ACDE 2027
VIII Conference • African Council for Distance Education
“Rethinking anew sciences for Africa in current geopolitics and exponential age”
Call for Abstracts
The African Council for Distance Education (ACDE) Conference 2027, hosted by the University of South Africa (Unisa), invites researchers, academics, practitioners, policymakers, postgraduate students, and industry partners to submit abstracts for presentation at the conference, to be held from 12–16 April 2027 at the Cape Town International Convention Centre, Cape Town, South Africa under the theme: “Rethinking anew sciences for Africa in current geopolitics and exponential age”.
Conference Themes (Tracks)
Digital transformation in teaching and learning within the ODEL model
- Online pedagogy, online assessment and micro-credentialing
- AI integration and alternative models of teaching and learning
- Micro credentialing and lifelong learning
- The design and delivery of LMS platforms
- Data Models, Management, Engineering, and processing in the Age of Big Data
- Ethical, responsible and human-centred AI in education
- Digital inclusion, accessibility and universal design for learning
- Open educational resources, open pedagogy and open science
- Digital inequality, connectivity and the digital divide
Leadership and institutional transformation
- Financing, policy, governance issues and futures of universities
- Sectoral, systems and structural issues
- Quality assurance and enhancement in ODeL
- Institutional resilience, agility and change management
- Internationalisation, partnership, mobility, and pan-African Higher Education
- Decolonising African education
- African universities in Africa, sovereignty, and Africanisation
- African sciences for the blue economy, diaspora, astronomy, climate change, food security, public health, marine studies, water and space sciences
Equity, inclusion and student success
- Disability inclusion, accessibility and universal design for learning
- Equity, diversity, culture and linguistic inclusion
- Student support, engagement, retention and success
- Access and participation of marginalised and underserved communities
- Gender equity and intersectionality in digital education
- Mental health, well-being and belonging
- Recognition of Prior Learning, articulation and flexible learning pathways
- Education for refugees, displaced learners and learners in fragile contexts
Engaged scholarship and social outcomes of education
- Intra-, inter-, cross- and multi-disciplinarity in a convergent world
- Employability and the future of work
- Sustainability of education models and social outcomes
- Equity, inclusion and social justice in higher education
- Articulation, Recognition of Prior Learning and flexible learning pathways
Submission Categories
We welcome submissions that align with the conference theme and sub-themes across a range of categories, including:
- Research papers
- Case studies
- Innovative practices
- Policy papers
- Panel discussions
- Student research
- Pecha-kucha (5-minute presentations)
- Poster presentations
Publication
How to Submit
Conference Information
For submission guidelines, conference information and important dates, visit the conference website.
Conference WebsiteSubmit Your Abstract
Ready to present? Submit your abstract through the official abstract submission portal.
Abstract Submission Portal