Ref: 022502

The Scandinavian - Russian partnership in networking and distance learning: next steps

Anatoly Lifshits

Introduction

At EUNIS'95 Congress in Dusseldorf the author has stressed the great importance of distance learning and networking for Russian enormous territory. Being the representative of one of educational institutions of Russian North West author has made a call for collaboration to the Scandinavian countries (EUNIS'95 congress, pp 55-71).

This call to collaboration was heard by Finnish colleagues in 1996 and now we have prepared a common Finnish-Swedish-Norway-Russian project in networking and distance learning. The target sectors are business and management for SME's -Small and Middle Enterprises.

The time of organising such common project in 1997-1998 was a good period due to European commission had decided at that time to develop several projects in the field of Cross-Border Co-operation (CBC) and gave special grants for such projects.

The Euro-Arctic Region - the ìNorth-Topî of Europe where are gathered the borders of the northern parts of Norway, Sweden, Finland and Russia is one of the most suitable region for CBC both from the geographical point of view and from the economical one. Therefore there was organised special CBC project called Interreg Project. One of its part is targeted to the development of telecommunications. The paper describes the under-mentioned project concerning to this part of CBC.

Scope

National and regional Chambers of Commerce and Industry (CCI) and surrounding them SME's of the above-mentioned four countries form the common virtual Euro-Arctic Chamber of Commerce. Naturally to serve this Chamber there is necessary to organise the integrated telecommunication network that gives the possibility for their collaborative economical activities. So described project is aimed at organising of such international telecommunication network and to use it in business and trade.

The main participants are: Kemi-Tornio Polytechnic (Finland), Rovaniemi Polytechnic (Finland), Telia Nera and Interbiz (research and project companies in Sweden), Murmansk Technical University (Russia), Murmansk research company in computer science ìComplex Systemsî (Russia), Karelian University (Petrozavodsk, Russia), Vocational Renewal Centre ìManagement and Computer Technologiesî (St.Petersburg, Russia) and Chambers of Commerce and Industry in above-mention sites. This project is financed by CBC (Interreg) program of European Union concerning Euro-Arctic Region. Sweden and Finland financed their parts as the members of European Community, the Russian part is financed by TACIS but from special CBC fond, Norway should pay their part from their own budget.

The ultimate goal of this project is to increase the exchange of information and international marketing of enterprises' activities and business opportunities in the Barents Euro-Arctic region for SME's by telecommunications.

The special goals of this scientific, teaching and business oriented project are:
* to establish telecommunication system (including Internet) in Euro-Artic region;
* to provide the information communications with information transformation of the national commerce and industry databases using Internet and Russian RBC-NET;
* to provide the distance learning courses for managing target groups in above-mentioned countries in Euro-Arctic region.

The main difficulties in research part of this project deal with developing of suitable telecommunication system for information exchange regarding that Russia and EU countries use different standards and formats of databases and information exchange systems. The CCI's and SME's in western countries use Internet wherever the Russian customers mainly had only E-mail in the best case. Big cities as St. Petersburg and Petrozavodsk are the exceptions. These difficulties will be overcome due to establishing special information analytical center in Russian institute ìComplex Systemî in Murmansk. The educational distance learning process for all participated countries will be managed by Vocational Renewal Centre in St. Petersburg through auxiliary groups in Tornio (Finland), Murmansk and Petrozavodsk (Russia). (See fig. 1)

Fig. 1

Work packages

The project includes several work-packages. Each work-package has one responsible partner and several active partners involved.

The following work packages are thoroughly prepared now:
* User-need analysis
* Specification
* Developing
* Education
* Verification
* Demonstration
* Exploitation

The brief overview of the main of them is presented.

User-need analysis.
There are two main types of users in this project:

+ the end-users from the small and medium enterprises (SME) in each country participated;

+ the Chambers of Commerce and Industry (CCI) in the same places.

The CCI's also may be divided into two classes:

+ the CCI's, who will be responsible for electronic publications;

+ the other CCI's.

User-need analysis was made in several sectors and include the assessment of information, technical (including telecommunications, hard and software) and educational needs. The stress was put on the peculiarities of development of the virtual WWW-site called Euro-Arctic Chamber of Commerce and Industry (EACCI).

Specification. Specification includes three main phases: pilot studies, substance design and solution design.Pilot studies include: present status analysis, objective status analysis and project design.

Substance analysis includes: notion analysis, task flow analysis, inter-actions design, user interface design, form design, access path analysis, data storage analysis, data communications design.

Solution design includes: normalisation, file design, database design, cartage group analysis, design of processing regulations, design of integration of Russian databases to EACCI.

Developing. The main part of this phase of project includes the establishment of the Analytical - Informational Centre in Murmansk and development of computerising technologies for electronic exchange of information in Barents Euro-Arctic region via Internet. The objectives are to design, to develop and to create communications and exchange of documents between the Chambers in EACCI, to create common site for electronic publications, to develop informational data bases for EACCI and to develop infrastructure of EACCI, in order to serve SME's in EACCI.

Education. The educational part of the project was done under leadership of the Vocational Renewal Centre (VRC) ìManagement and Computer Technologiesî from St. Petersburg due to its experience in distance learning.

The educational target groups are:

* personnel of the active CCI in EACCI, who will be responsible for electronic publications and the future system of EACCI;

* personnel of the other CCI in EACCI;

* personnel of other regional SME's;

* technicians and other persons to be involved in project developing (on the consultation level).

