About our research

The aim of the faculty Educational Sciences is to further education. To support it in its much-needed innovation and professionalisation activities. The best way to do that is through collaboration. The faculty Educational Sciences has chosen the approach of the 'ecology of education'.

This means that the faculty is not only active in the field of theoretical scientific research but also collaborates with users in developing and implementing scientifically sound learning environments, forms of education and didactics. The research activities take into account the complexity of education and the use of the rapidly developing technologies play an important part in them. The underlying thought is that the contact between educational science and educational practice is of vital importance for good educational research and therefore for the improvement of educational quality.

Nevertheless the faculty Educational Sciences imposes on itself very stringent scientfic demands: the results of its scientific activities have to be validated, have to be susceptible to generalization and have to find their way into authoritative (national and international) publications.

Research programme

The faculty Educational Sciences (formerly the Welten Institute) integrates perspectives in carrying out scientific research of complex, practice-relevant issues in the ecology of education. Its research delivers ecologically valid and high-quality results through an integrated approach to issues that draw upon theories of learning and cognition, technology, new media, networking, and educators’ practices and behaviour. The objective of this research is the improvement of the quality of education and the professionalization of educators. To this end, the faculty Educational Sciences contributes to the design and development of tools for learners and educators, as well as the growth of knowledge and expertise in the educational sciences and educational technology.

Disciplinary research

The faculty works on a comprehensive research programme in the field of educational technology, online learning and innovation through IT. The programme is called: Educational Research with impact on activating (online) education. The research followes two research lines. The research line disciplinary research the focus is on formulating theories and instruments in the field of educational sciences that also contributes to the expertise development in the field of educational innovation.

Multidisciplinary research

In a multidisciplinary programme different disciplines collaborate in doing research into current societal challenges. The Open Universiteit has defined one multidisciplinary programme: Innovating for resilience. This programme consists of three research lines:

Safety and Resiliency in Urban Environments
Learning and Innovation in Resilient Systems
Innovation in education

The Faculty of Educational Sciences contribures mainly to the research line Innovation in education.
This research aims at improving higher and scientific education in general and more particularly improving hte education of the Open University. To this end content specialists and educational scientists closely collaborate. Even more than the disciplinary research this multidisciplinary research is aimed at combining science and valorisation. The focus is on online learning, blended learning, on the use of media and on educational technology. Innovations are studied form a scientific and a design point of view. Partners participate in these projects in different ways: as researchers, as educational designers and/or as teachers.