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SDG 4: Quality Education

Red icon with graphic of book and pencil to represent UNSDG Goal 4: Quality Education.

Without additional measures, about 300 million students will lack basic numeracy and literacy skills in 2030

Progress towards quality education was already slower than required before the pandemic, but COVID-19 has had devastating impacts on education, causing learning losses in four out of five of the 104 countries studied.


High-impact research

Weaving Black history into the Canadian narrative
Having played a leading role setting the Canadian historical record straight, Dr. Afua Cooper was a natural choice to spearhead ‘A Black People’s History of Canada,’ an ambitious Canadian Heritage-funded project that will address the inadequacy of African Canadian history education across the country at all grade levels. Read the Dal News story about Dr. Cooper's project.

Researching the skills children and adults need to achieve full literacy
The is guided byÌýDr. Hélène Deacon a world leader in research in reading development. Through large-scale, multi-year studies that follow children in Halifax schools, across the country, and around the world, the lab is leading a much-needed globalization of reading research, building new knowledge in English and in the many other languages in which children learn to read.

Exploring how to best teach students in the inclusive classroom
Dr. Penny Corkum, Department of Psychology & Neuroscience, and her team, are working with teachers to help them implement best-practice classroom interventions for neurodevelopmental disorders. The eLearning program known as is designed to support students' social-emotional, learning, and behavioural success.

Education for Sustainability Research Group
The concept of education for sustainable development (ESD) asserts a vision of education that empowers people to assume responsibility for creating a sustainable society.Ìý The Education for Sustainability Research Group (ESRG) at ±«Óãtv University tackles many issues related to education and sustainability through their research activities.

Exceptional student experience

'I can feel it rise up in me': This year's top teaching award winner thrives on the energy of students
Though it may sound simple on the surface, building connection takes care. So does teaching students the awareness, analyses, and techniques they need to do so most effectively. Read the Dal News storry about the recipient of the ±«Óãtv Alumni Association Faculty Award of Excellence for Teaching, the university’s top teaching award.

Changing the way we think about accessibility in the classroom
By designing courses to be hybrid-flexible (HyFlex) while keeping Universal Design for Learning in mind, students may participate from wherever they are in whatever way they’re most comfortable. Read the Dal News story about how this award-winning instructor is ensuring accessibility in the classroom.

What does it mean to be an OpenThinker?
It's a program designed to open up the thinking of ±«Óãtv’s PhD researchers—to the world beyond the university. provides the training and platform needed to share ideas, innovations and research-based opinions.

Leading the way: Dal’s 2024 university wide teaching award winners exemplify excellence in higher ed
Ten teachers are being celebrated with awards this year in a range of categories from academic innovation and graduate supervision to undergraduate student teaching and Dal’s top award, the Alumni Association Faculty Award of Excellence for Teaching. Read the Dal News story to find out more about the winners of theÌý2024 University-Wide Teaching Awards.

Inaugural recipients of new Dal award embody community spirit championed by late prof
Drs. Megan Bailey and Tom Ue are recipients of the Dr. Anne Marie Ryan Community Growth Award, launched by ±«Óãtv this year to recognize individuals and groups at the university dedicated to building a better community through education, learning and outreach. Read the Dal News story about the award recipients.

Devoted Dal prof wins national prize for building authentic connections
When Dr. Gambold learned that she had won the 2023 Canadian Anthropology Society (CASCA) Award for Teaching Excellence, an award that was established to recognize the contributions to excellence in teaching and student learning in anthropology, she was shocked and humbled. Read the Dal News story about Dr. Gambold.

Level up: Dal expands opportunities for grad students to advance teaching skills via international network
±«Óãtv's membership in the (CIRTL) adds external workshops and course offeringsÌý to the already rich professional development opportunities for grad studentsÌý found within CLT andÌýDal GradPD. Read the Dal News story about these opportunities for grad students.

