From New
Currents 2.1 January 1995
Technology Based Learning
Network Canada (TBL.CA)
The National TBL.CA Research Team
Leadership for this Calgary team was provided by Dr. Brian Gaines
of the Knowledge Science Institute in the Department of Computer Science,
Dr. Tim Buell (Communication Studies), Dr. Bill Hunter (Education Technology
Unit, Faculty of Education), and Dr. Larry Katz (Computerized Sports Systems
Group, Faculty of Physical Education.) More than a dozen other faculty members
from Continuing Education, Education, Engineering, Fine Arts, Management,
Nursing, Social Sciences, and other disciplines participated in the development
of the team's Letter of Intent which focused on software that could support
collaborative learning in a networked environment.
The LINCS group in Calgary and the RITE group at McMaster University merged
after the November 10 meeting. The merger occurred when both groups saw
a fit in terms of research excellence and common goals. This new group then
invited others, who had submitted letters of intent, to join them in building
a truly powerful and representative national network devoted to researching
how technology may be used to improve learning, teaching, and training in
the school, home, and workplace, as well as over long distances on the information
highway.
As a result of the merger with the other groups, organizers decided upon
a new name which reflected the comprehensive nature of the combined networks.
This new network, called the Technology Based Learning Network Canada
(TBL.CA), has now grown to include 130 researchers; 20 educational institutions;
and 50 government, corporate, and professional organizations that have combined
to propose about 40 research projects on educational technology.
The new proposal focuses on five thematic areas:
- Evaluation
- Distributed Post Secondary Learning
- Sharing the Wealth (K-12 learning)
- Workplace Training/Learning
- Cultural Understanding.
Each TBL.CA project will involve a network of researchers from existing
centres of excellence combining existing resources to address the overall
objectives in relation to four evaluation dimensions:
- Significant Technologies (e.g., World-Wide Web, collaborative systems,
video-conferencing, multimedia, imaging technology, virtual reality)
- Delivery Locations (e.g., workplace sites; schools, colleges and universities,
homes, libraries, museums)
- Significant Content (e.g., arts, culture, sports, language and literacy,
technical skill)
- Socio-economic Issues (e.g., employment, commercialization, special
needs of learners, gender and cultural differences.)
Members of the Calgary research team feel that some of the federal government's
objectives for this program have already been met--the process of developing
the letters of intent and pulling two projects together has resulted in
the establishment of a national network of research and industry contacts
that will continue to affect the work of all participants for some time
to come.
For more information, contact William J. Hunter, Teacher Education and
Supervision, U of C,
220-5507, e-mail: hunter@acs.ucalgary.ca