ANNOUNCEMENTS/REQUESTS
--- ARTSLINK.CO.ZA

PROFILED ORGANIZATIONS
--- Wits FDE in Development, Management and Administration

ONLINE RESOURCES
--- Focus on Action Learning
--- Internet Use By Teachers
--- Streaming Media lists
--- Report on Virtual Education Around the World
--- Human Development Report 1999

ARTICLES
--- Two of Three Professors "Stressed" by Computer Technologies

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NEWS

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High tech workers being sought outside of U.S. By Michiyo Yamada WASHINGTON,

Aug 25 (Reuters) - For thousands of American high-tech firms, their billion

dollar businesses depend on their ability to find foreign workers who can

navigate complex computer languages like "Java" or "C." According to the

Information Technology Association of America, about 346,000 information

technology-related jobs were vacant in 1998, and labor-deprived high-tech

firms have begun exploring beyond American shores, seeking offshore

operations or importing skilled foreigners to work in the United States.

"We've been forced to go outside the U.S. to hire people," said Richard

McGinn, Chairman and CEO of Lucent Technologies, the New Jersey-based

communications equipment giant. "Many of those jobs are outside ... We're

now employing nearly 3,500 engineers in U.K., in Germany, in China, Japan,

Taiwan, Korea ... not for the market access, but because we can't find

people here." In an attempt to attract the foreign-trained "cream of the

crop" to American high-tech industry, Congress enacted a law last year to

increase the number of temporary work visas to 115,000 a year from the

previously approved 65,000. This year, Sen. Phil Gramm (R-Texas) has been

pushing legislation calling for more foreign workers to keep the U.S.

economy rolling. But more relief is needed to meet an unrelenting labor

demand that has been created by the red-hot economy over more than eight

years. According to Department of Labor estimates, America needs more than a

million new information technology (IT) workers through 2005 -- far more

than foreign temporary workers can provide. The temporary work visa, called

H1-B, is a category for non-immigrant foreign workers to work in a

specialized field in the United States for up to six years. Experts estimate

almost half of those visa holders are working in the IT industry as

engineers, computer programmers or medical professionals with higher

academic degrees from their homes abroad. "I think it makes perfectly good

economic sense to try to increase the number of skilled foreign workers in

the U.S," Princeton University Professor Alan Krueger, a former chief

economist for the U.S. Department of Labor, said. "But the H1-B visa is a

very imperfect approach because it gives employers far more bargaining power

than they have in the ordinary employment situation." Krueger said giving

out permanent residency visas, known as green cards, rather than the

temporary H1-B visas with restrictions on where holders can work, "would be

a plus to the American economy" in the long term, but the idea to issue more

green cards would likely to face political opposition. For people like

Duncan Moore, associate technology director for the President's Office of

Science and Technology Policy, the better and long-term solution is to

figure out how to increase the number of high-tech workers in the United

States. Moore quoted the results of the Third International Mathematics and

Science Study that showed the poor academic performance of American students

by the time they finish high school. He said students in the United States,

including those most advanced, are ranked among the lowest internationally.

"... Until we get good qualifying people into teaching, these scores are not

going to go up," Moore said. Moore said one of the main reasons for

America's dependency on high-tech foreign workers stems from the nation's

inability to attract qualified science and math teachers into classrooms.

"If you are graduating with your first degree in science, say in chemistry,

you've got all kinds of industry opportunities," he said. "But (teaching)

salaries are terrible. So why would young people do this?" Although some

school districts now lure prospective teachers with bonuses or reimbursement

for their costly graduate school tuition, new teachers, regardless of their

teaching subject, earn only about $25,012 annually, according to the latest

tabulation by the National Association of Colleges and Employers. New

software developers earn twice as much and new hardware developers receive

60 percent more than what beginning teachers typically earn. Teachers in the

United States do not enjoy the same recognition as in Germany or in Japan,

where their professional status is highly respected and where, once

selected, they are almost guaranteed their tenure and paid handsomely. So

experts say raising teachers' salaries and improving the profession's image

are the keys to recruiting and retaining teachers who can produce an

internationally competitive workforce by teaching children everything from

calculus to physics. "When we talk specifically about science and math

teachers, the pay will have a greater impact because in comparable fields

there is a much greater difference," said Segun Eubanks, a recruitment and

retention specialist for the National Education Association, the largest

labor union for American teachers. "It becomes a major factor in

discouraging talented folks in math and science to pursue careers in

teaching." According to a recent national survey by Recruiting New Teachers

Inc., a Massachusetts-based non-profit group, 56 percent of people surveyed

indicated they would consider becoming a teacher if guaranteed a $60,000

annual salary. Also, nearly 80 percent said teachers' salaries should be

raised over the next 10 years as a way to get more qualified teachers into

the schools. "To me, this is an economic development issue," Moore said.

