CECS 5400

Educational Telecommunications 

Fall 2002 

Assignments

Assignment #1

What is telecommunications? What is education?

Description:

Discuss issues on telecommuications and education. Send assignment information using three different electronic interfaces.

Turn In:

  1. Send an introductory e-mail message about yourself to your instructor at gknezek@tenet.edu and Dana at arrowood@coefs.coe.unt.edu.
  2. Briefly discuss the difference between telecommunications over distance vs. telecommunications over time. 
  3. Can you give an example of each in your local environment? 
  4. How is distance vs. time related to the concepts of asynchronous vs. synchronous communication? 
  5. Give an example of asynchronous and synchronous communications being used in the classroom (the examples can be electronic or non-electronic in nature). 
  6. Use web resources such as howstuffworks.com to justify your answer if you wish.
    7.
    Post your opinion to your group's on-line discussion system (< 2 page).
  7. When both of the above items are complete, send a message to the instructor's cell phone. 
    8. Your instructor's cell phone number is 940-594-0331
    His cell phone is on the Voicestream networkand you can find out how to send it a message on their home page www.voicestream.com. 
  8. On your group's on-line discussion system reply to at least two postings on this assignment. Provide meaningful comments.
Due Date: September 10th, 2002

Value: 10 points

Assignment #2

Voice Telecommunications. (including phone line data transfer)

Description:

Discuss and describe bandwidth issues and their impact in education.

Turn In:

  1. Why is the theoretical limit on the speed of a traditional modem in the neighborhood of 28.8-56K? Why do cable modems or DSL not have to comply with that limit?


    2. What is the Digital Divide and how is it tied to the question above on bandwidth. Should educators be worried about the Digital Divide? How can the Digital Divide impact your school and classroom.

    Compose your answer electronically in 5-6 paragraphs and post it to your group's on-line discussion system.

  2. On your group's on-line discussion system reply to at least two postings on this assignment. Provide meaningful comments.
Due Date: September 24th, 2002

Value: 15 points

Assignment #3

Data Communications

Description:

Using wireless technology, connect a computer (your laptop or other system) to the Internet. Discuss the ramification of wireless communications. Also explain implementation issues as discussed in the reading materials.

This assignment will be tailored for each remote group's access to technology.
Turn In:
  1. E-mail your designated clinical faculty a graphic organizer for the topology and connectivity involved in the connection. (Inspiration or another tool would be a good software package to use). 


    2. Discuss in the e-mail your thoughts of the process and how you would instruct the process to someone else. 

    How is wireless communications effecting your teaching now and how do you think it will effect it in the future ?

  2. Briefly explain why a direct tv high-speed data link might not be the best Internet Service Provider (ISP) to hook up with if your primary use is participating in on-line real-time collaborative communications? Include a discussion of the Bill Gates proposal of a few years back for 800 low earth orbit satellites for multimedia access. 


    3. Compose your answer electronically in 3-4 paragraphs and post it to your group's on-line discussion system.

  3. On your group's on-line discussion system reply to at least two postings on this assignment. Provide meaningful comments.
  4. Calculate how long a (full duplex) computer connection would take to echo back from an AOL mainframe in Honolulu (to Dallas) if the connection was a) undersea cable vs. b) geostationary satellite. 


    5. E-mail your designated clinical faculty. 

Due Date: October 8th, 2002

Value: 15 points

Assignment #4

Teleconferencing and On-line Collaborative Systems

Description:

Take part in a on-line 3D immersive distributed learning experience using the Created Realities Group (CRG) VXInteractive system. Discuss two teleconferencing systems and how they relate to educational telecommunications.

Times will be set during the course for organized exchanges.
The instructor will distribute the application (operates only under windows at this time).
Turn In:
  1. E-mail an overview of the CRG session (subject, participants, location, etc.) as well as your reaction to (opinions of) this form of telecommunications medium. (E-mail your designated clinical faculty) 
  2. Choose two teleconferencing systems with which you are familiar and compare/contrast the two based on the bandwidth issues presented in the Jones/Knezek article. Discuss cost, installation, and support issues such as the manpower needed to make the system run. Discuss what is gained and what is lost in each environment regarding educational utility. 


    3. Submit your discussion (<1 page) to your group's on-line discussion system. 

  3. On your group's on-line discussion system reply to at least two postings on this assignment. Provide meaningful comments.
Due Date: October 22nd, 2002

Value: 15 points