The main educational objectives of the project are:

1. To develop the educational methodology and training methods and to prepare the following materials:

+ the training programme;

+ the course modules for the above-mentioned target groups;

+ the training materials;

+ the business game;

+ the appropriate CD ROM containing the above mentioned courseware and issues.

2. To provide the training of trainers (face to face and telematic workshops, seminars, consultations).

3. To provide the pilot course for the above-mentioned target groups in each participated country.

Before the beginning of the preparing the training materials it was necessary to analyse:

+ the peculiarities of how to use telematic services and how to organise both in-country and international business for SME's in Russian part of Arctic region to be covered;

+ hardware, software and information solutions to be provided for the East-West communications for SME in EACC project;

+ previous similar educational projects;

+ the possibilities of using the results of pervious similar educational projects (using INTERNET etc.)

The economical and geographical peculiarities of the project, the composition and disposition of the users' main principal role of telecommunications defines the distance learning as the main learning technology in this project.

Training courseware

The training materials to be done will include work-book for students, the trainer's guide, the business game documentation and the CD ROM.

The work-book should be done in modular form and should include the necessary basic information, learning materials and exercises for the activities in most useful topics for target groups: accessing the market; preparing the product for the electronic market; electronic publication in progress; looking for necessary information in electronic data base; in-country business through electronic communications; international business throughout electronic communications; information retrieval; security; billing etc. In every module the most appropriate telematic application should be chosen and practical exercises should be included.

The business game will be an important part of learning process. It will be prepared in order to give hand-on practice in using of different telematic applications in the CCI's and SME's business. The appropriate modern software and information solutions should be taken into account within different project activities.

All necessary documents are to be prepared: the games project, scenario, time plan, game's programs, participant's guide etc.

The target group in the business game are:
+ personnel of CCI's;
+ personnel of SME's
+ personnel of Murmansk information analytical centre.

The CD ROM has to include all essential information in electronic form to provide training process of upper-minded target groups and also to self-study. The CD ROM will detail the contents, the material and structure, as well as the technical aspects such as the media (text, video, animation, still images etc.), hardware and software platforms to be used.

The CD ROM should contain training support tools during the standard course and also a self-training stand-alone tool for users of upper-mind target groups who either will not attend the EACC courses, or who will repeat the learning material.

The trainer's guide includes the methodology, programme and techniques of training process. It will also include in details the training instructions to all lessons, practical works and business game.

As to language - the course materials and CD ROM will be prepared firstly in English and after verification will be adapted upon the nationals needs and translated by partners into the national languages if necessary.

Distance learning activity

The learning process will be distributed in space and time. The central control class is planned to be organised in VRC in St. Petersburg, where all necessary educational and telematic equipment will be installed.

In each national or regional district there will be established smaller local classes also equipped with all the necessary but not so sophisticated tools. Each SME to be participated in pilot course should be at least equipped with computer, modem, telephone with loudspeaker and fax. Each CCI should have necessary networking and computer equipment.

After preparing the training materials, technical and software telecommunication the educational process envisages the following parts:
+ selection pilot trainers national and regional pilot trainers;
+ providing the first international face to face workshop to the trainers;
+ selection the national and regional training groups;
+ preparing the regional classes to the pilot groups;
+ delivering the training materials for both trainers and trainees;
+ providing the international and regional telematic workshop to the trainers;
+ providing the pilot course for the target groups;
+ providing the final face to face international, national and regional seminar after pilot course;
+ preparing necessary updating in the learning materials;
+ preparing the educational training programme for the follow up period after the project will be finished.

Discussion

As numerous research groups around the world are refining the art of creating telematic-based co-operation, and several have proven to be quite effective, there is a growing consensus among researchers and practitioners that more should be done in the form of international collaboration and joint innovative projects. Especially it is important for distance learning.

But there are many difficult problems on this way. Russian specific economical, historical and cultural features and traditions contribute also into the complexity of the research and development scope. Also educational theorists are in need of tools for evaluating new educational strategies and alternative curriculum models. But the successful maintenance and finishing of the described will help to develop coherent educational experience.

Telematic itself has now rather poor methodological level. Current, "information base" models of information access, particularly for the evolving Global Information Network and World Wide Web are limited. To be organised effectively telematic projects must has access to, and facility with, modern specialised systems, software and interfaces. The project will work to take advantage of - and drive - the technological collaboration in the Euro-Arctic region and evolution of the Global networking. We propose the development and dissemination of educational programs that are rich in use of media and easy to use, adopting a more familiar, television -like `look and feel'. Moreover, these programs will teach: they can provide coherent and comprehensive information about new forms and ways of international business, assist the learner in information retrieval and provide a basis for further learning.

Now there is a growing demand for co-operation in life long and open learning. This project is a first step to wider and closer collaboration in this field. We do hope it will help to analyse the problems embedded in such a radical change of the role of telematic and the obstacles for such change.

Acknowledgements

I would like to express my especial gratitude to Dr. E. Pekkarinnen Kemi-Tornio Polytechnic for the inviting in the common EACCI project and support in productive common work. This article was written using the material of common ACCI project and I would like to thank Ms. Sharlotte Eder from NCC, Lulea, Dr. Timo Tolvanen - Studio Willage, Finland; Dr. Perti Lakkala Rovaniemi Polytechnik, Dr. S. Semionov and Dr. N. Kumashowa North CCI, Murmansk, Dr. V. Mishkin. Dr. A. Orlov, Dr. I. Uvarova, JSC ìKomplex Systemî, Murmansk for useful and interesting materials and discussions during preparing the project. I thank Prof. Dr. Tatiana Gavrilova VRC, St. Petersburg for the help in preparing of this article.