National and International E-Learning Programs

• Dr. Hans G. Klaus
  Director, Gov. Program Implementation Agency, Fraunhofer Gesellschaft
  Sankt Augustin, Germany

  Title: "New Media in Education: A German Government Program and its Implementation"

• Prof. Dr. Peter Stucki
  Dean, Faculty of Economics, Business Administration and Information Technology, University of Zurich and
  President, Steering Committee Swiss Virtual Campus
  Switzerland

  Title: "The Swiss Virtual Campus Impulse Programme"
  Abstract

• Jens Christensen
  Deputy Head of Unit "Multimedia Applications for Education and Training"
  Directorate General, Information Society, European Commission
  Luxembourg

  not confirmed yet

web: www.unizh.ch/fakultaet/oec

Summary
Both society and technology have changed markedly and permanently in the last few decades. The unavoidable consequences of this development have a great influence on the ways in which both teaching staff and students analyse knowledge, single out what is relevant to a particular problem, extrapolate information and data therefrom and finally make use of these in a profitable manner. Utilisation of new media can positively support this type of learning and comprehension. The goal of the Swiss Virtual Campus (SVC) Impulse Programme is the formation and support of responsible bodies for the development and use of Internet based e-study modules at higher-level academic institutions in Switzerland (Universities, Federal Insti-tutes of Technologies and Universities of Applied Sciences). For the years 2000-2003 a budget of ca. CHF 50 million has been made available by the Confederation and the various institutions involved, to be used for a total of approx. 50 projects. Organisation and realisation of the SVC Impulse Programme is under the direction of the Swiss University Conference (SUC), and the SVC Steering Committee is responsible for implementing the guidelines. This task requires uniform programme management, but also means keeping track of a hypernet of 50 networked individual projects or mini-SVCs in a multitude of academic areas. It means the co-ordination of few constants but a great many variables. The prerequisites for successful deployment of new forms of teaching and learning are many. Of central importance is crediting completed e-work done by students by means of credit points. Equally vital is flexibility in setting up courses of study from the various offerings, which is made possible by the introduction of phased degree programmes (Bologna model). The success of the SVC Impulse Programme is also highly dependent on the conditions and criteria for sustainability of the SUC, the project teams, the faculties and departments and the educational institutions involved. These are discussed individually. New technologies create the basis for the conception of new applications. From these arise new beneficial possibilities, which awaken new demands and new behaviour, and these are generally difficult to quantify. It may be that when the SVC Impulse Programme ends it will have created not only sustainable results but also results with potential for improvement. Early recommendations for a SVC consolidation programme for the years 2004-2007 are therefore outlined.