Original Query from Sherman Okan, Brandeis Osher Lifelong Learning Institute, Brandeis University, Waltham, Massachusetts
Do any LIRs offer interactive courses via video technology to distant locations outside of their own institutions? By this I mean for instance a group discussion with a famous author in New York City transmitted live to other LIRs with the members of the other group having the ability to question the author or comment on the event as if they were present on site. The audience off site would see themselves and the home base audience on a large TV screen. I have experienced this once at a community library event but have never heard of this being available for LIRs.
What I’d like information about in particular is…
Whether LLIs use, or have used, Distance Learning for any courses?
If so, for what courses?
What the results have been?
Whether more Distance learning courses are contemplated?

From Wendy Kerr, Senior Centre, Ryerson University, Toronto, Canada
I am responding to your query sent through the Elderhostel Institute Network located in Boston regarding the utilization of Distance Education for seniors. We currently offer several online courses through our Senior Centre (www.seniorcentre.ca), which is housed out of Ryerson University in Toronto Canada. We offer courses in Memoir Writing (learning how to write your memoirs), Exploring the Arts (Learning about Art using the internet), News Views (discussion of current events with other seniors), Old Age Isn't for Sissies (where the myths associated with aging are discussed), Environmental Focus (several key issues regarding the environment are presented for discussion), Family, Friends and Intimacy (discusses the varying family units and the impact of each on society), and an Interactive Memoir Writing Course (a more intensive approach to memoir writing with strong emphasis on group participation). We are currently developing a Gerontology course, a world Religions course and a Memoirs Workshop (advanced tips in memoir writing). Although we are not currently communicating in our courses via video technology, we do use both a discussion board and chat to promote participation in our online courses. Our newer courses place a strong emphasis on participation and we have seen quite a lot of success using these communication mediums (discussion forum and chat). All of our courses are developed and mediated by seniors as well. Generally, we have between 15-80 senior students/ per semester (three semesters per year) students that register for each of our online courses and we usually run 3-4 courses at one time.

From Diane Nast, University for Seniors, University of Minnesota Duluth
I'm responding on behalf of Carole Schweiger, our LLI's program associate who is currently on leave. We do not have any ITV (Interactive Television, our term for this kind of long-distance class delivery) set up with any distant areas yet, however, we are investigating the possibilities. As you can imagine, northern Minnesota has many remote areas with whom we'd like to connect in some way. Because I am only a substitute for this position, I have not worked on this project as yet. I am familiar with University for Seniors, having worked with the program in the past, but my only exposure to ITV has been assisting a co-worker with some minor details for an engineering
management course that was delivered to remote areas via this method. For more detail on the scope and timeline of the project, I recommend talking with Mary Lee Lalich, the Director of University for Seniors.

From Leonie Gordon, Harvard ILR, Harvard University, Massachusetts
Have LLIs use or have used Distance Learning for any courses?
We have offered distance learning courses for several years, since spring 2001.
If so, for what courses?
Courses have been on "Themes in Art," and "Gian Lorenzo Bernini"
"Science Today," and "Masterpieces of Art in Our Local Museums"
"Frank Herbert's Dune" (S02); "The Uffizi Gallery: A Virtual Tour" (both on-line and in-class)
What the results have been?
On-line classes have drawn few participants. Most favor the face-to-face experience where interactions are natural and don't require careful, edited responses. However, members embrace the concept of being housebound or in another climate and being able to stay in touch.
Whether more Distance learning courses are contemplated?
Yes, utilizing Harvard Continuing Education's state-of-the-art facilities.

From Art Sherman, Berkshire Institute for Lifelong Learning, Massachusetts
The Berkshire Institute for Lifetime Learning (BILL) received an announcement re. the availability of a program along the lines described by the writer several months ago. I believe it originated from the 92nd St. Y in NYC, and described the program and associated equipment issues. It sounded very much like the program described in your email to the LLI's. We did not pursue this at this time, having a rather full program plate for the foreseeable future. We are however interested in revisiting the concept, but would like to see how this program actually works to convey a real learning experience beyond our current curriculum models.

