

 A Report from Israel and Jordan:


                        The Internet Technology in Use

 I am pleased to report that the Center for Inventive Thinking
 Implementation (CITI), has recruited my help on its latest and very
 ambitious endeavor.  The project is to build a virtual classroom on the
 Internet where Jordanian and Israeli high school students can function
 in the same classroom, work on projects together, and hopefully,
 dialogue and make friends across borders.

 Israel and Jordan are in the process of redefining their relationship.
 How do countries make the transition from isolation to cooperation, and
 ultimately from war to peace?

 Signing a peace agreement is simple.  Bridging people together is much
 more difficult.  It is widely understood, both here in Israel and in
 Jordan, that long range peace can only occur when animosities subside,
 and people start living and functioning as neighbors instead of
 adversaries.

 This project is a clear example of how technology can be used to
 accomplish mutually defined goals never before possible, and in fact,
 act as a tool for peace.

 Our plans are to set up a home page on the World Wide Web with links to
 general information, other programs and projects on the net, and most
 importantly to two forums, that will be adapted into classrooms.
 Initially, there will be two classes taught.  One on Middle East
 Studies and the other on Problem Solving.  Using the Forums rather than
 real time sessions, has  many advantages.  For one, students and
 teachers do not have to log on at the same time  which alleviates
 scheduling headaches.  Also, anything done in the class will always be
 there for students to see, at least until the teacher chooses to delete
 it.  Although most high school students in both countries have had
 extensive training in English, we are looking into the possibility of
 using a translator program that has already been developed, to bridge
 the communication gap between Hebrew, Arabic, and English.

 This project is in its infancy and is in the process of developing
 resources. If you have any questions about it, its focus, or want to help
 in some way, feel free to contact me.


 Stan Kanner is spending some time in Israel and will keep us up to date
 about what is happening there. Last time he talked about CompuHigh, the
 online high school he established. He takes his experience and expertise
 to the Middle East to help diminish confrontation and encourage cooperation.
 He can receive mail at Stankan@netvision.net.il



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