NordForsk in collaboration with the Academy of Finland; Swedish Research Council; the Research Council of Norway; the Ministry of Education, Science and Culture of Iceland; and the Danish Council for Strategic Research is issuing a call for proposals for a Nordic Centre of Excellence in a newly established initiative entitled Education for Tomorrow. The initiative's main objectives are to strengthen educational research, contribute to a knowledge-based policy for the educational sector through widespread dissemination of the research results.The Nordic countries and their educational systems share important aims, roots and cultural characteristics. The countries all have a strong tradition of public educational systems from kindergarten to universities and beyond, all the way into life-long learning. The initiative aims to enhance the understanding of education and educational systems as well as of formal and informal learning. The initiative seeks to explore their roles in tomorrow's society and encourages re-conceptualisation of education and learning.The purpose of this call for proposals is to finance one Nordic Centre of Excellence. For more information about the initiative, please refer to the Memorandum below.
Who can apply?
The NCoE must have commitment from institutions in at least three Nordic countries, and the Project Leader should be an established senior researcher based in one of the co-funding Nordic countries. The formal applicant must thus be an institution, organisation or other legal entity based in one of the five Nordic countries or three autonomous areas.
Thematic framework
The Nordic Centre of Excellence in Education for Tomorrow is funded to stimulate the development of Nordic education towards the future of the Nordic educational systems. What are the challenges for our educational systems and how can these challenges be met? How can the educational systems reformulate their aims, practices and structures in order to meet the needs of a fast changing society? Many aspects of our societies have evolved significantly, they have become more diverse and individualistic, digital, multicultural and global, all of which affect profoundly the preconditions for learning. The increased demand for diverse competence building, accompanied by constant reassessments of social and moral value systems occur in a variety of both traditional and new arenas and in diverse contexts.
What are the premises for teaching and learning in the future; for education and the welfare state; for internationalisation and governance of the educational systems and for inclusion and equal access? What might be the Nordic responses as education becomes increasingly global and rapidly moves into the 21st century?
What is a Nordic Centre of Excellence (NCoE)?
The NCoE is a main NordForsk funding instrument established to strengthen cooperation between outstanding researchers, research groups and research institutions within areas of priority for the Nordic countries. NCoEs add value to research performed in the countries and increase the international impact of Nordic research. An NCoE is a multi-site or single-site research environment with a common research agenda, joint management and budget, and joint communication and outreach activities providing a coherent view of the centre.
