Article

New impetus for the humanities and social sciences at UNamur

A new platform dedicated to research in the humanities and social sciences (SHS) is being launched at UNamur. The aim? To offer SHS researchers methodological support tailored to their needs and strengthen SHS excellence at UNamur. This platform, SHS Impulse, will provide various services such as financial support for training, consultancy, access to resources, or co-financed software purchases.
See content
Article

MOSI, from word to sign: a bilingual reading aid from French to Langue des signes de Belgique francophone (LSFB)

Instantly obtain a translation in sign language (LSFB) of a word written in French: that's what MOSI (Du mot au signe) makes possible. This new tool is the fruit of a collaboration between the University of Namur, the asbl École et Surdité and the asbl LSFB, supported by the King Baudouin Foundation.
See content
Article

UNamur: the nerve center of wild literature

Last June, the UNamur Board of Directors officially announced the creation of the Observatoire des Littératures Sauvages (OLSa). Founded in 2022 under the leadership of Denis Saint-Amand, FNRS qualified researcher in the Department of French and Romance Languages and Literatures, this research center studies how literature is constructed outside of books and literary institutions, through alternative objects or channels.
See content
Event

OLSa Seminar - Session #1 | Poetry in the street

Turning to authorized and unauthorized investments of public space, performances, uses of ephemeral supports and other departures from the framework, various interventions will question the stakes of forms of writing deployed outside the book and their effects on representations of poetic practice.Today's theme: Poetry in the streetThe acclimatization of poetry to advertising communication has contributed to reinforcing its urban inscription, so that today it frequently appears on the walls of our cities, often through fragmentary quotations and isolated verses. These writings are sometimes the result of commissions and are therefore perfectly authorized, but they can also be the product of wild production: what are the preferred forms in such cases, and how can they be archived? From the enunciation of these urban poems to their revival on social networks, this first session of the OLSa seminar will be an opportunity to examine the modes of emergence, circulation and conservation of wild literatures. Next seminarsOctober 29, 2025, L12, 4-6pm: Benoît Cottet (Paris 8) - Poetry in performance.December 11, 2025, L01, 4-6pm: Arvi Sepp (VUB) and Florence Pierre (UNamur) - Other forms, other walls.
See content
Event

XIth International Congress of the Asociación de Hispanismo de Benelux

See content
Page

Seminars

The IRDENa institute invites its members and guests to present the status of their research in teaching and education on topical issues throughout the year.These seminars are held once a month, usually during lunchtime. We look forward to seeing many of you at these events, which provide an opportunity for discussion, debate, and sharing in a friendly atmosphere.
See content
Research institut

UNamur Institute for Research in Didactics and Education

The Institut de Recherche en Didactiques et Éducation de l'Université de Namur (IRDENa) is made up of researchers from various faculties and departments at the University of Namur. These transversal relationships offer a multidisciplinary approach and aim to amplify synergies between researchers in the world of education and didactics.Their mission is to foster the emergence of new research objects and methodologies, stemming from a variety of disciplinary anchors.

See content
Event

IRDENa Study Day: Training for, by, and within Professional Practice

On May 12, the Institute for Research in Didactics and Education (IRDENa) at the University of Namur is organizing a seminar dedicated to a topic at the heart of current concerns in initial and continuing teacher education: training through professional practice.In a context where expectations of the teaching profession and the realities on the ground are evolving rapidly, and where policymakers are entrusting the field with a significant portion of the training of future teachers through the requirement for extended teaching placements, practical experience plays a decisive role in the development of professional competencies, professional skills, and educational approaches. This essential practice also raises numerous questions:What challenges does training in (with and through) professional practice face today?What obstacles still hinder its implementation or quality?What challenges must training institutions, partner schools, and trainers address?What concrete benefits does professional immersion offer for both aspiring and experienced teachers?To shed light on these questions, the event will feature two speakers:Catherine Van Nieuwenhoven, professor and international expert on teacher education and work-study programs;Sephora Boucenna, a researcher at IRDENa, whose work focuses on professional development through practice and the analysis of field experiences.Their combined perspectives, blending scientific expertise, institutional analysis, and a nuanced understanding of the field, will fuel a collective discussion on the levers to strengthen and the avenues to explore in order to support an ambitious, coherent, and efficient practical training program in light of current policy challenges.The program will continue with a roundtable bringing together colleagues from various universities, who will compare their perspectives on the training of internship supervisors. Their discussion will focus in particular on training needs, support models, institutional challenges, and the conditions necessary to organize this training effectively.Finally, the day will give significant attention to real-world practice through testimonials from several student teachers, who have been invited to share their experiences, their mentoring practices, as well as the tensions that arise in their daily professional lives. These accounts will help ground the discussion in the concrete realities of schools and highlight the importance of the partnership between academic institutions and K-12 education.This study day is intended for researchers, trainers, teachers, as well as anyone involved in teacher education who wishes to contribute to a shared reflection on the future of the profession. Program 8:30–9:00 a.m. – Welcome9:00 AM to 10:00 AM – Catherine Van Niewenhoven (UCLouvain) - The Role of Fieldwork in Teacher Education: Support and Professional Development10:00 AM to 10:20 AM - Coffee break10:20 AM to 11:20 AM – Research findings (Call for papers)11:20 AM to 12:20 PM - Presentation of mentor programs12:30 PM to 1:30 PM – Lunch1:30 PM to 2:00 PM - Research Incubator2:00 PM to 3:00 PM - Sephora Boucenna (UNamur) - Training through and within professional practice: what are the specific features?3:00 PM to 4:00 PM - RoundtableStarting at 4:00 PM - Closing reception
See content
Article

Gabriel Dias De Carvalho Junior: an academic career in physics didactics

Gabriel Dias De Carvalho Junior adds his expertise in didactics and cognitive psychology to the physics didactics research unit of UNamur's Department of Physics. With almost two decades of teaching experience in Brazil, he works to improve teaching practices. His innovative projects aim to make teaching more inclusive and accessible, while establishing international collaborations.
See content
Article

28 new research projects funded by the FNRS

The F.R.S.-FNRS has just published the results of its various 2025 calls for proposals. These include the "Credits & Projects" and "WelCHANGE" calls, as well as the "FRIA" (Fund for Research Training in Industry and Agriculture) and "FRESH" (Fund for Research in the Humanities) calls, which aim to support doctoral theses. What are the results for UNamur? Twenty-eight projects have been selected, demonstrating the quality and richness of research at UNamur. 
See content
Article

UNamur at the sixth edition of SETT

On January 23 and 24, 2025, UNamur experts were present at the SETT (School Education Transformation Technology) trade show for its sixth edition. A must-attend event for digital education in the Wallonia-Brussels Federation, dedicated to principals, teachers and technical-pedagogical advisors.
See content