BIMCO, the Institute of Chartered Shipbrokers and Videotel have joined forces to provide access to a range of self-study material via the Institute’s learning management system for students preparing for Institute exams, with content to be made available free for all registered students until the end of July 2020.
The ICS Online Academy will allows users to access material jointly produced by BIMCO and Videotel, the maritime eLearning subsidiary of Ocean Technologies Group, to study for their examinations with the Institute.
“ICS Online Academy is a really unique project which has allowed BIMCO and Videotel to collaborate with the Institute for the benefit of the maritime community, especially students who are struggling to stay on track with their learning during the current crisis,” said Julie Lithgow, Director of the Institute of Chartered Shipbrokers.
“The combined technical, educational and subject-specialist skills that have gone into building the Academy really demonstrates the dedication to quality of learning rather than a purely commercial focus.”
The Academy was soft-launched earlier this year and has already been tested by over 300 students from locations like Lagos, Kenya, Singapore, Tanzania, the UK and Canada. The Institute of Chartered Shipbrokers made the decision to bring forward the scheduled launch of the project to assist students impeded by the restrictions imposed during the COVID-19 pandemic.
The ICS Online Academy can be accessed on the web or using the free Moodle app for both iOS and Android. The learning platform is specifically designed to support learners in developing countries, allowing those in locations with poor or unstable connectivity to download courses, work offline and submit their work when reconnected.
The platform includes content from the BIMCO eLearning Diploma Programme (BeDP) that was launched in 2011 as a joint venture with Videotel. Modules on topics such as economics, chartering for specific vessel types, law, marine insurance, and also ship, port and terminal management are all featured in the online Academy.
