Berglund Center for Internet Studies… 2002 Summer Institute

Berglund Authority Level 4

by Donna Anderson <DonnaAnder@aol.com>

Sometime this fall, I anticipate being asked that perennial question, "So what did you do this summer, anything different or exciting?" I will respond with enthusiasm to both, something different and exciting. My husband, a 1960 alum of Pacific University, and I attended the Berglund Center for Internet Studies 2002 Summer Institute.

I wasn't aware of the Berglund Center or their programs until Roger, reviewing his email one Saturday morning in early May, declared enthusiastically and very audibly where we would be spending the week of June 16-21. Even though Roger's career in college admissions and student personnel administration began at Pacific, I was even more amazed that he showed this much interest in a computer-related topic. Since this is my field of teaching, I listened with interest and read about the BC Summer Institute on the Pacific University campus. Roger's career involved the representation and marketing of the university he was serving and mine was teaching software programs to future administrative assistants at the community college level. The Internet has vast possibilities of interest for both of us, however different our job responsibilities and demands might be; and we emailed our application for the Summer Institute.

The program schedule and living arrangements both greatly exceeded expectations and even hopes. The event began Sunday evening with what was billed as the "Concert Under the Oaks," between Marsh Hall and Old College Hall. With the sounds of a wonderful jazz band in the background, President Faith Gabelnick, Steve Boone, Director of the Berglund Center, Theresa Floyd, Administrative Services Manager, and participants mingled around several tables of fruit and other this-is-good-as-dinner appetizers, further enhanced by some of Yamhill and Tualatin Counties' best wines.

On our first morning "in class," we were greeted by Larry Clausen, Vice President, Academic Affairs. Dr. Clausen's handout entitled, "Education, Technology and the Internet," and his opening comment, "The general purpose of higher education is to prepare students to live, learn, and work in a global society," expertly set the stage for the week ahead. He stated that while education is highly affected by technology and the Internet, basic skills can be enriched and accelerated with elegant models and simulations that technology provides. Problem-solving and critical thinking skills are enhanced by collaborative Internet research. The potential of intranet, email, online classes, and Internet research offer excitement as well as challenges to educators. As the week progressed, Dr. Clausen's comments were reinforced by the fact that Pacific has a very strong and advanced system of hardware services and software programs for faculty and student use.

About half of the program schedule was in seminar format; each led by a Pacific or visiting professor and the other half in front of a state-of-the-art (meaning new) keyboard and monitor. We moved from a Marsh Hall classroom to the fully equipped PC and Mac computer labs, also in Marsh, with a Pacific or visiting professor conveying and sharing new information and challenges.

A joint venture coordinated by Mark Szymanski, Assistant Professor of Education at Pacific, between the Berglund Center for Internet Studies and Witwatersrand University in South Africa is using ITC to bring together a global group of secondary schools in the US and South Africa to discuss sustainable development (improving living conditions worldwide) and AIDS education. AIDS is running rampant throughout South Africa and because medications are not available at reasonable cost or supply, information sharing on awareness and prevention is the critical first step. These "elements of knowledge networking" include but are not limited to the following: learning is driven by real-life problems; focuses on knowledge gathering, selecting, and arranging; interdisciplinary, building networks of meaningful connections; collaboration--social distribution of thinking; and technological tools for design. Dr. Szymanski described how uses of the Internet have expanded possibilities dramatically, which enables participating US high school peer groups to offer information and hope to their peers in South Africa schools.

Derek Harding, Open and Distance Learning Manager in the Centre for Lifelong Learning, University of Teesside, United Kingdom, returning to Pacific for his second year as a Berglund Fellow, discussed "community" as the term relates to the adult learner and his/her values and educational goals. A major difference between faculty and student in the Centre lies in the significant change in roles. Debates, simulations, and web productions, all requiring extensive preparation and a much greater degree of participation on the part of the adult students replace traditional classes. The teacher does not deliver lectures or expect attendance as the course has an expanded syllabus, outlining in greater detail subject topics and competency expectations. The student is on his/her own, with the teacher offering advice and suggestions and subsequently establishing the examination questions, "marking the student's work." Assessment criteria are negotiated. Assessment is straight pass/fail on the submission of a portfolio according to the assessment criteria.

Jeff Cooper, Education Technology Specialist at Pacific, introduced TAPPED IN, an online workplace of an international community of educational professionals, K-12 teachers and librarians, professional development staff, teacher education faculty and students, and researchers who use the Internet to engage in professional development programs and informal collaborative activities with colleagues. TAPPED IN links the user to review topical newsletters, event schedules, scholarly papers, training tips, and an index of related services and programs from throughout the world. There is no charge or cost for membership.

Ryan Johnson, Social Science Reference and Electronic Resources Librarian, Holland New Library, Washington State University, discussed libraries and technology. Going out on a URL (Uniform Resource Locater), also known as a Website, faculty can research virtually any topic from abstract to full text. Dr. Johnson's description of technology services at the Holland New Library provided a stunning array of options and possibilities, linking research and resources, which are both accessible and free for faculty and students.

Dave Stout, former professor of education at Pacific University and now Dean of English and Modern Languages at Portland Community College discussed "Plagiarism in the Electronic Age," and stated that in his research and experiences "almost 100% of plagiarism by students was preventable by faculty. Faculty is too often absorbed in their lectures, test construction, research, and grading papers." He shared several helpful articles and websites dealing with plagiarism including Portland Community College (http://spot.pcc.edu/lrc/pam/plagiar.htm), and Northwestern University, (http://www.northwestern.edu/uacc/plagiar.html).

