The Foreign Service Journal, July-August 2005

F O C U S 64 F O R E I G N S E R V I C E J O U R N A L / J U LY- A U G U S T 2 0 0 5 the DiploFoundation, where I have taught for six years. The foundation is a nonprofit entity whose mission is to assist all countries, particularly those with limited resources, to participate meaningfully in international relations; it is supported by Swiss development aid and also receives project funds from the Commonwealth Secretariat, the European Union and some U.N. agen- cies. The DiploFoundation’s e-training curriculum includes a one-year post-graduate diploma course accredited by the University of Malta (shortly to gain E.U.-wide recognition) and several new 10-week courses begun in 2003. How does such faculty-led teaching work, with a class size of 15 to 25 drawn from 10 or more countries, dis- tributed around the world? Diplo uses sophisticated text- based methods because many of its students — or “par- ticipants,” as Diplo prefers to describe those enrolled in its programs — do not have access to broadband or mul- timedia modes. After reading the lecture (usually about 3,000 words) posted on the class Web page, the partici- pant has two options for written comment or queries. One is “hypertext,” where the student highlights some words or part of a sentence from the lecture text, open- ing a box where he or she can enter a comment or furnish a hyperlink to a relevant Web site. That action modifies the lecture text, and the selected words appear in bright yellow (drawing the attention of other readers); there- after, anyone placing a cursor on that portion finds that a text-box opens, giving the comment and its author. The faculty — or other participants — can then add further observations (or hyperlinks). Thus, a lecture that has been thoroughly reviewed by the class ends up awash with yellow markers. One can also view all the comments in their totality (without opening each text-box), through a “discussion tree.” In addition, the student can choose to receive an e-mail containing the text of each comment or link. An alternative form of comment is the “discussion board” for each lecture. Essentially a blog or a forum, the discussion board provides a platform for open-ended dia- logue or asynchronous (i.e., not in real time) exchanges among the class and its instructor. Typically, each lecture is open to the class for a week, during which time comments are made and the instructor responds. Usually, all the comments are public, visible to the entire class, but an option for private teacher-student comment is also available. Thus each generation of stu- dents and lecturers creates a new layer of meaning and examples, enriching the initial text. Unlike comments made in a traditional class, e-com- ments are accessible anytime, anywhere, and produce a permanent record as well. Online Training at FSI: Leveraging Advances in Technology “In 1993, when FSI moved to its new location at the National Foreign Affairs Training Center, the Instructional Support Division was first established to take advantage of advances in technology that allowed training to be provided by computer,” says Katie Sprang, referring to the pioneering office she now heads. “Over the next several years, FSI moved from analog to digital technology-mediated training,” Sprang explains. “By 1995, we were building entire courses for delivery by computer, primarily via CD-Rom; and in 1999, FSI launched its first fully Web-based course, Russian Reading Maintenance.” In 2003 the Internet-based FSI LearnCenter was established. Today FSI’s Distance Learning unit offers 38 courses produced by FSI and specifically related to foreign affairs topics, including, in particular, a wide variety of languages, and 3,000 commer- cially-produced Fastrac courses online through its FSI LearnCenter portal. By all accounts, e-learning opportunities are being snapped up at a rapidly growing pace, with the FSN community in particu- lar taking advantage of this way of improving professional skills. In 2004, users comprised of Foreign and Civil Service employ- ees, Foreign Service Nationals and Eligible Family Members completed 4,000 courses in FSI LearnCenter compared to 1,700 in 2003. And in 2005, the distance-learning user population has already completed more than 2,500 courses. Online training is obviously both a cost-effective and time-effective supplement to traditional instruction in a face-to-face set- ting. And, as Katie Sprang also notes, “Because the courses are available any time, learning will happen that otherwise would not have happened — and that’s a real benefit.” — Susan Maitra, Senior Editor