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The Botswana Gazette - August 25, 1999 The launch of Botswana's national

television station has been delayed until next year - however, Botswana's

first independent commercial radio station Yarona 106,6fm went live on the

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INTERNET WILL SURVIVE Y2K ONSLAUGHT EXPERTS SAY.

Johannesburg, 17 August 1999 - (SAPA) Some Web sites might be unavailable

and some consumers might be unable to send e-mail because of the year 2000

problem, but the global network itself will largely be unaffected, some of

the Internet's top experts predict.

The architecture of the Internet - a collection of interconnected but

independent computer networks - means its data traffic will be able to

bypass any few local Y2K failures, such as those caused by power outages.

"We're not likely to see major global outages at all," said Vint Cerf, an

executive at MCI WorldCom who co-invented the common "TCP/IP" language of

the Internet.

But the decentralized nature of the Internet also makes it nearly impossible

to predict exactly how the January date rollover will affect it. The Web and

its kin technologies rely on computers and software owned by people and

companies worldwide mostly without any supervision.

SINGAPORE TO RELAX CENSORSHIP LAWS AS IT SEEKS TO EXPAND INTERNET ACCESS

Issue: International/Censorship Singapore says the Internet is forcing it to

relax some of its strict censorship laws. In the past, it was easy for

Singapore to keep out books, movies and magazines by simply banning their

distribution. The government still prohibits home satellite dishes, has

forbidden key opposition politicians from delivering outdoor speeches and

can take the licenses of publishers deemed too controversial. But with 20%

of Singaporeans connected to the Web, forbidden items are just a mouse click

away. The government blocks more than 100 pornographic sites, yet

acknowledges that citizens can easily look at thousands of other porn sites.

But Singapore's citizens are still fearful. A bureaucrat told an local

Internet service provider to scan 80,000 e-mail accounts of university

researchers for pornographic material and in April, Singapore's

internal-security agency secretly scanned 200,000 private computers. Many

users saw these happenings as a demonstration of the government's technical

capability to pry. "Singapore Internet users are always fighting the

censorship in your own mind, the perceived fear ... that someone will come

knocking on your door," says Harish Pillay, who heads Singapore's Internet

Society. The government also hasn't softened its rules for local Internet

content providers, which can be sued under Singapore's laws -- but when it

comes to the business community, the government has been willing to back

down. Under a law enacted last year to help attract foreign investment,

Internet service providers are no longer liable if their customers use their

services to visit forbidden sites. The government plans to look at lifting

of a 1997 ban on political campaigning on Singapore Web sites and

strengthening privacy protections for Internet users. [SOURCE: Wall Street

Journal (A18), AUTHOR: Michelle Levander]

(c)Benton Foundation, 1999. Redistribution of this email publication -- both

internally and externally -- is encouraged if it includes this message.

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Distance Education Takes Off Next Year - Ghana (Taken from the Media Beat

No. 19, edited by Warren Feek)

Daily Graphic - August 19, 1999 - By Adwoa Van-Ess Distance Education

Programme at the University of Ghana, Legon, will take off early next year.

Currently, a master plan is being worked out on the implementation of the

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C-DOT makes Indian satcom system

Manoj Gairola

NEW DELHI 24 AUGUST

Centre for Development of Telematics (C-DOT), a premier telecom research

organisation, has developed India's first satellite communications system.

The technology developed by C-DOT, called Insat-MSS, uses transponders in

the Insat series of satellites and is ideally suited for providing telephone

connections in those areas where it is not cost effective to lay the

conventional cable-based network.

C-DOT executive director KN Gupta told The Economic Times that the

technology was developed in association with Comsat, a US-based satellite

communications company. The system is currently working in two districts in

Karnataka - Chorla and Shantidam. "We are satisfied with the performance of

the system. The Insat-MSS has become very popular because it is the only

telecom system in the region," said Mr Gupta. The Insat-MSS system is also

being installed in Karwar district in Karnataka. The Department of

Telecommunications (DoT) is also said to be satisfied with the performance

of the system. According to sources, DoT is planning to induct 1,000

satellite phones in its network. These phones will be installed in the rural

areas as village public telephones (VPTs).

According to an estimate, DoT will have to pay more than Rs 15 crore per

annum in foreign exchange if the contract is awarded to a foreign company.

