Dear Colleagues
This is the second Newsletter of Commission 2 this year. The main issues are some news from Prague PC meeting and Working Week last May, the current and coming activities of Commission 2 – Rosario seminar next Novermber ,WG 2 seminar on Virtual Academy in June 2001 and of course the coming Working Week in Soul next May. Also the planning of the Washington Congress is started and I have some squeezed information also concerning that.
We had a well organized and pleasant working week in Prague. Commission 2 organized one technical session on Wednesday the 24th under the title “New trends in Education and Training”. We also organized three commission meetings, the annual meeting on Monday the 22nd of May and two extra meetings on the work of Working Groups, on Tuesday the 23rd an Open Meeting for Surveying Students and on the Wednesday 24th an Open meeting on the forthcoming workshop on virtual academy.
The main topic in the technical program was Virtual academy. Henrik Haggren and Esben Munk Sörensen gave a presentation on the current status of the establishment of virtual academies in universities. They also invited the audience to participate in the organization and planning of the coming seminar on the topic. Four other interesting papers we re given by Bela Markus, Ales Cepek together with Jposef Hnojil, Jud Rouch and Svatopluk Mihancak. I want to thank all speakers still once for their contribution.
The minutes of Commission annual meeting are in the Appendix 1. In the following some main issues.
Educational Database is now in Internet. You will find it in www.fig.net. It is now easy to join the database by filling the online form. You will then receive your access code and you can start adding course information. If you are an academic member of FIG you can get some extra benefits.
It is very interesting that our sister organizations have similar databases or they are planning to establish them. We should co-operate with ISPRS and ICA Commissions for education on the topic.
Surveyors´ curricula and Virtual academy seem to be the main issues in Commission work.
We had a lively discussion on curricula and came to a conclusion that the result of WG 3 will be some kind of method of approaching surveyors´ curricula around the world. The method is based on the knowledge what we have on curricula but the work should be concentrated more of the method and less be a description of different contents. Jud Rouch will prepare a paper for Soul. Kirsi Virrantaus will assist in outlining the approach. Those who promised to send material concerning curricula, please send it to both Kirsi and Jud (Steven Frank, Stig Enemark, Frances Plimmer) – thank you. Curricula will be the issue also in the coming seminars in Malta and Rosario.
Henrik Haggren and Esben Munk Sörensen will organize a seminar on Virtual Academy in 5.-8. June 2001 in Finland, Espoo, Otaniemi. Please, see WG 2 web site for more information. You will also receive the first announcement of it enclosed in this letter. Also this topic we should work together with ICA and ISPRS. At least we should let the Chairs of Commissions of Education to know what we are doing and try to invite them to participate in out activities.
A new working group with Commission 9 was established under the name “Education of Valuers”. Prof. Kauko Viitanen from Helsinki University of Technology will chair this. This WG was proposed by Commission 2 and 9 together and it was also accepted in the General Assembly.
Soul working week was discussed – more information on Soul Working week later in this letter.
Also Washington congress was discussed – see more details in the minutes.
We will have a minor Commission meeting during the Malta seminar as well as in Rosario. The main topic will be Soul program and also the Workshop and Seminar on Virtual Academy organized by WG 2. We also try to work on the Surveyors´Curricula topic (WG3).
Rosario symposium is organized by Vice-chair Pedro Cavero. See more information also on the web page. The program is already there.
The call for papers is already sent to all national delegates of all commissions. Call for papers is in
www.ddl.org/figtree/events/korea-call-for-papers-htm. The preliminary program is in www.fww2001.or.ko. In Appendix 2 you will find a copy of it. Please, see the deadline for abstracts the 15th of October, 2000. FIG director asks you to send abstracts to the FIG office, but please, send your abstracts also to me, so I can follow the development of our program.
Commission 2 abstracts are invited under the following topics:
Virtual academy
University curricula
Mobile multimedia
3d planning and virtual worlds.
On virtual academy Henrik Haggren will make contacts to potential speakers. So, if you are interested on that topic you can also contact Henrik.
