Around the Globe

My first visit to the capital city of the USA was to attend and speak at the event formerly known as “Telecon East.” I have to report that the eight-hour flight from London’s Heathrow airport was well worth the effort. Supported by the United States Distance Learning Association (USDLA), this year’s event was held at the Washington Convention Center. Situated just a few blocks to the northwest of the White House, the conference attracted more than 1200 conference delegates, whilst according to the conference organizers, a further 3500 visited the vendors’ demonstration hall. With more than 100 papers from the academic, government, and corporate sectors on offer, together with several specialised tutorials and workshops, this year’s e-learning event was a feast of new ideas, familiar debate, lessons learned, and theory applied for all those who were fortunate to attend. Perhaps the only criticism of the event was one I overheard at lunch on the first day. The organizers provided no delegate list, but this was a minor blemish on an otherwise excellent occasion. In the space available to me, I offer a brief synopsis in an attempt to capture some of its essence.

The first, and for many delegates, the brightest of the conference’s highlights was the inspirational opening keynote speech given by the Governor of South Dakota, William Janklow. Those of you who read the Dakota Digital Network papers in a recent Quarterly Review of Distance Education (Volume 1, Number 3) will appreciate the scale and magnitude of South Dakota’s achievements in wiring every public and private school and university in the state. This included the provision of a network point for every student dorm in every university in the state. Through a mix of humor and incisive commentary, Governor Janklow outlined exactly how this immense logistical feat has been achieved. Teams of inmates from local jails were drafted in to run cables and install hardware, working as itinerant journeymen, learning their trade as electricians, whilst repaying some of their debt to society. Using this courageous if somewhat risky approach, South Dakota was able to complete the mammoth task in record time, and in an entirely cost-effective manner. The youth of South Dakota are now poised on the threshold of a true learning revolution, said Governor Janklow. He parted with this statement: “We must not rob the youth of America. We must provide them with the means to learn.” The Governor received a standing ovation at the end of his speech and was later awarded the USDLA’s Eagle award for outstanding achievement in the field of distance education. More of the USDLA award ceremony later in this column.

The second keynote speech was presented by Tom Kelly, currently the chief learning officer for Cisco Systems. Kelly gave those assembled a corporate perspective on the evolving nature of the e-learning market. He dealt with a number of burning questions, including “How do I get my course online?” and gave his audience insight into how institutions can keep pace with the breakneck speed of the worldwide growth of e-learning. Other keynote speakers were Andrew Sadler (IBM Mindspan Solutions), Steve Thomas (CEO, Pathlore), Michael Parmentier (Office of the Secretary of Defense), and Dennis Bonilla (Vice President of Oracle University). Each in turn built on the conference’s theme for this year: “Discovering the Power of E-Learning.”

Papers presented in the parallel sessions included (but were not limited to) the following themes: transforming traditional courses into e-learning; cost and benefits analysis; instructional design; technical issues (such as bandwidth and technology choice); health hazards of wireless technologies; developing global partnerships; new e-learning methods and applications; and developing and encouraging interactivity in e-learning. Generally, these papers were presented by enthusiastic and able speakers, many of whom used eye-catching graphics, supported by case studies, theory, and practice, including demonstrations and electronic dialogue. The question-and-answer sessions were generally very lively, although several speakers were observed to overrun their allotted presentation time, thereby forfeiting the opportunity to receive direct feedback from their peers. This was unfortunate, but a common and perennial problem for all conference organizers.

The United States Distance Learning Association holds its annual awards ceremony every year at the event. This year saw a host of awards, including the USDLA Hall of Fame awards for significant contributions in leadership, research, technical coordination, and teaching in the field of distance education. Three educators were inducted into the Hall of Fame by executive director John Flores: Jolly Holden, senior project manager at Starband Communications Incorporated; Don Foshee, president and CEO of Innovative Interactions Incorporated; and Frank Withrow, director of development with ABLE Company. An award for excellence in distance learning and teaching was awarded awarded in four categories. Paul Resta, from the University of Texas (Austin), received the award in the higher education section. The University of Texas (Telecampus) also picked up a second award in the area of excellence in distance learning programming, for its ground breaking MBA online program. Also receiving awards in this category were the Defense Acquisition University, NASA Connect (at the Langley Research Center) and Basic Education Surgical Training (BEST) INTUMed, which trains surgeons and medics using a mix of online case studies, surgical simulations and personal feedback.

Receiving awards for “most outstanding achievement by an individual through distance learning” were: Steve Lyle (University of Central Florida); Steve Larkin (Internal Revenue Service); Julius Edlavitch; and Bryan Poliska (Caliber Learning Network). On a sadder note, a special award in memory of the late Bruce

Byrne was presented. Byrne, the former president if the Connecticut Distance Learning Association, died on October 22, 2000. The inaugural Bruce Byrne Memorial Award appropriately went to his own Connecticut Distance Learning Association.