Phil Bell, Assistant Professor of Education, University of Washington, does cognitive studies in education and is one of the principal investigators in a project titled SCOPE, Science Controversies Online: Partnerships in Education. Dr. Bell explained that students rarely see the way that scientific understanding unfolds over time. In most of our curriculum materials, students get, "Here's what we know about this topic. Remember that and we'll ask you about it later." What they are rarely taught is to know how science researchers came to understanding about the natural world. This "science-in-the-making approach is what truly engages students." Dr. Bell and his collaborators at the University of Washington and University of California, Berkeley, have been designing Web-based forums and curricula that involve students in the heart of a variety of debates on current issues including those dealing with DDT and "genetically engineered" food crops. He also shared emerging genres of learning technology from K-12, which involve computers, teachers, and peers.

"Teaching, Learning and Technology: The Wiring of Educational Institutions," was presented by Mark Bailey, Associate Professor of Education at Pacific University. Professor Bailey, through his research and teaching, discovered how little technology is being used throughout all levels of education. Until recent times, most lesson plans came from the printed word and scholars surrounded by books. Funded through a 1.6 million dollar federal grant, Pacific, in collaboration with a group of six Pacific Northwest colleges and universities is preparing students in teacher training programs to learn about new technologies, the adoption, and the use of appropriate programs to enhance teaching and learning.

Jeffrey Barlow, Matsushita Professor of History, Pacific University, and Professor Bailey jointly presented "Building and Evaluating Web Sites." Traditional standards for evaluating print resources include Accuracy: reliable and free from error information; Authority: author's qualifications for writing on a particular subject; Objectivity: bias and opinion free information; Currency; up-to-date content, with the publication date clearly noted; and Coverage: breadth and depth of topic covered. Jeffrey and Mark listed several pitfalls of Web resources and warned that anyone can publish on the Web, responsibility for authorship is not always apparent and the author's qualifications for writing on a subject may be left to question. When evaluating Web resources, several points must be considered: the document's URL, domain, author, and "type" of document, as well as the author's authority--does he/she his/her credentials, and objectivity, meaning that there should be statement or other evidence to suggest that the document has the official approval of a sponsoring institution.

Ryan Johnson returned to discuss "Issues in the Development of a Formal Policy on the Inclusion of Digital Publications in the Faculty Evaluation Process." There have been some cases where there has been resistance on the part of retention, tenure and promotion committees to include publications made available through URL's and other Website resources. Ryan discussed some strategies on how faculty could inform committees that scholarly activity is increasingly including technology because of its ease of distribution and wider availability to fellow academics.

Mike Charles, Assistant Professor, School of Education, Pacific University, lead a discussion he titled "Grand Challenges," focusing on learning and leading with technology. Mike reported that new tools and techniques are being developed at an accelerated rate which calls for an effective response from educators who must be prepared to deal with new technology as it is integrated into all subject areas. Prior to wide scale adoption, Mike warned, schools and faculty must think carefully about the uses of emerging technologies. Experimenting on a small scale before implementation occurs is preferable to adopting innovations only to find their use cannot be beneficial.

Tadeo Saenz, Development Director, Centro Cultural, Cornelius (OR), was the final presenter for this years Berglund Institute, and referencing the growing population of Hispanic people in Washington County, brought the Institute full circle with his topic, "Underutilized Assets: An Opportunity for Community Service." Tadeo reported that a February 2002 report from the US Department of Commerce stated "while about a third of the US population uses the Internet at home, only 16% of Hispanics use the Internet at home." The Centro project is working in collaboration with several community partners, including Intel Corporation, the Portland Community College Family Literacy and Adult Basic Education Programs, Oregon State University's Extension 4-H Web Wizards, Washington County Public Library, Pacific University Computer Labs, and the Forest Grove School District. The original objectives of the collaboration, called Access Technology, is to enhance technology services to the greater Hispanic population through elementary, secondary, and higher education, specific job skills, employment access, and technological literacy, beginning and advanced. Washington County accounts for 52% of Oregon's high tech jobs with a salary median of $38,749. The average income for families engaged in agricultural work, with one person working full time is $15,500. Tadeo said, "clearly, the county finds itself in a Tale of Two Cities dynamic." It is through projects like Centro, focusing on growing and underserved populations, where competency in various technology skills will be mutually beneficial to all groups and populations of people.

One thing that struck me as particularly helpful was that the visiting faculty, including Jeffrey Barlow, Faculty Director of the Berglund Center and Steve Boone, Berglund Center Director, attended and participated in each seminar and computer lab schedule the same as all participants. I have attended numerous seminars and conferences in my career that last from two to five days, but can't recall when the faculty and leaders remained with the participants for the duration of the program. This was a powerful value-added benefit to the Institute whereby the Fellows, Presenters, staff, and participants learned and interacted throughout the conference.

The instructional program and discussion give and take went by too quickly. Every afternoon, after a one-hour break, we met again, at dinner, with the first evening being a barbeque on campus, Tuesday evening at a Mexican Restaurant in Forest Grove, and Wednesday in Portland (after first spending two hours at Powell's Bookstore), and at our "graduation banquet" on Thursday at the Elk Cove Winery.

I look forward to future BCIS announcements. The Berglund Center offers 20 web sites --there may be more by this time -- and I keep these addresses displayed near my monitor for reference.

In sum, this program and everybody involved, including (but not limited to) faculty, participants, facilities, the gorgeous Pacific campus, and of course food and related amenities were a wonderful opportunity. So on behalf of Roger and me, please accept our sincerest thanks for one of the finest learning and living adventures we enjoyed together.

Donna Anderson