Developing a training programme for video conferencing: Project Invite John Morgan University of Wales Aberystwyth

1. Developing a training programme for video conferencing: Project Invite John Morgan University of Wales Aberystwyth Hana Katrňáková, Alena Hradilová, Libor Štepánek, Masaryk University in Brno, Czech Republic With Barbora Budíková (MU), Janice de Haaff & Martin Ashe-Jones (UWA) http://users.aber.ac.uk/jpm jpm@aber.ac.uk http://conference.hil.no/content/download/348/3091/file/John%20Morgan.pdf

2. Scope of the presentation • Introduce Invite Project and identify our theoretical • foundation of a communities of practice perspective • of video conferencing • Identify the needs of SME project partners and the • academic practices that inform ongoing development • Identify a link between communities and “social • telepresence” • Indicate user responses to early VCs as barriers to • telepresence and discuss how an evolving sense of • community can provide a sense of social • telepresence, despite limitations in technology

3. Invite: an innovative learning infrastructure • 2 year EU funded project (Leonardo da Vinci) • Seven project partners in Czech Republic, • UK, Spain, Italy & Slovakia: 3 universities, • 4 SMEs • Aim: to provide a training programme, • materials and learning infrastructure for SME • partners in effective practices in video • conferencing and to disseminate research • and development findings

4. Framework for project development • The project is based on video conference • initiatives between Masaryk University in Brno • and University of Wales Aberystwyth • Students design team-based projects and • hold discussions and presentations via • video conference • Ongoing development of VC methodologies • is derived from user responses in relation to • working theory of literacies development in • video conferencing (Morgan, 2005)

6. Project needs analysis (SME 1) • ILLE, Lozorno, Slovakia (education and training) • Educational visits by US business students • Presentations in companies • Preparation for meeting companies • Intercultural communication • Need guidelines for initial use and effective practices, along with equipment and layout of video conferencing “spaces”

7. Project needs analysis (SME 2) • Tart Ltd., Brno, Czech Republic (packaging and • packaging machines) • Multinational company rapidly expanding into • international markets • Effective communication with international • partners • Reducing costs and delays of travel • Communication with subsidiaries, company • management, sales representatives: mostly meetings

8. Project needs analysis (SME 3) • Seven Partners, Udine, Italy (European project • organisation and management) • Internal needs: employees and partners deal with • weekly agendas and solve problems • Employees need to chair/facilitate video meetings, • with effective uses of turn-taking and other • communication skills • External needs: communicating with other clients • to create working groups to solve problems and • set project agendas. Keen to develop “mentality • training” (a culture of engaging with new media)

9. Project needs analysis (SME 4) • Českomoravský Cement, Brno, Czech Republic • Leading manufacturer of cement • Significant experience with video conferencing • with good levels of equipment and technical support • Meetings and negotiations for import and export of • materials and finished products • To develop further training opportunities and • communication skills for employees

10. Elective transferability • Return to the classroom • To gain experience of the development of video • literacies we have set up an action research • framework for analysis of communication and • “elective transferability” of communication • practices • Elective transferability refers to user responses • to watching recordings of their own conferences • with a view to developing a team-based and • individual critical design for subsequent video • conferences without significant facilitator • intervention

11. Obstacles and responses • Elective transferability can be used as an important • methodological orientation of the of training materials • We are not able to engage partners in many • development activities and they expect delivery of • materials at the end of the two year project • This means that we have to identify transferable • methodology and activities from our own classroom • and academic practices • User responses and sample VC scenarios that are • beginning to motivate partners indicate that this is not • as problematic as originally expected

12. The possibility of telepresence • Current video conferencing research and development • focuses very much on the concept of telepresence • It is commonly seen as a set of technologies that • enables users to feel that there are no barriers • between remote user groups • Hi definition technologies are clearly increasing the • potential for powerful simulation and/or telepresence • Here it is argued though that telepresence can be • achieved quite easily with very limited technologies

13. Cyberculture • Studies in cyberculture have long identified concepts • such as mental and emotional telepresence • Trudy Barber (2004), “Travelling on-line: encounters with cyberculture”. • Online Education and Training. Institute of Education, • University of London • Physical telepresence is achieved through • sensation and imagery • Emotional telepresence is achieved by • suspension of disbelief • Mental telepresence is achieved through • intellectual engagement • Social telepresence is achieved through a • sense of belonging to a community

