APEC Cyber Academy website was launched (http://linc.hinet.net/apec) and collaborative learning programs kicked off in the mid August of 2002.
Over 3000 international users registered to the APEC Cyber Academy
as of mid September,
2002. Over 100 teams from APEC member economies
enrolled in one of the four collaborative learning programs. In
order to promote the publicity of the APEC Cyber Academy and recruit
perspective students for the collaborative learning programs, five teacher workshops were held in Chinese Taipei in July
and August of 2002. Over 200 teachers participated in the two
and half days workshops. In order to introduce the project to
the public of Chinese Taipei,
one local and one national level of press conference
were held in Tainnan County and Taipei City.
Hong Kong China: e-Education Leadership
in ICT
The goal of e-Education Leadership in ICT is to provide mechanism to enhance leadership capacities in the
rapidly changing educational environment through ICT integration.
To achieve this goal, they conduct e-education leadership development
activities by managing an online teacher training materials repository
and organizing workshops for school principals and administrators
to facilitate the diffusion of using ICT. An official homepage
was launched at http://acec.cite.hku.hk and two workshops
were organized in 2002 and 2003. The 1st Workshop
was held in Bangkok, Thailand on March 25-28, 2002 and the 2nd Workshop was held in Cebu, Philippines on February 19-21, 2003.
Korea: ALCoBzine, previously APEC Cyber
Education Network (ACEN) Webzine
This
project was initiated at the 2000 APEC Forum in Seoul, Korea. The ACEN effort aimed at setting up and
operating a transnational educational network that would help
reduce educational gap in terms of learning resources, expertise,
and pedagogy. This network functioned as an educational hub helping
promote information sharing, expertise exchange and educational
cooperation among teachers and students beyond national boundaries.
It provided teachers and other educators with an on-line community
area for sharing ICT information and teaching skills using ICT. As of December 2003, eight economies
including Australia, Chinese Taipei, Indonesia, Japan, Korea,
New Zealand, Philippines, and Thailand submitted 99 articles covering
Special Issues, ACEN News, Experiences using ICT, Working Together,
and ICT Learning. Many of the articles are also available in Chinese,
Indonesian, Japanese, Korean, Spanish and Thai as well as English.
Since the ACEN project was officially closed in year 2003, the
ACEN webzine will be continued as an ALCoBzine by newly endorsed
Korean APEC project “APEC Learning Community for Shared Prosperity
(ALCoM)” project. (http://www.alcob.com)
Korea: ALCoB Internet Volunteer
(AIV)
The
AIV Program's intent was to provide IT education to teachers in
the region who need but do not have access to such educational
opportunities. The
first AIV was conducted from Aug.5- 17, 2001 in Indonesia and Thailand by 44 Korean Volunteers.
They worked for setting up computer equipment to use ICT in education.
The second AIV was conducted
from June 18 to Oct.16, 2002 in China, Indonesia, the Philippines and Thailand by 25 Korean, 5 Taiwanese volunteers, and 520 teacher trainees. They worked on co- researching
about ICT needs
and training in educational content design and development.
In 2003, four another teams of AIV (ALCoB Internet Volunteer)
worked within four economies (China, Indonesia, the Philippines and Thailand). So far, the total number
of beneficiaries by the AIV project is about 680 people within
four economies during last three years activities. (http://www.alcob.com)
Korea: APEC Learning Community
for Shared Prosperity
APEC Learning Community for Share Prosperity
is the integrated project of the two former projects of Korea,
namely ACEN Webzine and International Internet Volunteer (IIV).
ACEN Webzine has been elaborated as ALCoBzine and IIV has been
elaborated as ALCoB Internet Volunteer (AIV). In order to effectively
activate the APEC Learning Community, it was necessary to select “APEC Learning Community Builders (ALCoB)”, who would help bridge knowledge divide, enhance knowledge capacity, and promote human exchange. ALCoB will be engaged in such
activities as ALCoB Internet Volunteer (AIV), ALCoB On-line Community,
Research, Planning and Implementing New Projects and Friendly
Human Exchanges. Autonomy and bottom-up approach will be emphasized
in these activities for shared value and vision in education.
As of December 2003, 164 ALCoB were selected in eight economies
including China, Chinese Taipei, Hong Kong China, Indonesia, Korea,
Malaysia, New Zealand and Thailand. At the first international
ALCoB Conference held in January 2004 in Seoul, Korea, around
30 international ALCoB and 60 Korean ALCoB met in person and shared
ideas and plans for possible future joint projects. (http://www.alcob.com)
Korea: Asia Pacific Cybereducation Journal
(APCJ)
The goal of Asia Pacific Cybereducation
Journal is to embody the tri-partition, that
is, cooperation among government, academia, and
business which was agreed in the leaders meeting in the year 2000.
They collect and refine the knowledge achieved from the activities
by the ACEC and related entities, facilitate cooperative research
to reduce digital divide in the APEC region and contribute to
enhancing efficient utilization of ICT for education in general.
