Project+TSI+Latvia


 * Title of Project:** // Symbols of Peace™(SOP) //


 * Theme: ** //Digital Stories from Around the World//


 * SIG Members and Leadership **

Dr. Joyce Pittman Philadelphia, PA, USA Email: jpittman.pasrd@gmail.com
 * Coordinator:**

Dr. Minnie Ladores Frostburg, MD, USA Email: mladores@frostburg.edu
 * Co-Coordi****na****tor**

Riga, Latvia E-mail address: alina_s@tsi.lv
 * SIG Members Project Contributor and Organizer**: Dr.Yulia Stukalina
 * Institution:** Transport and Telecommunication Institute (TSI), [|www.tsi.lv]

//Transport and Telecommunication Institute - TSI (Riga, Latvia)//


 * Project Summary: ** The project coordinates the efforts of experts and students from around the world to develop and disseminate digital materials and assessment tools that will expand the focus on the world's attention beyond basic education to Peace education curriculum. The strategies will promote an interdisciplinary approach to infusing Peace education into learning and teaching science, mathematics, literacy (verbal and written). These skills will improve intercultural awareness, relations and knowledge of the world. In return people and nations will be successful in understanding and practicing Peace-making in the foreseeable future.

**Overall goals:** The WCCI SIG for instructional technology will engage and promote digital projects that support intercultural awareness, knowledge of the world and peace education through collaborative learning and teaching experiences that connect international partners from various disciplinary areas

**Objectives** are focused on the following **outcomes:** · Develop non-traditional learning environments and instructional designs appropriate to the IT-SIG Symbols of Peace digital stories course development model requirements. · Use non-traditional learning environments for encouraging student-instructor and student-student communication (e.g. by e-mail, blogging, wikis, discussion board and chat room). · Use problems, questions, or simulations, not merely content coverage, as points of entry into the subject and as sources of motivation. · Convert some individual homework assignments to cooperative group assignments and some individual projects to cooperative group projects. · Create cutting edge multimedia artifacts and project ideas to use during instruction that support more active and student centered learning.


 * Technology Integration and ICT:** Skype, GotoMeeting, Videoconferencing, Blackboard

=** Chronology **=


 * //2008 -2014://**

In the framework of //Symbols of Peace™// project, a series of online meetings and conversations between teachers and students of Transport and Telecommunication Institute (Riga, Latvia) and Frostburg State University (Maryland, USA) have taken place via //GotoMeeting// and //Skype// //videoconference// tools. The project participants have discussed the prospects of their collaboration; they have exchanged information on the learning opportunities their schools provide as well as their professional experience. We expect these meetings to have contributed to creating intercultural awareness and multilingual contacts as part of the overall educational objectives of the project.

The Classroom visit project for the WCCI Special Interest Group in Instructional Technology is supposed to be a success. Students were very enthusiastic about having an opportunity to participate in the international project that supports intercultural awareness, knowledge of the world and Peace education. They believe that this online project may contribute much to creating a technology-based learning environment that provides more active and student-centered learning.

//Working in close collaboration ...//

In the framework of the project, //Prof. M. Ladores// from //Frostburg State University// //(USA)// delivered a lecture to doctoral students doing their course in Logistics, Computer Science and Economics at //Transport and Telecommunication Institute (Latvia)// through GoToMeeting and Skype. The lecture "Tech Tools for Collaboration and Creativity in the Virtual Classroom" was dedicated to New Online Tools applied for communicaton in the virtual classroom: it was very informative in the context of developing non-traditional learnng environments with the aim of using modern instructional technologies for promoting such skills as creativity and innovation, communication and teamwork, information literacy, critical thinking, problem-solving and decision-making. Latvian students are very grateful to Prof. M. Ladores for providing them with a good opportunity to know more about innovative tech tools employed in distance learning systems.

//The lecture is being delivered ...//

In the framework of //Symbols of Peace™// project, a series of online meetings and conversations between teachers and students of Transport and Telecommunication Institute (Riga, Latvia) and Frostburg State University (Maryland, USA) have taken place via //GotoMeeting// and //Skype// //videoconference// tools. The project participants have discussed the topic "Global collaboration". They have exchanged information on the international projects, in which their schools are taking part now. They have also discussed some burning issues such as "Globalisation", "Global warming".

//Communicating online ...//

Nowadays, new demands and pressures are being placed on the higher education institutions in the context of offering their students a variety of learning situations and instructioanl formats. Blending the best of e-learning techniques and classroom instruction can work well for both students and teachers. In the framework of the project, //Dr. Ladores// from //Frostburg State University// //(Maryland, USA)// delivered an online lecture "Online Tools for Supporting Blended Learning" to teachers of //Transport and Telecommunication Institute - TSI (Latvia).// The web conference was held on April 30, 2014 through Blackboard Collaborate. TSI teachers would like to express their sincere gratitude to Dr. M. Ladores for delivering an excellent lecture and appreciate her high level of professionalism. //The lecture is being delivered ...//