The Soliya Connect Program
Student cohort
|
Group 1 |
Group 2 |
academic level |
University Students in France
|
University Students in US, Middle East, Europe, North Africa and Indonesia
|
major |
Computer Science, Telecommunications, Applied Maths
|
International relations, Politics, Media studies
|
course subject |
English
|
various
|
mean age |
22
|
|
location of students |
Computer lab at university
|
Computer labs in universities, home
|
native language |
French
|
various (English, Arabic and others)
|
exchange language |
English |
English
|
Brief description and intended outcomes
The Soliya Connect Program is a telecollaboration project which involves students in the West and in the Arab and Muslim world. Through the medium of English, students study and discuss the causes of conflict between East and West. The program is run by the Soliya organization, an NGO based in New York, now part of the UN Alliance of Civilizations, which co-ordinates the universities involved and facilitates discussions between students. The program was an optional module for the English program at ENSIMAG in France. The aim of adopting the Soliya Connect Program at ENSIMAG was to meet the University's language learning requirements and also those of UNESCO's International Education which include the promotion of social responsibility, the acquisition of critical understanding of national and international issues. This was the first time English as a Foreign Language students participated in the Soliya Connect Program. Since then, other EFL students have also participated.
Technologies used
Tool |
Mode |
Other |
Soliya's custom-made Web-conferencing application
Soliya's blog
|
synchronous
|
permits group video-conferencing with group text chat and also private text chat
|
Group 1 blog |
asynchronous |
free - Blogger; only used within Group 1 |
Windows Movie Maker |
asynchronous |
proprietary; used for the collaborative task of creating a video |
Tasks & Phases
The program consists of several tasks.
- Eight weekly 2-hour video-conference discussions moderated by two facilitators, one of whom also is a fluent Arabic speaker. The discussion is summarised by one of the facilitators as it evolves using the text-chat function.
- Assigned Readings for two of the sessions.
- Individual Video assignments. Students are provided with 6 hours of raw footage from Al Jazeera and Associated Press on the Gaza conflict and are required to produce a 3-5 minute 'objective' news report, which is then discussed in one of the video-conferencing sessions. (sample video project 1, 2, )
- Final Essay based on joint project - students were required to exchange information and opinions on a topic of their choice through blogs, interviews or videos and then write an essay on this from both their point of view and that of their partner
- Blogging - Students are encouraged to keep an individual blog on Soliya.net where they can express and share ideas by posting on their own blog and other students' blogs. Group 1students were also asked to comment on a blog created by their instructor to provide him with feedback on the project Soliya-Grenoble blog
Assessment
Students were assessed on their video assignments and final essays. Grading was based 50% on the quality of their English and 50% on the content. Students were also given oral marks for their de-briefing sessions with the tutor and group discussions.
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