MAAL
Development of a Part-Time, Interdisciplinary Masters Course in Ambient Assisted Living
Project duration: 10/2011 - 07/2014
Principal investigator at ASH: Prof. Dr. Ingrid Kollak
Other project contacts at ASH: Wibke Hollweg (Diplom-Logopädin), Franziska Kuck
Management of the overall project: Hochschule für Technik und Wirtschaft Berlin (HTW), Prof. Gerhard Hörber
Abstract:
The aim of the project is to make assistive technology (for the elderly or for people with disabilities) more popular with the general public and students as well as those whose work is affected and who should receive information about this topic, e.g. through study projects or further education courses. In cooperation with the Hochschule für Technik und Wirtschaft – University of Applied Sciences Berlin (HTW) we are developing a part-time interdisciplinary master’s degree in the area of Ambient Assisted Living. The course will be offered at HTW. Individual modules from the course will be offered to a wide variety of people in the context of further education and continuing vocational training. In cooperation with the Hochschule für Technik und Wirtschaft – University of Applied Sciences Berlin (HTW) we are developing a part-time interdisciplinary master’s degree in the area of Ambient Assisted Living. The course will be offered at HTW. Individual modules from the course will be offered to a wide variety of people in the context of further education and continuing vocational training.
Within the three-year MAAL project, ASH is investigating the challenges that the nursing sector will have to face - challenges due to technical developments as well as demographic changes. For example, we interviewed care professionals regarding their experiences with assistive technology and their ideas for improvement.
Findings about new professional demands in nursing should also lead to recommendations on how to modify training content and educational structures. Interdisciplinary cooperation with members of technical professions is one example of an important topic in professional training in the nursing sector. Furthermore, the proportion of academically trained nurses should be increased, in order to master the complex demands of this profession.
Together with HTW and other partners, ASH is developing the master’s course "MAAL." The course is intended for graduates with bachelor’s degrees in the disciplines of humanities (for example, BA Social Work, BSc Heath and Social Care Management, BA Early Childhood Education, BSc Physiotherapy/Occupational Therapy), the engineering sciences and design, who will then be taught in an interdisciplinary manner. The students will be trained to develop, produce and design AAL technologies, as well as to advise on, plan for and evaluate the deployment of these technologies. As a university that focuses on “health, education and social matters,” we would like to pass on knowledge about local service and care structures in the healthcare sector within the new course. We are particularly concerned with embedding participatory research methods. This should be clearly demonstrated both by student participation in developing the course and by the evolution of the course content during the study period. In this way, students should learn from the beginning to consider the user’s perspective when developing products. Using these methods and this course content, we seek to make the master’s course graduates more receptive to the needs and demands of the users of the technology. Thus, we want to enable the graduates to determine the immediate needs of particular social groups.
The MAAL-project is supported by the BMBF within the following project line: “Development of occupational and academic further education offerings and supplementary qualifications in the area of age-appropriate assistance schemes – QuAALi"
Project website: maalprojekt.htw-berlin.de (German only)
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