Message-ID: <Pine.SUN.3.91.950501163915.21004A-100000@solar.rtd.utk.edu> Date: Mon, 1 May 1995 16:45:35 -0400 From: Tak Utsumi <mailto:utsumi@SOLAR.RTD.UTK.EDU> Subject: CAADE project for underserved population To: Multiple recipients of list DEVEL-L
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE May 1, 1995CONTACT: TAKESHI UTSUMI Chairman, GLOSAS/USA 718-939-0928
Affordable Integrated Education Technology for Underserved Populations in the U.S. and Around the World
I. PROJECT SUMMARY
The Consortium for the Advancement of Affordable Distance Education (CAADE) proposes to develop and demonstrate a high-performance electronic communications infrastructure which can integrate mass delivery of instruc- tional materials via satellite with innovative low-cost options for management of multimedia materials within computer-equipped schools connected to Inter- net. The goal is to use experiences gained from tests on the new all-digital NASA Advanced Communication Technology Satellite (ACTS), and from recent de- velopments of Computer-Mediated Multimedia Systems (CMMS) via Plain Old Tele- phone Services (POTS), terrestrial Internet and wireless telecommunications, in order to come up with alternative approaches to distance education. The increased capabilities of personal computers (PCs), Internet, wireless tele- communications, and digital satellites will converge in improving and reform- ing education instruction efficiently and affordably for the underserved popu- lation in the U.S. (and later around the world). This proposed technology will also help overburdened Internet.
II. CAADE PROJECT
Addressing telecommunications needs of underserved schools in the U.S. in the initial phase project, CAADE will develop and demonstrate a new high-- performance electronic communications infrastructure which combines the power of computers via POTS, low-to-medium speed terrestrial Internet and (where appropriate) wireless telecommunications, and digital satellite technologies as a new model for distance education. This infrastructure is an integrated approach to electronic distance education using CMMS over more than one (wire and wireless) delivery and distribution platform, and an integration of mass delivery of instructional materials via satellite with innovative low-cost options for terrestrial feedback and interaction using Internet and wireless telecommunications. The result will be increased access to richer learning environments while enhancing interactivity and sharing of information among teachers and students. This approach will also help to take bandwidth pres- sures off the now-overburdened Internet. The goal of initial phase project is to provide science teachers and their students in the U.S. with a single, integrated distance education sys- tem. The system will utilize the well-accepted interface developed for the World Wide Web to integrate: - synchronous delivery of "special event" programming, - asynchronous delivery of pre-packaged lessons, simulations and demon- strations, - just-in-time access to learning materials from remote databases, - interactive teacher-student sessions, and
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- collaborative sessions between students in geographically dispersed locations. This project will demonstrate 1) that, in a digital world, the melding of wireless and wireline technologies into an integrated system is possible at reasonable cost at almost any urban or rural site in the U.S., 2) that, in a distributed environment, mass instruction with pre-packaged materials can coexist and complement highly individualized instruction, and 3) that, in computer-mediated teaching (as in science teaching), learning can be both experiential and collaborative over distance. The CAADE project opens up opportunities for increased feedback and collaborative learning within a distance education program that can be broadly deployed, is relatively inexpensive, is easy to use and promotes collaborative work.
III. NEED AND PROBLEM
A. Need An approach to motivating young people in science is to engage them in problem solving, focusing on concrete real-life problems they can relate to. With computers, simulation and experiential learning with hands-on applica- tions are possible. Using distributed computer-mediated technologies, collab- orative experiences over interactive networks have also been demonstrated to greatly enhance the acquisition and learning process. Providing such opportunities to students in rural areas is a challenge. Commercial telecommunications companies will not invest in providing the high capacity lines to connect low traffic sites. What is more, line charges are often prohibitively expensive. Using the NASA satellite as a testbed, the CAADE project will seek to transfer ACTS experience to the new commercial satellites which now blanket North America, reaching rural schools with digi- tal data which can be accessed and redistributed using terrestrial wireless and wireline services. This model is extensible to public libraries, small business, local governments, volunteer organizations, medical services and other users in underserved regions.
B. Problem A highly desirable component of any teaching-learning process is inter- action between teacher and students. The distance education model predomi- nantly used is to deliver lessons as one-way video broadcasts, with a return telephone path for questions and feedback. While live telephone call-ins from students at remote sites is better than no teacher-student interaction, it greatly restricts the number of students that can give feedback during any given class. There is often no convenient way for students to send questions to the instructor, to share ideas among themselves after the scheduled broad- cast time has ended, or to access other relevant information. Furthermore, any follow-on learning activities allowing students to work collaboratively are difficult to manage. What is needed is an affordable, highly interactive, well-integrated and easy-to-use approach to closing the loop between mass delivered and highly personalized communication and learning.
