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Professor Robert Hogan's Rainforest Webinar: Live from Micronesia

By IGI Global on Jul 23, 2012
Chapter 1: The Disaster

I awoke at 3AM in a rain forest in Micronesia, the rainiest place on Earth. I was there doing an e-Learning consultancy, and had agreed to do a webinar for IGI Global. I dressed quickly, grabbed my umbrella, and headed in the rain to the local Telecomm. The security guard let me just in in time to prepare for my 5AM webinar! You may wonder why I needed to travel to telecomm in the middle of the night? The answer--the college Internet speed was too slow, and my home electrical supply was too unreliable. Still- that does not explain why I was about to give a 5AM webinar- that comes later.

Back to the story! I got to use the Telecomm facility by a grand accident. You see, I had met its president months earlier at a notorious establishment in Pohnpei, the Rusty Anchor. When IGI Global asked me to do a webinar on transnational distance learning, I called and reintroduced myself to the Telecomm president. He graciously said, "Sure come in. My secretary will give you the key the day before, and the security guard will let you in the building in the morning."

I looked forward to the webinar because the message was important and the webinar had been designed to be effective. It was organized, interactive, and had a well-designed PowerPoint presentation. I was ready because a most wonderful IGI lady, Princess Ann, had worked tirelessly with me to prepare me for the webinar.

And then it happened--disaster struck! My headset created echoes, squeaks, and squeals like the island pigs. I was devastated at losing the opportunity to discuss my global experience and my new book Transnational Distance Learning Marketing Opportunities for Universities. I sent the Telecomm President a thank you bottle of wine. When colleagues asked how the webinar went, I mumbled, trying not to blush.

Chapter 2: A Second Chance

To my surprise, I received a call from IGI-Global that New Zealand and Australian e-Learning experts wanted to hear the webinar, but not in the middle of the night. By this time, I was back in the United States. We set up the webinar for noon Sydney, which is 10PM EST. This second webinar was flawless.

Chapter 3: Lessons Learned

Webinars and transnational distance learning require that we take into account global time differences. I have retired from doing any more 5AM webinars. After all, 9AM in York is midnight in Fiji. Synchronous classes present special challenges. As learning goes transnational, the model must change.

Lesson learned: always be prepared for Internet emergencies in developing countries. A bar of chocolate or a bottle of wine can help.

Professor Robert Hogan of Walden University was previously an associate professor at the University of the South Pacific where he developed online learning courses and researched transnational distance learning in developing countries. His research resulted in a $100,000 World Health Organization grant to develop a blended and mobile learning program for emerging-island students. He was also awarded a $500,000 FIPSE grant to develop online partnerships among colleges in France, Germany, Spain, England, and the United States.

Professor Hogan currently resides in California, still very involved in developing distance education programs for universities, enjoying his brand new MacBook. To view his symposium with IGI Global, click here.

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