University curricula
-Pedro Cavero reports Latin America
-Jud Rouch reports US
-somebody reports Middle East
-Pedro Cavero, Stig Enemark and Frances Plimmer a paper on CLGE
-Kirsi Virrantaus prepare a paper on the method on approaching curricula
Mobile multimedia will be organized together with Commissions 2,3,5 and 8
3d planning and virtual worlds together with Coms 2,3,5 and 8.
The last two topics will be discussed with the Commission chairs during the Malta seminar next week.
The FIG 2002 Congress is scheduled to be in Washington D.C., 20-27 April, 2002. Both the American Congress of Surveying and Mapping and the American Society for Photogrammetry and Remote Sensing will have their meetings during the same week. The congress director is busy in outlining the topics of the technical sessions. Our topics will be more or less the same than is Soul. Working Groups will also present their results.
The Working Week 2005 was decided to be organized in Cairo, Egypt.
I wish you all a very good fall term
And hope to see at least some of you in Malta next week as well as in Rosario
With best regards
Yours
Kirsi Virrantaus
Appendix 1
Monday 22nd of May, 2000, 14.-17.00, Raisuv Saal
1.Opening the meeting
Kirsi Virrantaus opened the meeting and welcomed 14 participants to the annual meeting of Commission 2.
The agenda was prepared and accepted. Name list of participants was collected (Appendix 1).
2. News and actual topics in Prague
Commission 2 has reported to the 23rd General Assembly about the activities (Appendix 2). Minutes of the last meeting in Sun City was circulated.
3. Educational Database in Internet
Stig Enemark told about the recent news of Educational Data Base. In the next newsletter you will get more information. The main idea is that all institutions will be responsible of updating their information, a password and guidelines will be delivered for all.
The next question with the database is “how to utilize it”. One idea is to market the possibilities for international studies by using the database and create a “network of academic members” which could for example offer possibilities for students exchange and international studies.
4. Working Group work was presented
-WG1 Chris Hoogsteden, Stig Enemark
Stig Enemark reported on the WG1: work will be finished and reported in Washington (Tom Kennie, Chris Hoogsteden and Stig Enemark will prepare a report on management skills/professional competence)
-WG3 Jud Rouch
Jud Rouch reported on the WG 3: there is a need for more information on curricula around the world, Jud gives a paper in Prague but he feels that he needs more support from other members.
We had a lively discussion on curricula. The problems seemed to be that it is either difficult and frustrating only to collect information on different curricula. Maybe we should try to outline some general characteristics of curricula like structure (fixed or flexible), direction (surveying and mapping or real estate management and valuation), technical (giving the practical skills) or professional (going more deeply to the theory) etc… Alkso there are differences in teaching methods, some emphazise learning instead of teaching.
It was mentioned that there is already made work on curricula by CLGE based on the so-called Allan report, but bthis work is only for European community. For example Africa, Latin America, Asia would need support in development of education. Also there is a big difference in the need of surveyors in developed and developing countries.
Several people promised to send material for Jud (and please send it also for Kirsi): Steven Frank (USA), Stig Enemark (DK), Frances Plimmer ( UK) and Svato Michalzak (Slovakia).
One proposal was that a conceptual model of curricula could be made to characterize the contents.
The two seminars of Commission 2 were mentioned (Wuhan and Rosario).
-WG4 Pedro Cavero
Pedro Cavero reported on the work in WG4: main information was about the Rosario Symposium, Argentina, 18.-20.10. 2000, in which everybody was welcomed . Dead line for papers is 31st of May. At the moment there is 10 papers, Stig,Pedro and Kirsi were requested to send abstracts.
We also organize an Open meeting for students on Tuesday the 23rd of May, starting at a7.30. The main purpose of this WG is to encourage students (not only undergraduates but also postgraduates) ans young professionals to participate in FIG. The practical means are for example to give lower fees for students to congresses, organize cheap accommodation etc. However the everlasting problem is the funding. Pedro Cavero has given presentations on FIG for students in Valencia and Helsinki.
