Article Review: Preservation at a Distance: A Virtual Socratic Method?

This article, “Preservation at a Distance: A Virtual Socratic Method?” by Barrett Kennedy, explores the possibilities of distance learning (DL) as it impacts the preservation profession. The “preservation” referred to is that of historical items—buildings, battlefields, documents, estates, perhaps even whole towns (e.g., Jamestown, Williamsburg). Various kinds of organizations and private enterprises are involved: architectural firms, government agencies, financial institutions. According to Kennedy, “Traditional undergraduate and graduate education, coupled with ad hoc encounters with manufacturer’s literature, is insufficient preparation for a preservation professional” (1999, p.4). The answer to this inadequacy is continuing education. And for this, preservationists are turning increasingly toward DL.

Realizing that DL through Information Technologies was largely “unexplored,” the Association for Preservation Technology International (APTI), set up an online course, “Information Technology and Heritage Conservation.” This course, interestingly enough, provides instruction on the possibilities of virtual classrooms for preservation professionals—an online course about online courses, if you will. The rest of the article describes the parameters of DL environments:

• Whereas DL in the past meant correspondence courses, nowadays it means, increasingly, education through the Internet—the virtual classroom, that “holds immense untapped potential for creating a new preservation-education model that frees knowledge transfer from the constraints of physical location and time” (Ibid.).

• The various formats of Web-based education, including synchronous and asynchronous learning. The former means that students and/or instructor meet at designated times for class sessions; the latter means that no specific meeting time is required. Kennedy indicates that well designed asynchronous courses result in greater student participation and enhanced instructor/student communication— a “virtual” Socratic method.

• The “Internet Student Body” includes non-traditional students (for whom on-campus classes would be a hardship), government employees, and members of professional groups, among others. Flexibility and 24-hour access are the keys here.

• In addition to online training courses, “reference resources, discussion threads, list serves, and live chat rooms” (p.5) provide other avenues of community-building activity.

The challenge, Kennedy concludes, will be integrating IT-based education with traditional educational models.

I chose this article because online education is something I have much experience with. Our Blackboard discussion list is reminiscent of this, but is only a small part of the whole experience. One should be aware, however, that Internet DL is not for everyone. According to the Dean at CNU (where I was an undergrad), many students struggle with online courses, and he was shocked to see my battery of “A”s (well, mostly…) “Traditional” college students will probably be better off with traditional in-class courses. But “non-traditional” students—older folks with families, jobs, other responsibilities—could find DL extremely beneficial, as I did.

Online courses offer these advantages: 1) they are writing intensive. With no actual classroom to attend, the only way to “be there” is through your written work. This takes time and effort. 2) active participation is mandatory. One cannot simply “go to class,” sit in the back of the room, and say nothing all semester. Either you participate or you fail. 3) computer skills are enhanced. Although this isn’t the objective, by working with the technology, your skill-level climbs dramatically.

Overall, I thought Kennedy’s article provided a lot of good, solid information; but I also found it stiff and lifeless—as though it were written by a machine. There’s no real argument here, simply an informative epistle singing the praises of technology.

Reference

Kennedy, Barrett. “Preservation at a distance: a virtual Socratic method?” APT Bulletin,
Vol. 30, No. 2/3 (1999), 4-5.