Teaching From Across the Ocean

While taking a course at the University COllege, our Professor was invited to be a guest lecturer in Europe. It was quite interesting as he had his class in Europe interacting with our class in Canada via the internet. We found the course, Cyber Philosophy, intriguing, and the delivery excellent, even though our Professor was across the ocean.

Thanks for sharing this example. Cross-cultural sharing is one of the great benefits of online learning.

As an instructor at Capella University I have taught (adult) learners from across the US and the globe. Also, I have seen some great "global" class projects over the years, virtual service learning! A recent one where a student designed, and got funding for, an Internet Digital Divide access project in Nigeria. For another recent one the Vietnamese-American student is designing an online learning project for students in Vietnam.

Call me an idealist, but I think more communication, collaborative education and exchange would make the world a better place!

Thanks for sharing this example. Cross-cultural sharing is one of the great benefits of online learning.

As an instructor at Capella University I have taught (adult) learners from across the US and the globe. Also, I have seen some great "global" class projects over the years, virtual service learning! A recent one where a student designed, and got funding for, an Internet Digital Divide access project in Nigeria. For another recent one the Vietnamese-American student is designing an online learning project for students in Vietnam.

Call me an idealist, but I think more communication, collaborative education and exchange would make the world a better place!

I''m enrolled in a Master''s Degree program for Development Management through Open University (based in England). It''s largely a correspondance course, but OU has a First Class Client community where enrolled students can work with others in their specific class, in their area of study, in their immediate region, or around a particular topic that doesn''t actually relate to their studies (I''m active in the Mac users group, for instance). They also have a number of web sites and online libraries for their students, with quite advanced and helpful features.

OU has been offering degrees via correspondance since 1970, and I think what makes their online components sooooo successful is that experience in distance learning -- they apply tech probably better than anyone else not because of an understanding of tech so much as an understanding of DISTANCE, of what a student experiences working on his or her own, and on working with students who work full time and study part time.

The lesson being that often what makes distance learning work is the human systems that drive the tech, and not the other way around.

And one final thought -- I first used First Class Client back in the early 90s. I loved it back then. And I love it even more now! It''s fabulous, and works very well on the Mac, on an IBM/Clone, and via the Web.