ARTIFACT
INFORMATION
Seminal
Readings in Technology and Teacher Education. Project. CI 690B:
Advanced Special Topics in Instructional Technology, Spring 2002. Instructor/Facilitator:
Dr. A. Thompson.
Seminal Readings in Technology and Teacher Education was a
student-led collaboration between three universities separated by time
and space. ISU, UVA (University of Virginia), and IoE (Institute of Education,
University of London) collaborated virtually with the aim to identify
seminal work (articles/documents) in technology and teacher education.
The main players in this initiative were ISU and UVA. My responsibilities
included:
- Leading the ISU group and collaborating with the UVA student leader
in designing and establishing a web site. Together, faculty advisors,
student leaders from UVA and ISU drew up the syllabus including a list
of readings, which were solicited from leaders in the field. We video-conferenced
with our UVA group once a week and collaborated online with our virtual
partners the rest of the time.
- I was also responsible for setting up the online discussion forum
testing a prototype
developed by SITE. I worked closely with Roger Carlsen, forum designer
and administrator, to structure the discussions and acted as the forum
manager, often facilitating online discussions.
- We, the participants of this initiative, presented our work on a
keynote panel at SITE 2002. The session was well attended by faculty,
student, and staff from all over the US and abroad.
REFLECTIONS
This project highlighted the challenges facing educators and learners
when different cultures collide. Although we were two US universities
collaborating for the most part, we had different foci. Our aim was to
decide on a common list of seminal readings in technology and teacher
education; however, institutional differences in culture challenged our
collaboration. It nevertheless made us realize the importance of creating
cultural understanding when developing collaborative initiatives, especially
if they are virtual with no face-to-face contact, and especially when
working across national boundaries (see ILET
artifact).
My work with Seminal Readings has implications for my dissertation work
as it deals with the social aspect of learning and the need to become
culturally sensitive. In addition, my experience managing this project
has given me confidence in initiating and establishing similar collaborations.
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