Experiences in International Education Using Internet 2

1. 1 Experiences in International Education UsingInternet 2 Mary Alcocer Universidad de las Americas Puebla Morrison G. Wong Texas Christian University Antonio Sanchez Universidad de las Americas Puebla

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3. 3 Experiences Using Internet 2 in the Classroom UDLA and TCU are part of the Internet2 Consortium UCAID/CUDI thus benefiting from a rich broadband connection. Video conferencing using Internet2 is done at a fraction of the cost of commercial courier videoconferencing service. The use of technology provides an important aid, but does not limit or obstruct the teaching. We present the case of two courses: In the School of Social Sciences, a course in Socio-Cultural Contexts of the United States and Mexico, where students located in two different countries meet weekly, is facilitated by two faculty, one in the US and one in Mexico In the School of Engineering, a faculty on sabbatical leave was able to teach a regular course in AI Programming, even though he was located miles away in another country. Most importantly, the content of the courses, as well as its format, is entirely based on the material that is to be taught and not on a technological specification.

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5. 5 Mexico and the United States: Socio-Cultural ContextsConception of the Course . As we become more a global society, it is important for students to not only have knowledge about their own society, but also knowledge about other societies. This is our attempt to bridge the cultural gaps between the two societies. Although book learning may provide the basic framework, it is felt that the actual interaction and give and take with faculty and students from another culture provide a much more rewarding and insightful experience. It is through this experiential learning classroom situation that we expect that students will not only learn about and better understand their own society, but also another society. Each professor discusses selected topics on an alternating week basis. These topics include: demographic characteristics; culture, class, and ethnic relation; migration issues; the political system; the family; and religion. At the end of the semester, students have a greater awareness, understanding, and appreciation of not only their own society, but of another society.

6. 6 Socio-Cultural Contexts Course  Format of the Course & Technological Facilities The course meets every Tuesday from 14:00 to 16:45; 10 to 15 students sign for the course at each institution, with an instructor in each campus. The course has been offered for three years now during the Spring Semester. The format and length of the sessions are defined in such a way to allow for students to engage in a lively conversation about a topic previously reviewed by both faculty. Students are required to turn in and present a joint paper with one student from each campus, so they email and chat with each other throughout the semester. A web page designed for the course located at www.udlap.mx/~malcocer/tcu provides the links for reading materials. A discussion Forum is also at www2.tcu.edu/depts/tcu-udla/discuss/ The course is taught via video conferencing over an Internet2 connection. Cameras and monitors are set up at both locations allowing the faculty as well as students to see and interact with students and faculty from the United States and Mexico.

7. 7 Socio-Cultural Contexts Course Lecture Topics and Reading Assignments I. Demographic Characteristics Income: Poverty versus Wealth Education and Literacy Migration Urban versus Rural Life Trends II. Culture, Class, and Ethnic Relations Culture Ethnicity Identity III. Migration issues Mexican Migration to U.S. Illegal versus Legal Immigration American Migration to Mexico NAFTA

8. 8 UDLA (Mexico) and TCU (United States): Students for Spring 2004

9. 9 Experiences with the Course: TCU and UDLA Students Comments I am so excited about this class, I have been telling everyone about it and just find it fascinating.... ...It is just so interesting to hear it, and not just read it, and than get to discuss it, I am so exited! I found the paragraph on "time" to be very interesting. Having a hispanic background myself, I thought that it was just my family that suffered from not being able to be on time. I have never heard about "mexican time" before but I believe it. From the article we read on the history of Mexico and the differences between Mexico and America I have a very hard time understanding why, after not even one year in office, everyone is so upset with President Fox... ... When you go from an Authoritarian government to a Democratic government the process of transaction will be long and tiring but as citizens you must support your leaders and their actions. Look at America, for instance. It has taken us over 200 years to get our country to where we want it and in some spots we still aren't where we want to be. It is incumbent upon us to help Mexico become a better country, just as the USA is � I love the opportunity to hear about government and policy in other countries, and look forward to hearing about other sociological facets of life in Mexico.

10. 10 Experiences with the Course: TCU and UDLA Students Comments (2) According to Octavio Paz, our differences stem our from each others� heritage � �yet, in order to advance in a sustainable fashion, we must look to our past to avoid past mistakes in our society. I am really interesting how people view the change in the government of the 72 years of power of the PRI government. In many ways I believe we Mexicans want change in a very fast way. I believe that change is possible only in a gradual way. As far as the Internet and the technical things go, I am really impressed and feel very fortunate to be able to have this experience. I am particularly fascinated with the seemingly unfair occurrences that are a normality in Mexico. Work practices, laws and other things that I believe have raised questions in the heads of the students here at TCU. So far I have learned that coming into class on Tues. and Thurs. morning I must remember there are many different people involved and although it doesn't run as smoothly and precise as most college courses, the lessons in flexibility and open-mildness are just as important as the information I may walk away with. When I got into this class I had no knowledge of anything about Mexico. Everything we've talked about so far is all new knowledge for me�

11. 11 Using Technology in Education in the Past  Students read and discussed with a faculty about different societies using the library resources of the university

12. 12 Using Technology in Education in the Present

13. 13 Using Technology in Education in the PresentThe TCU UDLA Internet2 Course

14. 14 Programming Artificial Intelligence MethodsFall 2002 / Spring 2003 An UDLA faculty on sabbatical leave at TCU was able to teach a course he regularly teaches, even though he was located miles away in another country. The students did not seem to mind the inconvenience of having class remotely.