-WG2 Henrik Haggren, Esben Munk Sörensen
Henrik Haggren just arrived on time to the meeting and told about the plans in WG2. A Workshop in Virtual Academy will be organized in June 2001, Helsinki. Open meeting on VA, for all who want to join the orgfanization of the workshop or who are interested on VA, on Wednesday the 24th of May , starting 15.30.
The origin of this WG is on Computer assisted learning, on that topic a workshop was already organized in 1996 by Com 2 in Helsinki. Computer assisted learning included all variations from hypermedia based self learning packages to distance learning. Virtual academy concept covers all forms of computer assisted learning. Henrik Haggren explained the different levels of VA : 1)texts and materials into Internet, 2) interactive parts into Internet, exercises and other interactive applications available, 3) projects in which also research is included.
The outcome of this WG will be in the end the concept definition of VA as well as cases.
-New working Group established, Education of Valuers together with Com 9.
5. Program for Soul working week, 6.-11. May, 2001
-amount of sessions 4
-topics
1.Virtual Academy
-papers will be discussed on Wednesday
2.Curricula and international studies
-Pedro Cavero reports Rosario, curricula in Latin America
-Jud Rouch reports the curricula in US
-somebody should report on curricula in Middle East
-Pedro, Stig and Frances a paper on CLGE
3.Education of Valuers (see 6.), Commissions 2 and 7
4.New technology in education – Mobile Multimedia, Commissions 2, 3, 5 and 8
New technology in education – 3d planning, Virtual Models, Coms 2, 3, 5, 8
(Added information after the meeting:
dead line for abstracts 30.12.200 - can be earlier maybe even 31.9.2000
selection of papers 31.1.2001
full papers 28.2.2001
4 papers in one sessions, max 5 sessions per each com
Theme in Korea: New Technology for a New Century)
6. Program and Reports for Washington XXII Congress, 21.-26. April 2002
-Report of Virtual Academy - the form is still unclear
-Report on Curricula including International Studies
-Stig and Frances will present the draft report on “Mutual regognition” in Joint sessions with 1 and 2
Stig Enemark emphasied the importance to organize thematic sessions. Themes for sessions
Virtual Academy, 2 sessions
Curricula & international studies, 2 sessions
Joint session with 9 on Education of Valuers, 1 session
Joint session with 3,5,8 on New Technologies in education
-joint session with 3:spatial data infrastructure
-joint session with 5: field infrosmation systems
Joint session with 1 and Task force for underrepresented groups, 1 session
Gunnar Balle emphasized the necessarity to make high quality presentations, national delegates should work for finding good papers. He also gave nice words for Com 2, (thank you Gunnar!)
(Added information after the meeting: the theme of the congress will be:
Geomatics and Property Valuation for Global Sustainable Development.)
7. Co-operation with other Commissions
-Com 9 Education of Valuers in Developing Countries
-Com 3 joint sessions
-Com 8 joint sessions
-Com 5 joint sessions, Malta seminar
A proposal in Acco meeting: we should have one representative from all other Commissions in Com 2. In the meeting we also recognized that Com 2 should be represented in all other commissions.
8. Co-operation with other organizations
Participation in ICA and ISPRS activities, especially Education commissions, is easy because of active participation to those organizations. International association of geodesists should also be followed as well as realso estate and valuation organizations. We should go through the list prepared in Acco and pick up representatives of all fields of surveying.
9. Other events in the next future
-Malta seminar in September 2000
-working weeks after Washington
Washington 2002
Israel 2003
Greece 2004
Australia/Egypt??? 2005
Germany 2006
10. Other matters
Stig Enemark wanted to emphasize that one of the mains tasks should be in Commission 2 to support surveying education in developing countries.
Commission dinner was decided to be on Wednesday at 19.00. The detailed information on the place will be given on information desk.
11. Closing the meeting, thank you for participation !
Kirsi Virrantaus