IV. PROPOSED SOLUTION
In a typical distance education environment, the need is for high band- width large volume information transmission from the teacher to the stu- dent(s), with lower bandwidth response-feedback communication from the student to the teacher, and with each other.
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For the delivery of multimedia courseware, CAADE members will use a) direct digital broadcasting satellite (DDBS) receivers connected to on-school- -site PCs, b) modified routers for local buffering/switching, c) advanced digital video compression software operating at 9.6 Kbps or higher through POTS, d) and packet-switched terrestrial networks. Wireless telecommunica- tions will also be demonstrated which enable students to access nearby Inter- net nodes. (FORUM and other computer-mediated multimedia conferencing tech- nologies will be considered for this purpose.) The intent is to bridge the last-mile to classrooms that do not have access to a telephone line and to school buildings that have no direct connection to terrestrial Internet. For purposes of this project, the CAADE consortium has been tentatively divided into three work groups and an administrative group to serve the needs of end-users of the CAADE system:
1. The COMPUTER COMMUNICATION GROUP will develop and demonstrate high-per- formance multimedia technologies and software for Mac and PC which are opera- tional over POTS lines at 9.6/14.4/28.8 Kbps. These and FORUM via terrestrial Internet will be inexpensive and user-friendly multimedia and conferencing systems intended to enrich interactions between teachers and students, using graphic and whiteboard capabilities and incorporating audio and video clips with hypermedia linking. The goal of this group is to develop robust and up-to-date systems that can be assembled for less than $10,000 per school. Units will be provided at each demonstration site. By using standard personal computers, equipped for low and medium speed communications, a large number of users can be networked together.
2. The WEB/SATELLITE GROUP, a multi-disciplinary research team will com- plete a series of interactive tests on the NASA-ACTS satellite. The tests will focus on delivering multimedia content to demonstration sites at rural schools located in the Appalachian and other regions listed below. Then, using commercially available DDBS (NASA-ACTS, DirecTV, USSB, PrimeStar, and later, INMARSAT-B for overseas operations), the newly developed protocols will be applied for interfacing the signals of satellite with those of Internet operating in a computer-mediated terrestrial environment.
3. The COLLABORATOR GROUP will give attention to the instructional programs to be delivered within an asynchronous, computer-mediated, distributed rural school environment. CAADE members within this group include staff members at the A*DEC (formerly Agricultural Satellite Corporation (AG*SAT)), the Science Discovery Center at the College of Staten Island, the Southeast Ohio Mathemat- ics and Science Network (SEONet), the Appalachian Distance Learning Project (ADLP) at Ohio University, the University of North Texas, etc. This group will seek to facilitate experiential learning including dis- covery, mastery and just-in-time linkages to human and data resources. Models for collaborative learning and for meeting the needs of target audiences with special learning needs, both physical or psychological, are to be demonstrat- ed. Training of professional staff to make effective use of computer-mediated science materials is also a goal of this group.
4. The ADMINISTRATIVE GROUP will provide for the coordination and evalua- tion of all tasks. This group will arrange for demonstration sites, assure that the requisite technologies and software are in place and that all activi- ties are carried out in a timely, coordinated and synchronous way. Design and implementation of a process of evaluation is the responsibility of this group.
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V. INITIAL APPLICATION AREAS
1. Ohio/Appalachian Region Working hand-in-hand with the Computer Communication Group, the Web/Sa- tellite Group will partner with the Southeastern Ohio Regional Freenet (SEORF), a community online service affiliated with the National Public Tele- computing Network (NPTN), the nation's first community computing network. SEORF is interlinked to Appalachian regional schools, where it has worked to recruit and train teachers and administrators to use telecomputing in their classrooms, to help them take advantage of dial-up offerings on the global Internet, and to sponsor a variety of online learning activities linking schools and community.
2. Texas/Southern Region The University of North Texas will collaborate with Ohio University, College of Staten Island (CUNY), Texas A&M, the Texas Center for Educational Technology, the University of Massachusetts, and other appropriate entities to develop and/or modify three preservice/inservice teacher-training courses for delivery through this system. The first will be an Educational Telecommunications course which pro- vides a broad overview of telecommunication systems in general, develops hands-on skills in Email and the accessing the Internet, introduces radio, broadcast TV, satellite telecommunications, and distance education systems and methods. The second course to be developed (with the University of Massachu- setts) will be an Internet Resources course managed via the Internet. WWW links and ShareView-type broadcasts will also be integral components of the course. This class will anticipate synergistic interactions that will take place between the course participants in Texas and those in Massachusetts. The third course to be developed for delivery via the CAADE system is a meth- ods course for K-12 computer-using or computer science educators. A target level of elementary (exploratory tools), middle school (computer applica- tions), or secondary school (computer programming) will be selected during the early months of the project. It is anticipated that this course will incorpo- rate the FORUM collaborative learning software as and integral component, and hence will be developed in conjunction with Texas A&M.