15. 15 Programming Artificial Intelligence Methods The instructor has been teaching the same course for over 20 years. He wanted to experience new methods The project grew out of the initial experiment. The instructor on sabbatical needed to conduct advising by email to a junior faculty, so he could take on the course. The idea of using videoconferencing fully had been tested already in the previous course. Hence, the academic department was willing to try it. Similarly, the number of video conferences using Internet 2 at UDLA grew from 25 in 1999 to 150 in 2001. Therefore, for 2002, the Information Services Department was also willing to try a second course. Videoconferencing using the Internet requires at least 384 kb/sec dedicated for reasonable communication. Internet2 with its 150 Mb/sec channel provides nicely for this allowing up to 24 frames/sec. UDLA uses this facility for diverse services such as conferences, seminars, job interviews and the like.

16. 16 Programming Artificial Intelligence Methods The material to be covered required a lot of programming. Therefore, the receiving classroom was moved to a lab with a computer available for each student. Students presented their exams and projects over the internet. They developed their own webpages to present the final work. An initial comment from the instructor was that: �Distance is not as difficult as it seemed at the beginning. One only needs to adapt.� Since some the students had already met the instructor at UDLA, they were able to relate with him using video. Clearly, there is some convenience in having a live relationship to start with; yet new students accepted the systems as such, as one student later stated: �The only difference is the professor is there and we are here; otherwise it is like any other class�.

17. 17 Programming Artificial Intelligence MethodsOutline of the Course I. Artificial Intelligence Basics IA History The Range and Purpose of AI�� AI Paradigms� II. Learning (Project 1) Adaptive Learning for Adaptation Collective Learning Artificial Neural Networks � Connectionism� III. Perception Learning and Recognizing Objects The Use of Filters Industrial Applications �

18. 18 Initial Findings Using the Internet2 facilities of our institutions, two courses have been taught on a regular basis by video conferencing during the past two years; one in social science and one in engineering. In this paper we have present our successful experience in teaching courses in such a format. We have found that students relate to their foreign counterparts just as if they were in the same location. The virtuality (remoteness) of the format does not seem to have hindered the educational value of both courses. The evaluation of the course in terms of grades and acceptance by the students provide similar values are those obtained in the regular courses Furthermore students engage in lively discussions, allowing an international experience to take place, even though they only travel virtually. Visits by the faculties to each other�s university during spring break helped the students to relate better with both instructors.

19. 19 Some Implications  Faculty/student interaction using this format is here to stay. Students engage well using it and feel the need to corroborate the instruction with student experiences from other cultures. Information and reading material will be gathered from the Internet. Conversation and dialogue in the classroom will substitute traditional dictation, both virtually (teleconferencing) or in person (regular class room). Collaborative and team group learning will enhance individual learning. Coffee tables will substitute armchairs as the seating arrangement in order to support this type of learning. Students will have to take more responsibility in their learning -- i.e. thinking rather than asking. Comparative studies will imply student must learn to engage and validate their knowledge. Faculty will become both �brokers� of knowledge and mentors to students. The availability of global patterns in education is a sine qua non requisite in the university.

20. 20 Available Opportunities Universities must play an important role in Internet2 for international educational experiences. Universities should actively continue to develop selected, strategic partnerships with universities both physically and virtually. Global patterns in education using virtual facilities will compete favorably with current synthetic (artificial) commercial education.

21. 21 References Larry Adams & Antonio Sanchez �Knowledge Focused Education: Consequences of IT�, 25th Annual McMaster World Conference , McMaster University, Hamilton, Ca January 2004-03-03 Marjorie Armstrong-Stassen, M.L. Landstrom, Ramona Lumpkin �Students� Reaction to the Introduction of Videoconferencing for Classroom Instruction� The Information Society, Vol 14, 1998 pp. 153-164 John T. Burns �Evaluation of Staff Development and Training Models to support implementation of videoconferencing ...� The Quaeterly Review of Distance Education Vol 3(3) 2002 pp.327-340 he Internet2 Site in the US located at http://www.internet2.edu/ The Internet2 Site in Mexico located at http://www.cudi.edu.mx/ Damian Knipe & Maria Lee �The Quality of teaching and Learning via videoconferencing� British Journal of Educational Technology Vol 33 N3. 2002 pp 301-311 B.J. Pine & J. H. Gilmore �Welcome to the Experience Economy� In Harvard Business Review USA, July-August 1998. Roger Shanck �Are We Going to Get Smarter?� In Brockman J.(ed) The Next Fifty Years. Vintage Books. USA 2002 The University of Minnesota collaboration with TIES, information located at http://www.ties.k12.mn.us/main/lrntech/internet2projects.htm Acknowledgements The authors want to thank our institutions UDLA and TCU for supporting Internet2 and making available its innovations to students and faculty. We also want to thank Hugo L�pez and Wilfrido Chiapa at UDLA and Bill Senter and Deana Muirheid at TCU for dedicating so much time to make the connections work flawlessly everyday.

22. 22 Thank You