The Israeli Centers for Research Excellence (I-CORE) is an initiative designed by the Planning and Budgeting Committee (PBC) and the Government of Israel. The initiative is part of the Higher Education multi-year Reform Plan, which gradually establishes leading research centers specializing in a range of disciplines. The Centers of Excellence and the program's vision are aimed at fundamentally strengthening the long term positioning of Israel's academic research and its stature among leading researchers in Israel and abroad.
Learning in a NetworKed Society (LINKS): Co-creation of Knowledge in Technology-Enhanced Communities of Learning
Participating Researchers and Institutions.
This I-CORE (Israel Center Of Research Excellence) operates under the scientific management of Prof. Yael Kali of the University of Haifa and is represented by reserachers from the University of Haifa, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, the Technion and the Herzliya nterdisciplinary Center.
Research Focus
Mission
LINKS (Learning in a Networked Society) is committed to generating a critical mass of research that will bring about a paradigm shift in preparation of citizens for lifelong learning in today's information-based, networked society.
Focus
LINKS researchers have identified three central areas regarding learning in technology-enhanced communities which they expect to have the greatest potential to produce novel outcomes: (a) ways in which shared knowledge and understanding develop in technology-enhanced communities; (b) ways in which technology-enhanced communities build shared practices, norms and regulations; and (c) ways in which technology can foster learning within and between a diversity of people from various sectors of society. LINKS researchers will work collaboratively to produce groundbreaking research in these three areas and will explore their interconnections.
An integral part of the LINKS mission is contributing to the community by accessing digital gaps at the community level, implementing and evaluating technologies of learning and play in schools, and providing professional development of teacher-trainers in collaboration with the Israeli Ministry of Education. In addition, by allocating resources to community outreach LINKS researchers will lead activities that will directly impact youth in periphery communities and underprivileged settings.