This figure will further go up if charges paid for incoming traffic are also

taken into account. On the other hand, if the Insat-MSS terminals, with a

2.4 metre antenna are used as VPTs, then this amount can be saved and there

is no outflow of foreign exchange.Currently, the cost of Insat-MSS terminals

is higher than that of other comparable systems like Inmarsat. However, this

is because of the low volumes. "Once we decide to induct 1,000 Insat-MSS

terminals for VPT applications, the cost will come down and will match any

comparable system in the world," said Mr Gupta. C-DOT had initiated this

project primarily to develop a mobile satellite system using Insat 2C

transponder. The system was developed and installed on schedule in

Bangalore, in November '97, said Mr Gupta. Subsequently, field tests were

conducted by C-DOT, TEC, and other DoT agencies.

However, at the time of on-site testing by the DoT, it was observed that the

Insat 2C transponders were not working properly, and that there were a lot

of level variations in the transponder. C-DOT had to thus rework on the

ANNOUNCEMENTS/REQUESTS

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Wits FDE in Development, Management and Administration

The Further Diploma in Education (FDE): Development, Management and

Administration was launched in 1994 by the Faculty of Education and the

Graduate School of Public and Development Management (P&DM) at the

University of the Witwatersrand (Wits), in co-operation with the Management

of Schools Training Programme (MSTP), a non-government organisation

dedicated to school management and leadership training.

The programme is aimed at school managers (principals, deputy principals,

heads of departments and senior teachers) who have a minimum academic

qualification of matriculation plus three years' college or university

training. In addition to the minimum qualification requirement, the

selection of programme participants is based on the commitment of the

applicants to school-based educational and management development.

The purpose of the programme is to equip educational leaders and managers

with the conceptual understanding and practical skills required to meet the

challenges of a changing environment in post-apartheid South Africa.

The programme offers a Further Diploma in Education, accredited after two

years of coursework and skills training. It is a part-time course, and

includes both contact-based and distance learning. The programme consists of

five course equivalents (two full courses and six half-courses) and twelve

skills workshops. The courses are run by the Wits Education Department and

P&DM, while the skills workshops are delivered by MSTP.

The programme has adopted an approach that is problem/issue-based, and

attempts to merge theory and practical experience. Its style of delivery is

based on experiential and interactive learning processes with an emphasis on

case studies and group work. The delivery mode of the programme is

essentially distance learning, but this is supported by a mixture of formal

lectures, workshops and practical skills training. The distance learning

materials are provided to learners for private study, while the courses and

workshops are presented at contact sessions either at the University or at

other locations identified by the programme organisers.

The programme targets students from Gauteng and adjacent provinces. Although

47 students registered in the first year, the average number of students

registered for the course over the past five years has been approximately 100.

The programme has adopted both formative and summative forms of assessment.

The Education Department at Wits requires students to undertake an

examination in one course, while neither the P&DM nor the MSTP have an

examination component. The programme has adopted two dominant modes of

formative assessment to evaluate the competence of their students, namely:

--- practical work projects; and

--- assignments (both brief and extensive).

The results of these assessments are used to determine whether students

have "passed or failed" the course. In addition to the above modes of

assessment, MSTP utilises the following assessment methods, through which

learners become more active participants in the programme:

--- group work undertaken by a "cluster" of schools;

--- rating of candidates' attendance and participation in seminars and

workshops; and

--- visits to schools to assess the management competence of students.

The learner support system provided by the programme has changed over the

years. In the initial stages of the programme, MSTP had organised for School

Change Facilitators to support the students, primarily at site level.

However, owing to the high costs involved, this aspect of student support

had to be phased out. Currently, the primary forms of learner support are

those provided at contact sessions by peers, tutors and lecturers. In

addition, the facilitation of cluster meetings and the so-called "buddy

system" have provided very important forms of student support.

The FDE course has not been offered to first-year students this year, owing

to a range of problems which among others relate to finance, administration

and management. All three people interviewed diagnosed the key problem to be

the absence of a champion to drive the Programme.

ONLINE RESOURCES

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Taken from The TrainingZone LearningWire - Issue 63

Focus on Action Learning (compiled by Tim Pickles)

---

As a method of developing staff and promoting self-directed learning, action

learning seems to be remarkably under-utilised. I've worked with several

large organisations who certainly have the capacity to develop this

approach, but who remain remarkably reliant upon traditional models of

instructor-led training. All too often I hear excuses about how people would

not commit themselves to this sort of programme; they can't be trusted to

take responsibility for their own learning; we can't spare such regular time.

I suggest this is all bunkum. There's plenty of evidence that action

learning approaches are cost and time effective, provide a positive learning

environment, are welcomed by those who take part, and contribute

significantly to good team-working and networking outcomes.