15. From communities of practice… • Shared history • Collective identity • Reciprocal obligations • Discourse new VC participants may not have a distinct sense of shared history some elements of e.g. being students can give a sense of collective identity, but specific aspects may be very different at this level of mutual awareness new communities can bond more easily the patterns of interaction that emerge may vary significantly from group to group Based on Mercer (2000)

16. …to socially telepresent communities • … Shared history Collective identity  • Reciprocal obligations Discourse … • It would be easy to assume that this is a linear process, but even in physically present communities we can enter the cycle at any stage • It could be argued that new VC participants enter the emerging community at the awkward stage of reciprocal obligations and that a sense of belonging through the emergence of identity and/or history breaks down virtual barriers towards a feeling of social telepresence

17. Photographing social telepresence: 1

18. Photographing social telepresence: 2

19. Photographing social telepresence: 3

20. From academic to professional • Elective transferability strategies bridge the gap between academic and professional life • Acquisition allows participants to individualise communication for specific audiences and partners towards the enabling of social telepresence • “You can really involve the people on the other side of the discussion” • “I think it is the same as speaking in front of a real audience” • “The most important thing I learned is not to panic”

21. Continuing research • The next stage of theoretical work in the Invite Project is to analyse and code numerous hours of video recordings • The samples will initially be analysed from • language & negotiation perspectives • social & cultural factors • operational & technical dimensions • The results will inform ongoing development of project and will also be used to refine the theoretical framework presented here

22. Working papers and conference links • Welsh Video Network Conference, Aberystwyth, 2005:    • Diverse Conference, Glasgow, 2006:    • Invite Project web site:    • Live Sociology photographic essay:    • Video Funet Conference, Tampere, 10th-11th May, 2007:    • Diverse Conference, Lillehammer, 27th-29th June, 2007:    • Diverse Conference, Haarlem, 2008 • As the local organiser of the Diverse Conference, June 2009, I would like to “invite” everybody to • Abersytwyth in 2009:   

23. Acknowledgements The work presented here could not be done without the help of: Video conference participants EL27720 & Foundation students, University of Wales Aberystwyth English language students, Masaryk University, Brno Invite Project partners in the Czech Republic, Spain & UK Hana Katrnakova, Masaryk University, Brno Alena Hradilová, Masaryk University, Brno Libor Štěpánek, Masaryk University, Brno Barbora Budiková, Masaryk University, Brno Santiago Posteguillo, Universitat Jaume I, Castellón Janice de Haaff, UWA Martin Ashe-Jones, UWA Technical support team in Aberystwyth: Tom Fernandez, Information Services, UWA Nigel Thomas, Information Services, UWA Martin Pugh, Information Services, UWA Geoff Constable, Welsh Video Network & Information Services, UWA

24. References • Baron, N.S. (1998). “Letters by Phone or Speech by Other Means: The Linguistics of E-mail”. • Language and Communication: 18, Pp.133-170. • Constable, G. (date not provided). “Guidelines for Successful Video Conferencing” [online]. • Available from: http://users.aber.ac.uk/ccc/vc-guidelines.pdf (Accessed 7th June, 2005). • Video Technology Advisory Service (date not provided). “UKERNA Video Conferencing • Meetings User Guide: A General Guide for Participants, Facilitators and Chairpersons” [online]. • Available from http://www.video.ja.net/usrg/ (Accessed 7th June, 2005). • Coles, M. & Hall, C. (2001). “Breaking the Line: New Literacies, Postmodernism and the Teaching • of Printed Texts”. Reading: November, Pp.111-114. Oxford: Blackwell. • Kress, G. & Van Leeuwen, T. (2001). Multimodal Discourse: The Modes and Media of • Contemporary Communication. London: Arnold. • Lankshear, C. & Snyder, I. with Green, B. (2000). Teachers and Technoliteracy: Managing • Literacy, Technology and Learning in Schools. St. Leonards, Sydney: Allen and Unwin. • Goffman, E. (1981). Forms of Talk. Oxford: Blackwell. • Mercer, N. (2000). Words and Minds: How We Use Language to Think Together. London: • Routledge.