Universidade Aberta
Established in 1988, Universidade Aberta (UAb) is the single public distance education university in Portugal. Due to its purpose, UAb uses comprehensively, in its teaching activities, the most advanced technologies and methods of Distance Learning, without geographical borders or physical barriers, and giving special emphasis to the expansion of the Portuguese language and culture within the Lusophony space (migrant communities and Portuguese speaking countries). In this context, UAb offers higher education anywhere in the world (Undergraduate, Master and Doctorate degrees) and Lifelong Learning study programs. Since 2008 that all programs are taught in e-learning mode, the year that UAb became a European institution of reference in the area of advanced e-learning and online learning through the recognition of its exclusive Virtual Pedagogical Model.
In 2010, UAb has been awarded the Prize EFQUEL by the European Foundation for Quality in E-learning and certified with the UNIQUe Quality Label for the use of ICT in Higher Education (Universities and Institutes). In the same year, UAb was also qualified by an international panel of independent experts as the reference institution for teaching in e-learning system in Portugal.
Universidade Aberta is a honorary member of the Order of Merit.
Laboratório de Educação a Distância e eLearning – LE@D
The Laboratory of Distance Education and eLearning (LE@D) is a unit of Universidade Aberta belonging to the Portuguese scientific map funded by Foundation for Science and Technology and dedicated to inter and multidisciplinary research in the area of Social Sciences, namely in Education, integrating researchers from various disciplinary areas.
The Laboratory assumes as objectives the leadership of research in those domains, developing innovative and strategic projects and contributing to the debate and reflection about Open and Distance Education and eLearning in different scenarios and types of institutions/organisations.
The research is structured around three strategic research areas: Theories and Practices in Open and Distance Education; Education and sustainability and Education and post-digital issues.