DISTANCE LEARNING
DISTANCE LEARNING
Medical School Distance Teaching
The Reynolds Historical Library, part of UAB's Historical Collections, contains many rare medical history books and other materials which are generally unavailable and cannot leave the library. The Lister Hill Library Learning Technology department and Department of History faculty are collaborating with the History Department at Virginia Polytechnic Institute to establish an extended classroom. Student/instructor interaction is the backbone of the extended classroom, as distinct from computer-based education. This extended classroom will transmit high-quality images of rare texts and allow real-time student/instructor dialog about the specific details associated with the texts. History of Medicine courses will be taught via the extended classroom, allowing students at each institution to take advantage of textbook and faculty resources that cannot otherwise be accessed simultaneously. The ability of the extended classroom to use current digital video/audio technologies and to transport high-resolution imagery makes teaching these courses possible. The extended classroom’s transmission of a large volume of video, audio and image information requires sophisticated, reliable, high-bandwidth network transport with well-defined quality-of-service parameters.
http://www.lhl.uab.edu/reynolds/The University of Alabama is a recognized innovator in new distance learning technology through its collaborative efforts with IBM. UA is one of seven institutional members of the Foundation Coalition (FC), an NSF-sponsored undergraduate engineering education reform project. This five-year, $15 million dollar effort involves other vBNS institutions and provides a wealth of opportunities for applications of distance learning technology. The FC classroom differs dramatically from a traditional classroom, in that it relies heavily on both the use of technology and active learning. Thus, the standard distance learning model (active lecturer and passive students) does not fit cleanly with the FC classroom model. The ability to effectively communicate all the activities taking place within the FC classroom environment (e.g. the instructor, the student teams, use of technology by both instructor and student teams) requires advanced network services with guarantees for latency, bandwidth, and traffic delivery.
For example, University of Alabama (Tuscaloosa)’s Capstone Nursing program works closely with the medical programs at UAB. The use of advanced network services such as available via the vBNS and Internet2 would permit a tighter coupling of these two programs. Nursing students at UA would be able to interact directly with UAB’s medical staff in these courses. Medical images, video, audio, and related data could be transmitted between these two sites in a timely manner, and a QoS-capable network would enable the use of advanced medical technology in the classroom. Approximately twelve to fifteen nursing courses are taught each semester at University of Alabama (Tuscaloosa) that could benefit from advanced, high-bandwidth connectivity between UA and UAB.
UA has established the necessary support infrastructure for distance learning, maintaining an office dedicated to distance education with eighteen support personnel. The University of Alabama System Intercampus Interactive Telecommunication System (IITS) provides a networked system of conference rooms at twenty sites across the state. These conference rooms use standard compressed digital video technology to transmit two-way audio and video between sites via a private, special-purpose T1 network. The number of courses available via IITS is increasing rapidly, and several master’s programs are now available via IITS. UAB also delivers credit and noncredit coursework via IITS through the "UAB Options" program which has available three digital video codecs, and several on-campus conference rooms specially constructed to enable traditional multi-point, room-based videoconferencing. In addition, the UAB Medical Center has a fiber connection to the Medical Forum Building located in downtown Birmingham. The Medical Forum is a large facility specifically designed for large medical conferences, including videoconferences. (Kirk)
Unfortunately, many interactive distance learning courses on both University of Alabama (Tuscaloosa) and UAB campuses suffer from the limitations of "traditional" videoconferencing technology in that high-bandwidth, multimedia course content is not feasible. Separate management, scheduling and support of the IITS network rather than integration with the traditional data network of the campuses limit the on-campus distribution of courseware.
The economic and functional leverage derived from use of a single wiring infrastructure, management structure, and network consolidation for both data and video transmissions, as well as the potential for a vastly broader audience, suggests that UA and UAB Distance Learning programs will benefit greatly from broadband digital technology and advanced wide-area network connectivity such as is available with the vBNS and Next Generation Internet.
The Music Technology Program
The UAB Department of Music is developing a concentration in music emphasizing concepts and techniques for MIDI (Musical Instrument Digital Interface) sequencing and scoring, analog and digital multi-track recording, synthesis, sampling, and multimedia production. It is currently the only such program in the Southeast. The program focuses on the applicability of these technologies to musical creativity, including study of various software and hardware systems that allow students to create professional quality vocal and instrumental scores, completely by-passing the previous procedure of sending scores to publishing and printing houses. Students will also proof their arrangements by listening to the full vocal and/or instrumental arrangements through MIDI controlled synthesizers and samplers; create professional analog and digital recordings without the expense of high-priced recording studios and studio musicians; prepare marching-band shows that can be conceptualized, designed, viewed and listened to on a computer; and prepare elaborate, MIDI-controlled musical arrangements for live theatrical productions, including sound and lighting effects, time-programmed to synchronize with different events. Current collaborators in research and composition include musicians at Ohio State University and Purdue.
Development of network based music instruction and interaction has been severely limited due to the high bandwidth required for transmission of high quality audio, as well as serious shortcomings caused by the latency inherent in current network technology. The ability to reliably transfer and receive high-quality digital audio with QoS guarantees would be of great advantage in music education and collaboration.
http://www.music.uab.edu/Medical School Distance Teaching
The School of Medicine has several departments housing web-based teaching materials, which are of clinical quality and structured by expert teaching physicians. Computerized Tomography (CT) and Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) studies may contain more than 100 images (each 12-16 bits/pixel, 512x512). Plain radiographic exams often have 1-4 images per study (each 12-16 bits/pixel, 2Kx2K). Since the teaching studies are currently offered via commodity Internet network technologies, current file sizes are optimized for speed, severely limiting the number of images as well as degrading the resolution and timeliness of transfer. More advanced network services such as defined by the vBNS and Internet2 will allow display of images at nearer actual clinical resolution, as well as open the door for inclusion of three-dimensional reconstructions and video clips. The Department of Radiology has collaborated with University of North Carolina colleagues in developing their teaching files.
http://www.rad.uab.eduThe Post-graduate Education via Internet
Quarterly education for optometrists in the state and region. This application might involve up to 100 simultaneous users sharing images, slide presentations, voice and video.
The Focused Interventions in Public Health Education
A funded three-year project to experiment with innovative and low cost distance learning technologies for public health practice will make this type of continuing education available to public health professionals at very low cost. High performance network connectivity is important to the project mission. Ideally, the project would utilize two way interactive video and audio for portions of the course; however, streaming video and audio conferencing could be substituted if the former is not available. The state departments of public health in New Mexico, Indiana, and Alabama and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention are partners in this endeavor.
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