Outstanding educators: Get to know this year's university‑wide teaching award winners
A great teacher can inspire and leave a lasting impact on students long after they've moved on from university. ±«Óãtv makes a point of celebrating these outstanding educators each year with its University-wide Teaching Awards. Read the Dal News story about the 2022 Teaching Awards.

Civic university with global impact

Shaping the next generation of problem solvers: Eastlink and Dal celebrate partnership on Math Circles
Created by ±«Óãtv’s Department of Mathematics and Statistics more than 20 years ago, Math Circles sends math experts from Dal into classrooms around Nova Scotia to build engagement in the subject. Read the Dal News story about the program, which reached more than 6,000 students Nova Scotia in 2023 alone.

Summer camp brings Indigenous youth to Dal for math and computer science fun
Dal welcomed 14 youth from Mi’kmaw communities throughout Nova Scotia to a five-day camp showcasing the fun side of math and programming concepts and a taste of the campus experience. Read the Dal News story about the inaugural Indigenous Math Camp.

New episodes of the Mind: The Gap podcast tackle open education and accessible learning
Listen to Mind: The Gap’s recent podcast episodes covering open education with Dr. Leanne Stevens (Ìý´¥ ) and accessible teaching and learning with Dr. Jennifer Stamp (Ìý´¥Ìý).

Dal prof selected for NSERC team tasked with creating greater inclusion in STEM
In this new role, established by the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada (NSERC),ÌýDr. Hewitt will join his co-chairs for a two-year term with the mission to help change the face of science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) in the Atlantic region. Read the Dal News story on creating inclusion in STEM programs.

The Atlantic Academy of Space (ATLAS)
Ìýwill be provided free of charge this summer to Atlantic Canadian high school students to introduce the areas of space exploration, artificial intelligence (AI), engineering and technology through an intensive two-week CubeSat design program on Campus at Dal.

A Story of Inter‑Institutional Collaboration
Close to 20 academic leaders from NBCC recently completed ±«Óãtv’s Academic Leadership Program, a ten-course professional development certificate taught by senior instructors primarily from ±«Óãtv’s Faculty of Management. Read about the collaboration in Today@Dal

Volunteer‑led event returns to inspire junior high science teachers and their students
The ’s outreach programming reaches approximately 4,500 students in the province every year through guest speakers, lab visits and other outreach activities. Read the Dal News story about the outreach program.

‘The doors are still open’: Community weekend to centre on lifelong learning for African Nova Scotians
The Community Weekend of Lifelong Learning was open to all African Nova Scotians and included an on-campus portion held Saturday in the Mona Campbell Building and a special service at Emmanuel Baptist Church (EBC) in Hammonds Plains on Sunday. Read the Dal News story about Community Weekend.

Helping incarcerated women gain skills in the horticulture industry
Through a combination of lecture and skills training the Horticulture Skills Training Program is delivered four mornings a week to increase the life skills of women offenders. The horticulture facilitators point to the sense of accomplishment and pride the program participants feel once a project has been successfully completed.

Foundation for inclusion and distinction

Supporting effective teaching practices
In partnership with academic units, faculty members, and graduate students, Dal's Centre for Learning and Teaching  encourages the exchange of ideas about and lived experiences of post-secondary education.

Recruitment of new Black scholars to boost key academic priorities at Dal
±«Óãtv plans to hire five Black scholars in the coming months individual positions in the Faculties of Arts and Social Sciences (FASS), Management, Science, Health as well as the Schulich School of Law. The project supports Dal's effort to move the needle on the inclusion of Black people on campus by increasing the number of faculty members from this group in different areas of research and expertise at the university. Read the Dal News story about the Black Scholar initiative.

From adult learning & teaching to university access & advising
For more than 35 years, theÌýFaculty of Open Learning & Career Development has been providing top-quality solutions for the educational and training needs of our learners. We offer more than 500 courses that can be taken individually or as part of a certificate. Ìý

±«Óãtv Libraries community services
Nova Scotia residents who are 18 or older may use their current library card from any university library, public library, bookmobile, or community college library from across the province to from ±«Óãtv libraries.