JEDDAH, 16 March 2005 — Nearly 400 academics and education professionals from around the world attended the third annual symposium on learning and technology organized by Effat College yesterday.
The two-day symposium themed “Shared Minds, Shared Vision” featured local, regional and international experts in the field of integrating technology in the education process.
Dr. Haifa Jamalallail, dean of Effat College, explained that Princess Lolowa Al-Faisal, vice chair of the board of trustees and general supervisor of Effat College, perceived this symposium under the theme of shared vision as a way to cooperate with other institutions through technology. “Effat College is already a leader among our colleges in using technology and integrating it in its education system.”
“What we are doing here is not only our ambition but the country’s too,” said Princess Lolowa. “We have to be in line with the world and not behind it. Our future generation is our real asset and we have to invest in them and we have had the cooperation and encouragement of all sectors.”
In her keynote address, Dr. Aziza Ellozy, director of the Center for Learning and Technology at the American University in Cairo, spoke of the pressure and the need for introducing technology in and out of the classroom especially in the Middle East — the main focus of the symposium.
Michael Quinn, president of LCSI Educational Software Company in Canada, commented on helping students develop the skills needed to succeed in a knowledge-based economy. He said the technology industry is beginning to generate new products designed to enhance knowledge building and sharing.
Dr. David Ross, professor of flexible delivery at the University of Southern Queensland in Australia, demonstrated a project of collaboration between USQ and a Japanese content development company (Applied Knowledge) and Toshiba as an example of aligning higher education outcomes and corporate needs using technology.
A question was raised about education being driven by technology and Dr. Ross cautioned against allowing technology to direct the needs of an educational institution, especially as the technology is defined by its capabilities and package offered.
“Technology integration is at the heart of educational evolution,” said Dr. Milad Al-Sebaaly, CEO of Universal Knowledge Solution (UKS), an e-learning enabling company based in the UAE, Lebanon and Kuwait. “Building societies of the future seems hardly achievable through our traditional means. Adapting and adopting new technologies is a necessity if we hope to shape young generations skilled enough to face the harsh competition of globalization,” he said.
Dr. Al-Sebaaly presented the experiences of implementing technology and e-learning and adapting it to the Arab region since 1998 at several levels. He described the integration of e-learning into the BIT curriculum at the American University in Dubai in a blended format and the establishing and running of the first accredited full-fledged virtual university in the region, the Syrian Virtual University.
“Two of the challenges we face,” according to Dr. Al-Sebaaly, “are the expansion of the number of students and not enough universities to accommodate them. Thirty to 40 percent of high-school graduates do not find seats at our universities and colleges.”
Another challenge is lack of research facilities and the need for education reform; technology is a critical component for education sustainability. Dr. Al-Sebaaly said the pressing issue is how to build technology-based learning in this region while taking into consideration not only the technological and business aspects but also the social and educational structure.
He outlined the UKS’ learning model that shifts the teacher’s role from being a deliverer of content to a facilitator and supervisor of learning as well as creating the right environment online for the teacher and student to achieve learning.
The last two presentations of the first day of the symposium addressed the strategies for achieving transformation in technology implementation and easing the transition from traditional to online.
Shameema Parveen, knowledge officer at Edutech Middle East, Dubai, said the key to achieving delivery of superior learning outcomes is by efficient integration of technology into learning. She outlined the phases educational institutions go through in integrating technology and the strategic planning needed to achieve that based on successful experiences of institutions around the world.
Hanny Al-Shazly and Imrana Ghani from WebCT (Web Course Tools) presented a brief history of e-learning technologies and how they are being used in the classroom. Al-Shazly listed some of the benefits of e-learning and how it is overtaking other education methods but emphasized that the focus should be on the content because technology is only a tool. “What is needed is a long-term strategy of training and support as well as preparing the institution.”
