Professor Damir Sekulić: Any Crisis is the Opportunity for Alternative in the Field of Science Cooperation
Any crisis is also a possibility, said prof. Damir Sekulić, PhD, Dean of the Faculty of Kinesiology, University of Split, one of the partner institutions of the International Scientific Conference of the Montenegrin Sports Academy.
We talked with him about a video conference that brought together scientists from around the world online in early April, instead of in Cavtat, as well as about the lives of scientists, collaborations and teaching in Croatia during the extraordinary circumstances caused by the COVID 19 virus.
“I must first congratulate my colleagues at the University of Montenegro on their success! It is one of the highest quality conferences in the field of sports science in this part of Europe, high standards have been set and a pandemic has threatened to disrupt the entire system. The solution that my colleagues came up with was brilliant, " Dean Sekulic said.
He states that on the first day of the CSA conference he had online classes for his students, so he took the opportunity to include them in the lectures that were given at the conference.
"This gave them the opportunity to attend the top conference. I do not believe he will almost have such an opportunity. I think 99% of students finish their studies without ever seeing what a scientific conference is and what it is for,” he said.
Satisfied with the experience of the conference, he adds: "Don't get me wrong, I would rather have had the opportunity to all be in Cavtat together, but when this was not possible, holding an online conference was a great solution and once again I congratulate my colleagues on that."
He sees the current situation as a major challenge, which is primarily about getting out of the comfort zone we were used to.
"The workday is not much different from the one before the pandemic except that most of it takes place online. In terms of science and research, this engagement is almost completely diverted to writing papers, because research is almost impossible to accomplish, "he explains.
Sekulic adds that in this situation, scientists who have formed teams and have good cooperation with colleagues are in the advantage, and in that sense, he says, he is one of those lucky ones because he manages to do a lot of things regardless of the situation with excellent associates and assistants.
In conjunction with regional scholars, Sekulic believes that the key conferences organized by the Montenegrin Sports Academy in cooperation with the Faculty of Sport and Physical Education of the University of Montenegro and other international partners are crucial.
"I like to think that I take science seriously, at least as much as my conditions, environment and situation allow. Without conferences like this, there is no science! Contacts, ideas, solutions and everything else that is gained and learned at such conferences are the basis of scientific research work. I can only say that I look forward to April 2021. Admittedly, I'll see you sooner. In September this year, my faculty is organizing a scientific conference in Split (https://iaps2020.kifst.hr/index.html) where we expect a large number of scientists from all over the world. We hope to be able to partly make up for what we all missed this spring in Cavtat, " Sekulic announces.
DISTANT TEACHING ONLY SEEMS EASIER
When it comes to teaching, at the University of Split, the pandemic and regulations of restricted movement and social contact have completely changed the concept.
"We keep teaching at a distance, which requires extra effort because of course it's easier to do things the way we are used to. Distance learning is, at first glance, easier than usual, as it is generally perceived first that you don't have to go anywhere because you work from home. However, when you try to carry out "distance" classes as correctly as possible, it is a greater effort than is the case with "classical teaching", said Dean Sekulić.
The programs used by most teachers at this university are only partially known or completely unknown, and as a rule are not intended to communicate with a large number of participants, all located in different locations.
"Therefore, the usual perception of Ma is that nothing special, connect to Skype (and the like) is not really correct. However, we are fortunate and pleased that the University's system engineers have connected and are constantly developing ideas and systems that allow distance learning to function at a satisfactory level,” he explains.
Sometimes, it is said, these are informal solutions, such as the use of gaming software platforms, which were not originally developed for educational purposes, but have proven to be extremely useful and applicable.
"In fact, these solutions, I can say, saved us in the beginning, because the main stream software platforms (Skype, Zoom, Teams, etc.) are quite limited in that sense," Sekulic explains.