As of November 2003, they launched an official web site for the
journal (http://www.acecjournal.org). Dr. Michael Molenda of Indiana University
is the founding editor and the Editorial Board members are under
recruitment. Nominees
to date are Dr. Theodore W. Frick, Associate Professor of Instructional Systems Technology, Indiana
University, USA and Dr. Vincent R. Ham, Director (Research), Ultralab
South, Christchurch, New Zealand. The journal will be published twice a year
and the first issue will be distributed to the selected member
economies free of charge for publicity promotion.
Malaysia: Best Practices and Innovations
in Teaching Science and Mathematics at the Primary School Level
The goal of this project is
to narrow the digital divide effectively in the APEC region through sharing
teaching methods in Science and Mathematics at the Primary School
Level. Different teaching methods and how to use the facility
will be discussed and implemented. New ideas and improvements in teaching and learning of science
and mathematics will be shared to increase the knowledge and skills
of educators in the APEC region. Also, strategies that will enable
APEC economies to increase quality of education will be identified
through this project. The Seminar on Best Practices and Innovations in the Teaching
and Learning of Science and Mathematics at the Primary School
Level was held in Kuala Lumpur,
Malaysia, August 11-15, 2003.
New Zealand APEC Network for Education Web
Portal Online Communities
The goal of this project is to develop the community area to support collaboration
between educationalists to bridge the digital divide and share
information in education and human resources development in the
APEC region. The aim is to make available information and services
to improve education, in particular the use of ICT; and to coordinate
the work of various APEC economies to enhance multilateral cooperation
in the region. The Site and the associated pilot trial have been
completed as scheduled (June 2002) and are awaiting formal launch
as part of the Asia-Pacific Network for Education Project.
Thailand: APEC Sister School Network
The goal of APEC Sister School
Network (ASSN) is to provide opportunities for students, teachers, and school
administrators in APEC economies to build a cooperative and supportive
community. The Thai Ministry of Education and the Republic of
Korea organized the ICT workshop, which was the
collaboration between APEC Sister Schools Networking (ASSN) of
Thailand and APEC Cyber Education Cooperation (ACEN) of Korea
during August 2-15, 2002. The Workshop provided participating teachers
with the opportunities to exchange ideas, information and experiences
on basic use of ICT in education. Also, APEC Sister Schools Networking
Core Teachers Training Program was conducted during September
16 -20, 2002 aiming to prepare teachers and students from ASSN member
schools for APEC Youth Camp in Thailand in 2003. The APEC Sister
Schools Networking Youth Camp was held during July 6 -16, 2003 at Krungkrabaen Bay, Chantaburi Province, Thailand. The Organizing Committee invited Her Royal Highness
Princess Maha Chakri Sirindhorn to preside over the opening ceremony.
U.S.A.: Asia Pacific Network for Education
Web Portal
The goal of Asia Pacific
Network for Education Web Portal is to design,
set up, and manage a web portal for sharing information on education
throughout the Asia Pacific region. The U.S. Department of Education
develops a platform of web portal and content providers will add
contents through an online interface. Visitors will be able to
search information including reports and resources. (http://www.apecneted.org/
knowledgebank/index.cfm)
U.S.A: Knowledge
Bank of Education Policy and Practice
The Knowledge
Bank is a web-based repository of education policies, legislation,
strategies, and practical resources from around the Asia Pacific
Region. The Knowledge Bank caters for people who want to access
the practical experience of educators in the Asia Pacific Region.
The Knowledge Bank provides information for education policymakers
regarding the development of effective education reform policies
and for school administrators regarding how to enhance their implementation
of education policies to create the greatest impact. It provides
researchers with current articles, studies, statistics and ideas
to further development of reforms. All of the resources in the
Knowledge Bank are provided and updated by members of the Asia
Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Education Network (EDNET).
Documents provided by them should be relevant, accurate and up
to date covering important information, examples, research outcomes
regarding member economies education systems or issues. (http://www.apecneted.org/
knowledgebank/index.cfm)
Both Asia
Pacific Network for Education Web Portal and Knowledge Bank of
Education Policy and Practice are under development as of January
2004 and await the formal launch.
VI. Future Plans
Possible Joint Projects of ACEC
ACEC will open its door to all APEC member economies
for shared ownership. Any member can initiate a project proposal
and encourage other members to join for collaborations. It is
necessary to find a field of common interest and to communicate
with each other for best ideas and initiation. ACEC will draw
a first draft of a joint project proposal by February 2004 and
ACEC will do the best in securing fund for the project.
Korea: The Second International ALCoB Conference
Encouraged by the success of the First International
ALCoB Conference in January 2004, Korea is planning to host a
second ALCoB conference for APEC Learning Community for Shared
Prosperity. The second conference will be more practical one than
the first conference and a variety of educational programs will
be organized. ALCoB teachers will share the progress of their
joint projects proposed in the first conference and present the
outcomes of the projects to other educational stakeholders such
as students, school administrators and education policy makers.
And also academic seminars will be organized to facilitate theoretical
approach to education and its application into practice.