3. Staten Island in New York City This project consists of two phases: (1) To link the Discovery Center of the College of Staten Island (CSI) with Brooklyn and Staten Island school district by the CAADE system to improve science education. The Discovery Center utilizes a discovery-based teaching approach predicated upon a multi-- leveled cooperative relationship between the college research faculty and area high school teachers and students. The laboratory exercises are in General Science, Biology, Chemistry and Physics, conducting Advanced Placement Biology and Chemistry Laboratories. (2) To link the Discover Center to members of the CAADE to achieve a synergy that focuses on how the funneling of educational resources can transform and bridge the conditions that stem from isolation and the lack of resource access, resulting in a new and powerful educational para- digm that truly cuts across geographical boundaries and socio-economic dis- tinctions. Following projects are also significant successfully identifying, devel- oping, and implementing multimedia and digitalized curricular materials that increase information access for students with disabilities; o Multisensory Calculus for Teaching Students with Visual Impair- ments to allow visually challenged students to study higher mathematics,
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o Multimedia Laboratory for Research, Teaching, and Learning Science to develop multimedia authoring and curriculum to teach science, o CUNY Multimedia Regional Center for the Deaf and Hard-of-Hearing to develop curricular materials and tutorial programs for sign language (American Sign Language), Speech Reading, and Electronic Notetaking.
4. Around the U.S. The proposed technologies will be applied in the second phase for high- er, adult and life-long education, professional training in the U.S. national scale, e.g., the courses available from A*DEC, Kansas State University, and many other CAADE member institutions.
VI. CAADE TEAM
The CAADE was formed in January 1995 at the University of Tennessee in Knoxville (UTK) in partnership with the GLObal Systems Analysis and Simulation Association (GLOSAS/USA) of New York, an experienced player in global elec- tronic distance education. Participating institutions agreeing to work on this broad-based and significant project include: the Ohio University/NASA Experimenter group for ACTS; the Southeastern Ohio Regional Freenet (SEORF), Southeast Ohio Mathematics and Science Network (SEOnet) and the Appalachian Distance Learning Project (ADLP) at Ohio University; the computer communica- tions, wireless and packet radio group of University of North Texas; the Sci- ence Discovery Center at the College of Staten Island; non-profit service organizations such as GLOSAS, the A*DEC satellite consortium; the Academy for Educational Development (AED); a few commercial entities such as the soft- ware/consulting companies SYNECTICS and FORUM. Other membership includes prestigious American universities with commitment to providing affordable distance education, such as Tennessee, Texas A&M, Kansas State, Nebraska, Massachusetts, Alaska and Guam; and many more.
VII. GLOSAS AND GLOBAL UNIVERSITY
Over the past two decades GLOSAS/USA played a major role in making pos- sible the extension of the U.S. data communication networks to other count- ries, particularly to Japan, and deregulating Japanese telecommunication poli- cies for the use of email which was emulated by many other countries. GLOSAS has also conducted a number of "Global Lecture Hall (GLH)" (TM) videoconfer- ences employing inexpensive media accessible to the less developed countries. These demonstrations have helped build a network of leaders in the global electronic distance education movement. The Global (electronic) University (GU) (TM) consortium, a divisional activity of GLOSAS, seeks to improve the quality and availability of interna- tional educational exchange through the use of telecommunication and informa- tion technologies. GU's main activity is to achieve global electronic educa- tion across national boundaries by developing a cooperative infrastructure and by giving underserved people of the Third World access to the educational excellence available from all the world's finest sources, so as to enlarge and expand the present exchange of educational courses into a worldwide system. Students could access the resources with a far greater variety of educational philosophies, courses and instructional styles than they could ever encounter on a single campus. This is "the 21st century version of the Fulbright ex- change program." Global (electronic) University is an evolutionary concept with no global precedent. GU attempts to provide cooperative, experiential learning opportu-
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nities on the widest possible scale for the purpose of fostering peace and sustainable development. The time is ripe for global electronic distance education. ********************************************************************** * Takeshi Utsumi, Ph.D. * * Laureate of Lord Perry Award for Excellence in Distance Education * * Founder of CAAD * * (Consortium for the Advancement of Affordable Distance Education) * * President, Global University in the U.S.A. (GU/USA) * * A Divisional Activity of GLOSAS/USA * * (GLObal Systems Analysis and Simulation Association in the U.S.A.) * * 43-23 Colden Street, Flushing, NY 11355-3998, U.S.A. * * Tel: 718-939-0928; Fax: 718-939-0656 (day time only--prefer email) * * INTERNET: mailto:utsumi@columbia.edu; Tax Exempt ID: 11-2999676 * **********************************************************************