--- Forwarded Message from Mike Ledgerwood <[log in to unmask]> ---
>Date: Mon, 01 Oct 2001 21:16:13 -0400
>From: Mike Ledgerwood <[log in to unmask]>
>Subject: IALLT's Publisher Initiative
>To: llti <[log in to unmask]>
>Reply-to: [log in to unmask]
>Organization: SBU
>User-Agent: Mozilla/5.0 (Macintosh; U; PPC; en-US; rv:0.9.2) Gecko/20010726 Netscape6/6.1
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Hello to all.
At IALLT's Houston meeting there was a very interesting panel which
including
several publisher representatives and several IALLT members. The topic was
how we can work together better.
Over the years, IALLT members have wished that the people working for
publishers in the area of technology-based materials could hear their
viewpoint, especially on very practical matters. Thus IALLT members have
worried about questions such as the length of audio and videotapes,
about variations in copyright privileges, about platforms for
computer-based materials,
and now about digital copyright privileges. IALLT members now also
worry about being
able to support language, literature, and culture learning in a new
world of new
technologies with little idea of how publishers will require them to
design and
redesign facilities supporting appropriate technologies for a user group
larger
than a single individual. How can the Language Center be differentiated
from
computer labs or from distance learning facilities? How can it maintain
its knowledge
of student needs and maintain its importance at its institution? A very
important
answer to these questions is in learning what publishers intend with
technology
for language, literature, and culture learning early on.
On the other hand, the publisher representatives wanted to know what
kind of "say" IALLT members have in the selection of their materials and
what publishers could do to present their
materials effectively so that IALLT members would encourage their
selection. They wonder
what technologies and what kinds of pedagogies will be worthwhile for
their decreasing
amount of money to support textbooks. They wonder about what kinds of
technologies
they can create that will still allow them to make a profit, if the
textbook does cease to
be important. They wonder about what kind(s) of pedagogies work with
technology to
promote effective learning. They need and want to know what we know and
see about
student learning using their materials. What seems to "work" or not
work? What seems
to please students? What seems to please various instructors and why?
Although both groups have very different "raisons d'être" and very
different important
questions, there is no question but that each group can help the other
in extremely
significant ways. As a result of this conclusion from Houston as well
as a long and
checkered relationship between IALLT members and publisher representatives,
the IALLT Executive Board decided to create a task force on this issue.
I have agreed to chair this task force and remain on the IALLT Coordinating
Council. What I would ask is that those of you reading this e-mail,
both IALLT
members and publishers' representatives, contact me directly (NOT the
list) at
[log in to unmask] to let me know how and why you would like
to be part of this IALLT initiative. I propose to create an
asynchronous bulletin
board to allow us all to talk and hash out a variety of issues and
questions for
the first six months of this initiative. After that I (and the group!)
will propose
a series of possible initiatives/"resolutions" for consideration by both
groups
for adoption.
Even if any of you reading this note do NOT want to be part of this group,
I hope you will send me issues for discussion and consideration.
Finally, even if you have thoughts/areas/avenues other than those I am
envisioning, please send them to me!
Very best to all in this difficult time,
Mike Ledgerwood
Tenured Professor of French and Technology and Education
Director of the Language Learning and Research Center
State University of New York at Stony Brook (60 miles from Manhattan)
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