During our fall '01 semester, we did agree to serve as a Beta test site for a very interesting distance learning program. At that time, two courses based on advanced technology were offered in addition to those described in our conventional catalog. They were, "Alexander the Great and the Greek World," presented by Professor Guy Rogers of Wellesley College and "Understanding Mass Media," presented by Professor Darrell West of Brown University. Each course was limited to ten members. In addition to the unique learning experience, comments offered by members were to guide us for future development and possible broader offerings of such programs.

Global Education Network (GEN), a company begun under the aegis of Herb Allen and Professor Mark Taylor of Williams College, was founded to develop and distribute high quality liberal arts courses over the Internet. Working with well-crafted courses from established and respected professors at leading universities GEN had integrated them into emerging Web teaching technologies. These included the capability for interactive exercises, distributed student feedback, advanced animation, video and superb lectures.

The programs were divided into specific learning sessions and could be accessed from any computer location at any time through proper identification; it was not necessary to assemble as a group at a specific time or place. However, in order to evaluate the content and acceptability of the program as it went along, two or three get-togethers of people taking the course were arranged. The two programs we tried were excellent and of very high quality. However, we encountered what for us were serious issues. First--a high speed Internet access was required. At the time, this area of Berkshire County was minimally wired for such access; it being available for most people only in the computer labs at Berkshire Community College. So it was necessary to come to the school when these facilities were not in use. For most people, this mitigated the concept of learning on their own, away from a formal classroom. At that time also, and to some extent still, there are many older people who have not achieved a degree of computer literacy.

Second--we found that our people, although they enjoyed the courses, missed the social interaction that occurs through attendance at a "normal" BILL course. Therefore, under any circumstances this might be offered only as an adjunct to current curriculum models and might not achieve participation levels sufficient to justify the costs.

Third--the potential costs of the program were not well defined since GEN was then in an early formative stage. Our Beta test programs were pursued without charge. We subsequently received cost estimates that did not make the program viable for us as a standalone entity, given the other issues noted above. We did however, refer GEN to EIN to explore with other LLI's the possibility of further development of the concept and I believe they did make contact there. We did not follow this to its end. At some point in the future, we may wish to revisit this issue. Given the material we received from the 92nd St. Y (?), and comparing it to the potential learning content of the GEM type programs, I would find the latter to be more in keeping with the goals of our programs.

From Kali Lightfoot, OLLI, University of Southern Maine
1. Whether LLIs use, or have used, Distance Learning for any courses?
We have done one interactive TV course, broadcasting from USM to 4 other Senior Colleges around the state of Maine.
2. If so, for what courses?
It was a course on the Book of Job from Carl Jung's perspective. Taught by Rabbi Harry Sky. We used the ITV system, a system whereby the speaker is broadcast from our site to classrooms in the remote Distance Ed. sites. The speaker cannot see the students at the remote sites, but they can use a phone line to ask questions. We set it up so that Rabbi Sky spoke for about an hour, taking some questions at the beginning, middle and end of his time. Each remote site had found a volunteer discussion leader from among their membership. The second hour of the course was offline discussion at each of the sites. The course was spread over 5, 2-hour sessions so at the beginning of each session groups called in any questions that had arisen in the discussion the time before.
3. What the results have been?
The University has a "compressed video" (CV) system which is fully interactive...the speakers and students can see and talk with the other students at the remote sites...this would have been a much better experience than the ITV system was. The advantage of the ITV system was that the classrooms are bigger. The CV classrooms can only accommodate 5-10 students in each site. The ITV system was cumbersome. The speaker found it weird not to be able to see all of his students. Having to call in a question and then watch the speaker answer it was an awkward, halting system for the remote students. All of that being said, people still enjoyed the class and felt that they had learned from it. Everybody agreed they liked the on-site discussions, which I think were crucial to the success of the endeavor.
4. Whether more Distance learning courses are contemplated?
None of the Senior Colleges were interested in participating again when we asked. We may try it again with a CV course rather than an ITV course, but we need to find an interested and interesting topic and leader.