Successful GIK retreat on the topic of "Teaching" in Landau (Pfalz)
On October 21st and 22nd, 2025, the members of the Geodetic Institute (GIK) met in Landau (Pfalz) for two days to discuss the current state and future development of teaching. Following a welcome address by the spokesperson for the institute's management, Prof. Martin Breunig, the retreat was expertly moderated by Patrizia Köhler (KIT - Personnel Development and Vocational Training - PEBA). She effectively motivated the GIK members through various discussion formats (e.g., group work and the fishbowl method).
The analysis focused on teaching in the B.Sc. program "Geodesy and Geoinformatics" (GuG) and the new B.Sc. program "Applied Environmental Informatics and Earth Observation" (AUE), as well as in the M.Sc. programs "Geodesy and Geoinformatics" (GuG) and "Remote Sensing and Geoinformatics" (RSGI). Following an inventory of teaching in the three chairs "Geoinformatics" (Prof. Breunig / Dr.-Ing. Paul Kuper), "Geodetic Earth System Science" (Prof. Hansjörg Kutterer), and "Geodetic Sensor Systems" (Prof. Corinna Harmening), Dr.-Ing. Michael Mayer presented the results of a student survey on teaching and – based on a KonGeoS survey (Conference of Geodesy Students of German-speaking Universities) – gave insights into the special features of teaching at other locations of geodesy and geoinformatics.
Furthermore, the participants of the retreat exchanged ideas in "World Café" sessions on career paths and future skills for students. The attractiveness of the degree programs was also discussed in detail. The retreat concluded on the second day with a discussion on the role of the Geodetic Colloquium, including potential new formats such as panel discussions, as well as with concrete tasks for the further development of teaching in the aforementioned degree programs.
The event was complemented by the participation of the secretariats, who greatly appreciated the opportunity for focused information about teaching. They also deserve thanks for the successful organization of the retreat.