In 12 minutes…

1. Using videoconferencing to overcome limitations and to pursue achievement in Trinidad and Tobago's Secondary Public School System Prof. Eliut D. Flores Caraballo, Ph.D.Graduate School of Information Science and TechnologyUniversity of Puerto Rico, Río Piedraseliut.flores@upr.edu1 787 249 4444 Voice / dreliutfloresSkype

2. In 12 minutes… • Trinidad & Tobago and its Public Schools System • The MOE has a goal and a problem • A systemic solution has been identified • Stakeholders were consulted • Needs were identified • Specific uses have been listed • Best practices worlwide were researched • A technical vision was designed • The project is now in the works…

3. Trinidad & Tobago Facts Area total: 5,128 sq km Natural Resources: Petroleum, natural gas, asphalt Population: 1,229,953 Languages: English (official), Caribbean Hindustani (a dialect of Hindi), French, Spanish, Chinese Gained independence from the UK in 31 August 1962

4. Trinidad & Tobago and itsPublicSchoolsSystem • Trinidad and Tobago has adopted important strategies impacting education • Vision 2020 • National ICT Strategy • eGovernment and GoRTT • Secondary Schools Modernization Program (SEMP) • The Caribbean Secondary Education Certificate (CSEC) • The Ministry of Education (MOE) of T&T has • 133 Secondary Public Schools with 5,936 teachers • 478 Elementary Public Schools with 7,427 teachers • 600 Early Childhood Centers with 1,125 teachers • Over 100,000 Public School Students in total

5. The MOE has a goal and a problem •  Vision 2020 • “By the year 2020, … All citizens are assured of a sound, relevant education system tailored to meet the human resource needs of a modern, progressive, technologically advancing nation. Optimum use is made of all the resources of nation” • Trinidad and Tobago’s National ICT Strategy • “Focuses on the development of an innovative, creative and entrepreneurial society that can excel in today’s knowledge based society and global economy”

6. The MOE has a goal and a problem The nation’s population is split over two Islands The country is small, but the road and transportation infrastructure is poor Many teachers lack advanced, specialized, and updated training Many schools need improvements Internet and WAN connectivity for the schools is in the planning stage for deployment in 2009-2010

7. A systemic solution has been identified • Based on systematic analysis, the MOE decided to use ICTs to support significant improvements in their Secondary Public Schools System • MOE WAN • Videoconferencing System • Curriculum modification • Teachers continued professional and ICT education • MOE engaged Dr. Flores to conductresearch leading to the design of the videoconferencing system

8. Stakeholderswereconsulted • Field research was conducted by Dr. Eliut D. Flores during the month of June, 2008 • Research objective: • To interview stakeholders of the Secondary Education Public School System at the MOE senior level and at the schools • Methods used: • Executive in-depth interviews • Focus groups • Onsite visits to several MOE facilities and secondary schools

9. Needswereidentified • The most salient reasons for wanting to use the videoconferencing system are: • The limited road infrastructure of the country makes any trip a challenging effort • Difficult to abandon the classroom or Ministry offices to reach other locations • Going out implies many hours wasted on the road/ship • Tobago constituents have an additional challenge due to the time and money required to find sea or air transport to and from Trinidad • Limited availability of teachers in specialized subjects

10. Specific uses havebeenlisted • We can summarize all respondent opinions around three major uses for the videoconferencing system: • Learning/Teaching • Specialized lectures by remote teachers • National and international collaborative learning • Virtual Field Trips • Substitute teaching • Continued Education • Increase number of teachers in Certification Program • Virtual Meetings • Schools supervisors, Legal Counsel, HR, Teachers’ mentors

11. Bestpracticesworlwidewereresearched • We conducted a thorough literature review of best practices for building K-12 Videoconferencing systems. Among them: • Standards should be adopted for all information and communication technology purchases • A broadband Wide Area Network (WAN) is a major component of the videoconferencing system and it should be connected to a powerful Network Center • Budget high-end, high-definition videoconferencing systems for the schools, integrating document cameras, whiteboards, and TabletPC computers

12. Bestpracticesworlwidewereresearched • More Best Practices: • Develop a multimodal learning-teaching strategy comprising face-to-face, videoconferencing, and eLearning modalities • Presentations can be boring and ineffective whether delivered in person or over a videoconference. Use proper planning and high production values to deliver best results • The institutional schedule of videoconferencing events must be coordinated and respected by all members of the network

13. A technicalvisionwasdesigned • MOE Wide Area Network • 3MB+ Metro Ethernet to each school • Routers/Switches optimized to prioritize video traffic • NOC with redundant bandwidth to the Internet • Centralized firewall • Centralized content filtering for Internet access • Access to several IP Networks • MOE • GoRTT • Universities • Rest of the world

14. A technicalvisionwasdesigned • Network Operations Center • Powerful video server capable of supporting many sites • High Definition and Standard definition switching • Point 2 Point • Point 2 Multipoint • Webcasting • Integration with Exchange eMail Server for automated administration • Streaming server • Capable of recording (i.e., encoding) videoconferencing events, and other video materials, cataloguing them for later retrieval using metadata for each asset

15. A technicalvisionwasdesigned • Schools Videoconferencing System • Dedicated room with proper lighting, temperature and sound proofing • High-Definition IP codec • Dual 42” LCD displays (near/far/collaboration) • Two cameras (students/instructor) • Ceiling Microphones • Sound amplifier and speakers • Tablet PC with Collaboration Software • Document camera • CD/DVD Player

16. Theprojectisnow in theworks… • Detailed technical concept being revised by MOE • RFP will be issued this summer • Schools and MOE WAN in progress • Project adjudication scheduled for the Fall 2009 • System might be divided in stages • Stage 1 should be operational by January 2010 • Additional stages will follow to complete all secondary schools and eventually other levels • Curriculum integration and teacher training will be coordinated accordingly for seamless integration

17. Conclusion • Videoconferencing is a useful strategy to overcome limitations and to pursue achievement in Public Schools • Careful planning, staffing, support, and infrastructure of the overall project is required to harmonize infrastructure, skills and learning • It is preferable to better equip fewer schools than to deploy deficient installations to more schools

18. Muchas gracias! Using videoconferencing to overcome limitations and to pursue achievement in Trinidad and Tobago's Secondary Public School System Prof. Eliut D. Flores Caraballo, Ph.D.Graduate School of Information Science and TechnologyUniversity of Puerto Rico, Río Piedraseliut.flores@upr.edu1 787 249 4444 Voice / dreliutfloresSkype