Newsletter September 2000
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.
Prague PC meeting and Working Week, 22-26.5.2000
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.
Malta seminar and Rosario symposium
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.
Soul PC meeting and working week, 6.-11.2001
“New Technology for a New Century”
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.
FIG Congress in Washington DC, 2002 and coming working weeks
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
The minutes of Commision 2 Meeting for National
Delegates, Prague Working week 2000
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
