The Faculty of Humanities, Sports and Educational Science have a vacancy for a position as Doctoral Research Fellow in Effective Utilization of Immersive Technologies for experiential learning in teacher education - 2. call

About the position

University of South-Eastern Norway

University of South-Eastern Norway has about 18 000 students and about 1500 employees. The university is organized in four faculties, with instruction and R&D activities on eight campuses. The main profile of the university is to provide socially relevant education, geared towards specific professions, and adapted to the requirements of the workplace, as well as to produce applied research and development.

USN has a vacancy for a full-time three-year position as PhD Research Fellow in the cross-faculty project "Effective utilization of commercially available immersive technology for learning, training and behavior". Date of commencement is set to 1 August 2020, earlier date is possible by agreement.

The vacant position is formally attached to the Department of Visual and performative arts education and reports to the Head of the Department. The place of employment is at the University’s Campus Vestfold and/or Notodden, but the position may also include assignments on other campuses of USN. The employment period will be three years of full time with no teaching obligations.

About the PhD-project

Immersive technologies will disrupt our ways of living in a digital age by presenting new approaches to consume and process information. This change will influence how we live our lives - the ways in which we learn, work, shop and play - and will have a profound impact on the community and societal interactions. The impending mass adoption of immersive technologies raises fundamental questions about the risks and opportunities afforded by the technology.

Today, immersive technologies are introduced in various educational environments and it is assumed that there is both potentials and challenges associated with using Immersive technologies in teacher education. Cognition and learning are embodied, i.e. they draw on previous experiences of hands-on and body-based activities. Consequently, research is needed to investigate these new learning opportunities, to provide insight on the educational values and limitations of immersive technology on experiential learning in teacher education. It can for instance contribute to knowledge about how physical and virtual environments, including immersive technologies, influence students’ embodied learning processes. Relevant research questions are, but are not limited to: To what extent could immersive technologies provide nuanced encoding of sensory and motor experience, i.e. experiential learning? How could immersive technologies be used to simulate teaching and learning activities in classroom situations, as a supplement to practice periods in real classrooms? How can immersive technologies be included in future classrooms?

The project is funded through USN’s strategic initiative in immersive technologies with the aim to build a cross-faculty research center for research concerning VR/AR/MR technologies and their implementation in education, public and commercial sector, and society as a whole.

This position is one of four PhD research fellow positions affiliated with the project. The four positions are related to four topics within the large project on ways of optimizing usage of commercially available immersive technologies among university students (1) for experiential training and learning (Faculty of Technology, Natural Sciences and Maritime Sciences); (2) in terms of vision and visuomotor skills and fostering healthy eye development (Faculty of Health and Social Sciences); (3) for marketing (School of Business), and (4) for experiential learning in teacher education (Faculty of Humanities, Sports and Educational Science).

The PhD project must address the research objectives of the broader project and the applicants are asked to submit a 5-page proposal with their application, see more details under “How to apply”. The position involves close collaboration with scientists working on Training, assessment, learning & human factors (Faculty of Technology, Natural Sciences and Maritime Sciences), Optics, vision & eye care (Faculty of Health and Social Sciences), Information systems & marketing management (School of Business), Teacher education and learning sciences (Faculty of Humanities, Sports and Educational Science.

Qualifications

Applicants to the PhD position must have a Master’s degree or equivalent higher education qualifications in a relevant field with an average grade B or better from the Master degree, in addition to a grade B or better of the final master project, is required. The applicants must have gained his/her Master’s degree within date of commencement. Applicants must have an excellent command of written and spoken English. Applicants whom also master at least one Scandinavian language will be preferred.

It is a requirement that the successful applicant is granted admission to the USN Doctoral Programme in Pedagogical resources and learning processes.

The candidate should have competence, willingness and interest in learning the relevant areas to the PhD project and associated areas such as human factors, simulation, training and assessment methods, computational tools, eye and vision science, knowledge of experimental design and research methods. In addition to formal qualifications, the candidate must have a personal motivation for research, ability to work independently and focused ability to work in multidisciplinary and multicultural teams.

Personal suitability for the position will be emphasized. Co-operation between staff members is an integrated part of the working atmosphere at the University of South-Eastern Norway. The candidate must be motivated and demonstrate a proven ability to work effectively within a team and in a collegiate manner to formulate and realize common objectives. The candidate must be motivated to share his or her knowledge and to collaborate closely within the cross-faculty research group in immersive technologies.

We offer

• A professionally stimulating working environment.
• Good opportunities to develop your career and your academic skills.
• A good social environment.
• Attractive welfare benefits in the State Pension Plan.
• Opportunity for physical activities within working hours.

Salary

PhD Research Fellow (code 1017): NOK 479 600 a year. Further promotion will be based on service in the position. In special cases, employment in code 1378 may be considered. Salary NOK 479 600 - 600 200 a year. A statutory contribution will be made from the employee’s salary to the state pension plan.

Other information

The Academic Appointments Board is responsible for appointments to academic positions at University College of Southeast Norway. An expert assessment of applicants will be carried out. Short-listed candidates will be called in for interviews and must be prepared to present and discuss their projects.

The person appointed must comply with the laws, regulations and agreements that apply at any given time to the post.

According to its human resources policy, the University of South-Eastern Norway targets a balanced gender composition and aims to recruit persons with a background as an immigrant.

The University contributes to the Inkluderingsdugnaden (a voluntary scheme to promote inclusion), and it is our aim that our employees, to the fullest extent possible, shall reflect the diversity of the general population. We therefore also encourage qualified applicants with disabilities to apply for the post. The University will facilitate the workplace for employees with disabilities.

Pursuant to section 25, 2nd paragraph of the Freedom of Information Act, information on the applicant may be disclosed even if the applicant has requested not be included on the list of applicants. Applicants will be notified if such requests are not allowed.

Contact information

For further information concerning the position please contact:

• Faculty of Humanities, Sports and Educational Science (HIU) Marte Sørebø Gulliksen, Professor, +47 35 02 63 97
• Project leader, from Faculty of Health and Social Sciences (HH) Rigmor C. Baraas, Professor, +47 92 83 66 59

How to apply

The University of South-Eastern Norway makes use of online application management. Applicants to the post must register their application and CV with enclosures online via the Jobbnorge recruitment portal by clicking on the link on the right-hand side – “Søk stillingen” (Apply for the post).

The following documents shall be attached to the online application:

• Cover letter stating your motivation in the project and relevant competencies
• CV, summarizing education, experience and other qualifying activities
• Certified copies of educational certificates (Master’s and Bachelor’s). This years Master’s student must send a temporary transcript of records and final Certificate when achieved.
• A copy of your Master’s thesis
• A 5-page (maximum) project description
• Any scientific publications and a list of these
• Three references (contact information)

Please note that all documents must be in a Scandinavian language or in English. Any translations must be certified.

Each applicant is responsible for ensuring that the required documentation has been uploaded with the application.

Apply for the post