March, 1999 TEC Headquarters Relocates to Southern California The move is completed! TEC's corporate headquarters is unpacked and settled in beautiful San Clemente, California, on the coast midpoint between San Diego and Los Angeles. (Address: 31 Segovia, San Clemente, California tel: 949-369-3867) You will hear the friendly voice of Kathleen Bail, office administrator, answering the phones in San Clemente; Donna LoBue, operating TEC in the Bay area, can be reached at 925-691-5650. Donna LoBue VTEC Selected as Developer for TEC Personal Learning Model Providing course material in a student's preferred learning style offers quicker, better learning with a higher retention rate. The question becomes how to ascertain learning styles for online courses. To meet this need, TEC is developing the Personal Learning Model, (PLM), an online learning styles/ multiple intelligences (LS/MI) assessment that will determine a student's preferred learning style and secondary learning modes. The PLM is not a "paper-and-pencil" type test; rather it will be a series of tasks and problems to solve in a virtual environment. The responses will be tracked and built into a LS/MI profile. The profile is tagged, stored in a data base, and passed to an online course so material can be presented in the preferred learning style. After issuing an RFP, TEC has selected the Virtual Technology Education Center (VTEC) from the South Orange County Community College District (SOCCCD) in California to develop the PLM using Asymetrix software. PLM adheres to the EDUCAUSE/Information Management System (IMS) standards, and utilizes object-oriented, reusable learning objects. TEC is currently accepting applicants to be BETA testers for the software. If you are interested in participating in this milestone project, call the TEC office for more details. Training '99 in Chicago TEC, represented by Dr. Carla Lane and Joanne Carle-Accornero, presented to approximately 125 people in the Windy City on February 3rd. Topics of discussion were an overview of learning styles, addressing learning styles through technology, the Advanced Distributed Learning (ADL) initiative, and the how to assess learning styles online. The San Bernardino Student and Teacher Excellence Project (STEP) San Bernardino is one of the few areas in the US chosen to offer its students accelerated science and math programs based on material from NASA. This engaging program enables students to communicate with astronauts and learn complex math and science concepts by solving problems based on actual NASA space travel issues. San Bernardino is committed to providing total educational improvement through the integration of staff development, curriculum development, home access, evaluation and technology/ infrastructure support. TEC is delighted to have been selected as the evaluator of this innovative program with its winning use of technology in the classroom. TeleCon East and TeleCon West TEC has again been selected to produce the TeleCon East (Washington, DC, March) and TeleCon West (Anahaim, CA, Oct ) conferences. These are super- charged shows that feature bleeding-edge technologies, new as well as sophisticated users, educators, business people and government representatives, all focused on using technology to enhance learning. TeleCon East is being held from March 17 through March 19th at the Marriott Wardman Park Hotel in Washington, DC. We hope to see you at the TEC Breakout sessions on Thursday, March 18th, in the Virginia C Conference Room from noon through 5:15 PM! Web-based Instruction Offered Through TEC With an already FULL schedule, how can one keep up with the constant and rapid changes in the distributed learning field? Try a TEC online course specifically designed for the busy professional! Facilitated by Dr. Lane and Joanne Carle-Accornero, developers and instructors for numerous online programs including UCLA and UC Berkeley, the following courses are currently being offered: Introduction to Distributed Learning - 15 hours - asynchronous online and audio conferencing - $59 Using Technology to Address Learning Styles - 15 hours - asynchronous online and audio-conferencing - $59 The textbook for the courses is Guide to Teleconferencing and Distance Learning, 3rd Edition, co-authored by Dr. Carla Lane, which is available through Amazon.com. Course sections will have limited enrollments! For more information and to enroll, call 949-369-3867.