SDG 4 - Ensure inclusive and equitable quality education and promote lifelong learning opportunities for all

Teaching and Learning:

• Representatives from Memorial travelled to India where they visited universities interested in collaborating with Memorial. International collaborations allow an enriched academic experience for all. Plans are also in motion... to create short-term exchange programs for Memorial students and students at partnering Indian institutions to enable undergraduate students to learn from their diverse experiences and backgrounds.
• MUN is looking to create an Aboriginal House on St. John's campus for academic and cultural programming that reflects Aboriginal culture. This will create a larger space with plenty of wood and natural light, an elder’s lounge, study spaces and meeting rooms. There is space for tutoring and academic classes as well as traditional cultural activities.
• MUN celebrates Open Education Week, an annual global event to raise awareness about the open education movement and promote the use of free and open educational resources for teaching and learning.
• A new PhD pathway for Aboriginal students in Graduate programs will follow a cohort model of learning, building meaningful and collaborative learning communities for students and establishing clear milestones to help guide them on a successful path to postgraduate studies.
• MUN's CITL learning design team is adopting strategies to integrate accessibility within the design of online courses at Memorial. There are also hopes of creating more accessible apps with university services. MUN also offers the Blundon Centre and an assistive technology room to support students experiencing disability.
• Grenfell introduces Career, Culture and Language Education Experience program. The programs consists of students from various parts of the world who partake in 20 hours of in-class activities to improve language fluency as well as cultural activities to improve intercultural awareness.
• Memorial offered a building disability confidence training session where strategies to increase inclusion and accessibility within daily practices were discussed.
• A new program offered by the Faculty of Education will help future teachers learn more about STEM subjects and increase their confidence in teaching them. This program is aimed at university students completing the Primary-Elementary post-degree program.
• MUN's engineering outreach office recieved a $95,000 increase in federal funding to increase coding knowledge in children. Coding has moved from desirable-for-employment to basic life skill. This funding will have a great impact on science, technology, engineering and math programs as well as digital literacy experiences.
• Memorial offers an Irish student scholarship through the Faculty of Arts. Two students are selected to travel to Ireland for a 4 week summer school while undertaking an immersion course in Irish Gaelic. $1000 is awarded to each student to cover travel to the study location.
• The Joyce Family Foundation Bursary aids students experiencing critical financial need and those who have faced other hardships in their lives beyond their control. Students who receive the reward must also commit to working alongside a mentor during their program.
• MUN introdues a new co-operative degree program for Human Kinetics and Recreation. This program allows students to gain hands-on experience during their program (equivalent to one year of work). This work experience helps students gain skills they can transfer into the work force.
• Jason Geary is looking to create a inclusive and accessible learning experience for all at Memorial. He is aiding in promoting equitable and inclusive educational spaces and experiences for all learners, working to indigenize the academy, and working with educators to enhance their teaching practices to gear toward students' strengths.
• The creation of a geochemical pipette station helps student with visual impairment conduct his research independently and safely in the lab. The device was unique and made customoized to the students needs aiding in success in his research.
• Memorial launces a renewed Teaching and Learning Framework (TLF) aimed at increasing collaborative and interdisciplinary initiatives that enable student accessibility, deepen learners’ engagement and facilitate student success. The plan is for CITL to work with units all across the university to build new and transformational teaching and learning experiences.
• Memorial partners with FUSION (the Future Skills Innovation Network). The new project will greatly contribute to the development of new skills for students, further contributing to their educational and career experience. Students will develop skills that they can carry into their future careers.
• Memorial moves courses online amidst the COVID-19 pandemic. Supports will be put in place to promote a successful remote learning environment which allows students to progress through their programs. This ensures access to education regardless of location.
• Draft of Strategic Framework for Indigenization 2020-25 released from Memorial. It sets out four strategic priorities: Leadership and Partnership; Teaching and Learning; Research; and Student Success. Actions have been identified based on feedback from Indigenous communities and the university community.
• Although MUN's ESL program lost four programs due to the pandemic, this gave the spouses of International Memorial students the opportunity to step in and learn English as well. This program is helping to contribute to reading, writing and listening skills for both students and spouses. Learning English will also aid students and spouses in their future careers in St. John's. This contributes to the development of literacy.
• New program to be offered to support youth who have been in foster care. The program will provide financial support including full-time undergraduate tuition and other required institutional fees, for a maximum of four years and up to eight semesters. This ensures access to affordable education.

Research: 

• Each year The Memorial University/Hibernia STEM Teacher Inquiry Program helps between 60 and 80 teachers build confidence through inquiry-based classroom practices in STEM subjects. This is a learning experience for both teachers and students and is helping to foster student success.
• A new federal-provincial partnership will fund research undertaken by Memorial. The new partnership will provide researchers with "the opportunity to access important funding to fuel research that has both economic and societal benefits for the province of Newfoundland and Labrador".

Public Engagement:

• A symposium was held in response to a research project led by Memorial and the Nunatsiavut Government in hopes of generating new knowledge and sharing ideas. The event had a great turnout with more than 50 people in attendence including but not limited to government leaders, students, and researchers.
• Pitch101 is an event that allows students to pitch their business ideas, in under 60 seconds. This is a great learning experience for students as they get to learn from industry experts and learn how to pitch a business idea.
• Memorial University’s Aboriginal Resource Office (ARO) hosts a variety of events and social programs such as open circle, purification ceremony, Mid-Week Munchies, and more. ARO also hired an aboriginal cultural education co-ordinator to help develop more education on campus about Aboriginal populations.
• The Memorial Engineering Outreach (MEO) office delivers STEM programs to youth and strives to make these programs more accessible to youth who may otherwise may not be engaged. Not only is this program beneficial to the children, but is also contributing to NL sustainability. This is a great learning experience for children and further contributes to their knowledge of STEM.
• Memorial's Labrador Institute hosts a unique summer science camp for Innu and Inuit youth. The camp is for students in grades 8-11. Children learn about plant ecology, archaeology, marine ecology, wildlife monitoring and management, mosquito research and traditional ecological knowledge.
• NL Youth offered opportunity to attend Climate Summit. This summit will give youth the opportunity to innovate and learn about a variety of climate and sustainability topics. This aids youth in developing knowledge and skills needed to promote sustainable development in the future.

Administration:

• The MUN Safe app is a mobile app that students can download on their device to receive alerts in the event of an emergency. Students can also report safety hazards, behavioural concerns and more. The app even has a Friend Walk option where students can connect with a friend or family member virtually to walk home with them. Their movements are tracked which allows the friend or family member to track their location in the event of an emergency. This app greatly contributes to the safety of Memorial students and staff while on-campus.