an important role in the transformation of learning and teaching: they enabled the institution to move from teacher- to student-centred approaches. Today, the institution reached an ecosystem-centred approach – a transition that took 10 years of continuous work.
The presentation and the following discussions also pointed to open questions and challenges experienced in the transformation of the institution and its teaching approach. These included for example whether to centralise or decentralise tasks and responsibilities, whether to involve just a group of experts or reach out to all members of the institution, whether to involve outside parties, and of course the issue concerning the allocation of time (whether to proceed quickly or over a long period) and the necessary resources. Prof. Heuchemer shared that there is no general rule or single approach; each transformation step must be decided on a case-by-case basis and later evaluated against the outcomes. This underlined once more the institution’s commitment towards “being a learning institution”.
It was also clarified that adopting a transformative approach does not mean abandoning disciplinary learning. STEM and STEAM are important, but also the humanities, and the institution tries to combine the two. Interdisciplinarity and working across disciplinary and institutional boundaries play a major role.
Axel Faßbender, Vice-President for Teaching: Strategic concepts to foster continuous innovation in study programmes
Axel Faßbender explained the link between teaching quality and innovation. As knowledge, societies, economies and technologies evolve, learning and teaching has continuously changed and innovated. AI – also addressed in the Q&A that followed – is seen as a key transformative driver in the way students learn and universities teach. The institution is exploring what is changing for education, and in particular, with regard to study programmes.
These changes, adjustment and innovation, cannot happen bottom-up only (by individual teachers) and also not top-down only (leadership, rules and processes) but in a combination of both. A shared university-wide vision and a culture of participation of staff and students is of crucial importance. Participation has been identified as the main catalyst for sustainable change; therefore Faßbender referred to Transformative Learning (TraiL).
The institution therefore takes measure to ensure this interplay of top-down and bottom-up, e.g. by setting up expert groups, with participants from different parts of the institution, through the establishment of collaborative spaces for joint development, support for structured group work and inter- and trans-disciplinary collaboration, and through academic mentoring and staff development.
Regarding the latter, Faßbender pointed to the specific context of the institution: the regulations require that teachers at applied sciences institutions must have at least five years of industry experience. But they also must demonstrate strong teaching capabilities. For early career researchers, teacher training is mandatory.
Faßbender strongly emphasised the importance of interuniversity cooperation (through the European alliances and joint degrees) for learning and teaching development, which enables reflection on practices and peer learning.
Last but not least, he underlined the importance role of QA: The institution has transited from the previous “programme accreditation” (every single programme has to be externally accredited) to “system accreditation” (i.e. the institution’s QA capacity to self-accredit its programmes is externally accredited). This allows for a quicker response to change, encourages dialogue across faculties, and eases alignment with institutional goals (“learning university”).
Christina Brey, Director Department of International Affairs: Internationalisation at TH Köln
Internationalisation is an important mission goal for the TH Köln, as it allows it to
respond to global challenges;
promote global citizenship as a core competency;
develop globally employable graduates;
enhance the quality of its education and research;
increase the global visibility for TH Köln.
Attracting and hosting international exchange and degree students is important: The institution offers 11 double degree and 14 programmes taught entirely in English, and has around 380 international partnerships. Important strategic alliances are:
UAS7 – a network of 7 German universities of applied sciences;
Pioneer European University alliance consisting of 10 European universities focused on sustainable and resilient cities;
Centres for Natural Resources and Development a global network of more than 30 members with a transboundary and multidisciplinary approach to address today’s challenges to natural resources.
Susanne Glaeser & Eva Zielasko, Center for Academic Development: COIL and virtual exchange
A short presentation provided an introduction of COIL (Collaborative Online International Learning) and how it is used for virtual mobility for students and staff. The virtual exchanges are seen as very useful: They contribute to collaboration and partnership with other institutions and bring multiple learning benefits to students and staff. And they combine transformation of internationalisation and of learning and teaching.
Session 2: Workshops on development of future-oriented curricula
Every participant could choose to attend two of the three thematic workshops offered.
Prof. Ralf Engels & Lukas Brücher: Living labs for experimental learning: reflective practice and mutual benefit
Reflective Practice & Mutual Benefit:
Each semester, four project modules are conducted with small groups of students. The municipality frequently participates as a partner. The overarching aim is to design projects that support the transformation of the region (a former mining area) toward a more sustainable future. The projects help students engage with real-world challenges in exchange with local stakeholders. Projects typically run for 17 weeks, lasting between 3 and 5 months. Currently, the project module awards 10 ECTS, which is expected to increase during the reaccreditation process in 2029.
Workshop leaders explored together with participants some of the lessons learnt from this initiative: What are effective ways to align learning objectives, project content, and partner expectations?
Use backward design methods to ensure alignment from the intended learning outcomes to activities and assessments.
Assess both the process and the final product to capture students’ development as well as project results.
Encourage and value unconventional or innovative ideas.
Include students in the design phase following a Student-Centred Learning (SCL) approach – students become active agents in shaping their learning journey.
Apply design thinking and systems thinking in an active, applied manner.
Ensure space for transdisciplinary teaching and collaboration across fields.
Prof. Dr. Valérie Varney: Engineering Education Reimagined: Future skills and a learning Curriculum
The sessions presented the Bachelor programme “Maschinenbau - Product Engineering and Context” (MPEC). Students learn product engineering of complex mechatronic systems in project teams, focusing on sustainability. In interdisciplinary projects, these systems are analysed, optimised, and developed within the context of social, political, economic, ecological, and ethical dimensions.
