Navigating the Virtual Forest: How Networked Digital Technologies Can Foster Transgeographic Learning

Introduction The Summer Ecosystems Experience for Undergraduates, otherwise known as SEE-U, is a model of the how information technologies can be used to foster global education. It operates under the auspices of Columbia University's Center for Environmental Research and Conservation, CERC, an organization comprised of world-class scientific institutions. It was created through a collaboration with the Columbia Center for New Media in Teaching and Learning, an instructional technology-development center housed at Columbia University; the Center for International Earth Sciences Information Network, an organization that seeks to use information technology to enhance the worldwide effort to examine the impact of humans on the environment; and the Black Rock Forest Consortium, a unique and powerful amalgamation of distinguished academic institutions and science and cultural centers that successfully collaborate to enhance scientific research and education. The SEE-U program was piloted in the summer of 2000. Since that time it has attracted students from across the globe. It is offered in three locations concurrently and is an in-depth field and technology-based introduction to ecology, and environmental studies. Technologies are used in interesting and innovative ways serving as an example for other courses. Students participating in the SEE-U program take advantage of Geographic Position System (GPS) technology to spatially reference data; Geographic Information System (GIS) technology to allow detailed mapping and topographical representation of data; modeling software for the visualization of and experimentation with data; detailed computer networking; online research; digital lectures and demonstration videos; synchronous and asynchronous discussions with students across geographic borders; and an advanced database technology that is multi-query able. Operating across field sites, students use the power of networked digital technologies to compare and analyze data, develop hypothesis, and communicate and collaborate with learners that are geographically distant. Literature Review The current impact of technological innovation extends farther and deeper than at any other time in our history. These advances have altered the very constructs of space and time and have changed visibility, making it global in scope. The result has engendered a growing number of international learning communities. These communities open up a world of educational possibilities replete with symbolic interactions that cross geographic borders. Through well-developed globally networked technologies, educators and learners worldwide interact in courses and projects that cross cultural divides, encourage collaboration, develop broader perspectives, and foster intellectual discourse (Buzzetto-More, 2005). Research conducted by McIsaac (1993) found that the use of information technologies in the fostering of global education is a highly effective means for encouraging educational empowerment. He explained that, although numerous methodologies can be employed in the use of networked digital technologies to create global learning communities, there are issues that must be addressed. According to McIsaac, these issues include language; pedagogy; technological accessibility, usability and reliability; motivation; and project cost and practicality. Research studies have shown that people learn through meaningful interactions with others (Johnson & Thomas, 1994). A major goal of global education is the creation of learning communities that use technology to stimulate meaningful discourse between and among cultures (McIsaac, 1993). Bhatti, Tubaishat, and El-Quawasmeh (2005) found that technology mediated learning environments can help students overcome social and cultural limitations in higher education. Technology and global-education partnerships can provide students with nontraditional learning experiences, and perhaps no subject matter is better suited for technology incorporation then science education (Buzzetto-More, 2005). …