If you're new to action learning, there's a really practical book, 'Action

Learning for Managers' by Mike Pedler (publishers: Lemos and Crane) on the

subject which is more than enough to get you going.

This week, we've come across some excellent web-based resources promoting

action learning approaches. The Global Anthological Journal of Action

Learning is excellent. Don't be put off by the tongue-twisting name. The

site provides a wealth of information about action learning which should be

sufficient to convince any sceptic. One part of the site is devoted to more

than a dozen case studies of action learning in practice, mostly within

larger companies. Some of these make for excellent reading. Several articles

from the Journal are also available online. For those with an interest in

exploring the field further, Alan Mumford has contributed a Review of Action

There are plans to set up an Action Learning Institute which will be

web-based and deal with issues such as accreditation and professional

development. The Institute may launch in the first half of next year.

Meanwhile, we shall republish the regular newsletters associated with the

Journal on TrainingZone in order that readers can scan what's happening

Action Learning International is another great site offering plenty of

information, links, resources and discussion for people new to, or actively

engaged in action learning. I was particularly impressed with the section on

Action Learning Resources where the first substantive page provides users

with a comprehensive guide to action learning - what the method is, what the

benefits are, and how to get the whole process going. This section is

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INTERNET USE BY TEACHERS

How much access do teachers actually have to the Internet? To what extent do

teachers value having the Internet in their own classrooms? In what ways do

teachers and students use the Internet most?

The answers to these and other questions about the use and value of the

Internet in education can be found in a new report, "Internet Use by

Teachers: Conditions of Professional Use and Teacher-Directed Student Use."

In this 1998 national survey from the Center for Research on Information

Technology and Organizations at The University of California-Irvine, author

Henry Jay Becker finds that among the 39 percent of teachers who have

Internet access in their own classrooms, searching the Web for information

is the third most common use of computers by students, after word processing

and use of CD-ROMS. Using the Internet for e-mail trailed somewhat behind:

Only 16 percent of teachers communicated by e-mail with teachers from other

schools as often as five times during the school year.

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If you have interest in streaming media, you might also want to join the

following lists:

About 300 members, mostly hobbyists, who help each other out on subjects

ranging from MP3 creation to shoutcasting to flash to RealServer to Windows

Media. Very friendly, informal list. This is also a good place to promote

your own content, find collaborators, etc. Not as politically oriented as

freespeech.org, but very helpful and fun all the same. Run by Alex Massie,

Joe Nickell (of ROX) and Joey Manley (former Director of freespeech.org).

10-20 messages a day.

About 10,000 members, including big names like Rob Glaser of RealNetworks,

Mark Cuban of broadcast.com, etc. Very formal, tightly-controlled list.

Mostly press releases (but interesting ones--I found out about the

Yahoo/broadcast.com deal a day in advance because of an accident). Good

place to monitor big corporate interests and their plans for the 'net (all

the people from disney, etc are here). 20-50 messages a day.

FROM

"Joey Manley" jmanley@mediabay.com

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REPORT ON VIRTUAL EDUCATION AROUND THE WORLD

"The Development of Virtual Education: A Global Perspective," by Dr. Glen

Farrell, is a study of current trends in the virtual delivery of education.

It was conducted with funding provided by the Commonwealth of Education and

the Department for International Development, London, UK. The report

provides a detailed look at the differences in the development of virtual

education around the world and concludes with a number of suggestions for

policy makers and education leaders regarding the construction of models for

virtual learning.

The chapters are in PDF format and require the free Adobe Acrobat Reader for

The Commonwealth of Learning (COL) is an international organization created

by Commonwealth Heads of Government to encourage the development and sharing

of open learning/distance education resources and technologies. For more

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ARTICLES

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[From NewsScan e-newsletter]

TWO OF THREE PROFESSORS "STRESSED" BY COMPUTER TECHNOLOGIES

Results from a mailed survey of 34,000 faculty members at 378 institutions

of higher learning indicate that 67% of the survey respondents feel regular

stress keeping up with information technology. Only 35% use the Internet to

conduct research and 38% use information technology to create classroom

presentations. One professor says, "I just don't have the time. I don't have

time to use everything they come up with." Faculty stress contrasts sharply

with student nonchalance. Noting that 80% of freshmen at UCLA arrived last

year with their own computers, a spokesman from that university says, "We

are seeing a generation that has practically grown up with computers as a

Telematics for African Development Consortium
P.O. Box 31822
Braamfontein
2017
Johannesburg
South Africa
Tel: +27 +11 403-2813
Fax: +27 +11 403-2814
neilshel@icon.co.za
www.saide.org.za