The first phase of studies consists of one project module per semester, with each project building sequentially upon the previous one. Projects are completed in small teams, where students take up various roles and develop their skills, but also their personalities. While students are supported by a team of academic coaches from diverse disciplines, they learn to continuously reflect on their own and their team members’ actions. There is no assessment for the first 1.5 years; students only meet regularly with their coaches and share their “reflections” about their learning: the questions that they encounter are often not technical or disciplinary. The problem- and project-based study approach motivates them to shift from asking questions to gaining understanding and finding solutions. Most students enjoy this, though it can be initially quite challenging as it is very different from the ways they were taught at school.
The programme runs in parallel to the conventional product engineering programme, with classic teaching and regular assessments. Both programmes provide the same skills, but the project-based programme has better learning results. However, it also requires much more resources, and the institution offer it to a much larger number of students. But currently the limited scalability is not a problem, as most students actually prefer the conventional programme; there are also some students who decide to transfer from the project-based into the conventional programme (which is possible). The project-based programme was mentioned “not for all students”. However there are spill-overs from the project-based to the conventional programme, in terms of curriculum and teaching methods.
The summary from the workshops concluded that there is a clear trend towards experimental and problem-based learning.
Through the workshops, participants gained insight into strategic curriculum development processes and explored curricula specifically designed to address the challenges of a complex world and the future requirements of graduates. They shared their own experiences and expertise, and they delved deeper into various perspectives on the topic at thematic tables with teachers, department heads, and university staff of TH Köln.
Prof. Dr. Claudia Ziller, Stefanie Spöth & Farina Koller: Female leadership and future skills in modern organizational development: different, meaningful and relevant
Session 3 Fostering future skills through tech-enhanced learning
Prof. Dr. Anja Richert & Caroline Dick: Building future skills through Game-Based Learning: Insights from the FutureING Project
Prof. Dr. Roman Bartnik: Teaching with AI - new opportunities and challenges
Dr. Elisabeth Kaliva & Prof. Dr. Boris Naujoks: The Data Literacy Initiative at TH Köln
The three short inputs addressed different aspects of learning and teaching innovation.
Building Future Skills presented a serious game called “ATPO”, which students had to develop. There were clear learning benefits: students become co-creators, strengthen their ability to engage and learn through collaboration, and are generally much more motivated. For the institution, this was also a research opportunity, as game-based learning is frequently practiced, but hardly ever taught.
The presentation on “Teaching with AI” demonstrated and discussed how students learn with AI tools. Students are given tasks that include the use of AI. They are encouraged to explore how AI can be used for writing, brainstorming and the development of new ideas, with a focus on working with AI, rather than letting AI do the work for them. The goal is to move learning to the higher levels of Bloom’s taxonomy.
The Data Literacy Initiative has been started in 2020. It is interdisciplinary and open for all students of TH Köln.
All three initiatives pointed to dangers that students avoid “desirable difficulties”, and stressed the importance of exposing them with new challenges. But they also underlined that this is not just about students, but also about staff development and training.
Session 4: Presentation of the Centre for Academic Development (CAD)
By Susanne Glaeser, Team leader at the CAD
The penultimate session of the day was about the Centre for Academic Development (CAD), which is crucial for supporting and coordinating the wide and diverse range of L&T teaching initiatives at TH Köln, and for the collective reflection on the matter, and development of new approaches. The Centre was established in 2015, first as a project, before it became an institutionalised scientific unit. Its focus is currently on HE didactics & digitalisation. It provides coaching for newly appointed academic staff. This is a mandatory 18-month programme, which has been attended by now by 305 teachers. Beyond providing the new staff with teaching skills, it also supports their integration and orientation in the institution. In addition, the Centre provides workshops for curriculum development, support for digital-enhanced learning, the self-study platform Lehrpfade, and organises teaching awards, and events such as “the day for Excellent Teaching” and the “Night of the Scholars”. It also builds university-wide professional networks for learning and teaching. It also organised the SPHERE study visit, in collaboration with other parts of the institution.
Final Reflections / Feedback
The final session of the day was used for reflection and gathering feedback:
A very comprehensive day:
This first day offered a broad and insightful overview of the institution’s educational philosophy, strategic direction, and daily practices. It provided a rich learning experience that highlighted both depth and coherence across initiatives.
Strong project-based and scenario-based engineering curricula:
The curricula presented demonstrated a robust integration of real-world challenges and hands-on problem-solving. Students learn by engaging with authentic scenarios and projects inspired by industry and societal needs, which strengthens their practical competencies and professional readiness.
The shift to student-centred learning (SCL) is essential:
The emphasis on SCL reflects a broader commitment to empower students to take an active role in their learning. This shift promotes autonomy, intrinsic motivation, and the development of critical future skills, reinforcing the institution’s progressive educational model.
A highly progressive approach to digitalisation and AI:
The institution is clearly at the forefront of integrating digital tools and artificial intelligence into teaching, learning, and administration. Its approach is both innovative and strategic, ensuring that technological adoption enhances—not replaces—human-centred learning.
Strong and values-driven leadership:
The leadership consistently communicated a clear vision grounded in shared values such as sustainability, inclusivity, and societal responsibility. This values-based approach appears to guide decision-making and inspire both staff and students.
Clear alignment with societal needs:
The institution actively responds to current and emerging challenges in society, ensuring that its programmes and projects remain relevant. This alignment strengthens partnerships and enhances graduates’ ability to contribute meaningfully to their communities.