That's the message MIT professor and former INFORMS President Richard Larson delivered during his opening address at MIT's fourth annual LINC (Learning International Networks Consortium) Conference. Larson's point was underscored by the fact the conference was bi-located in Jordan (on the Dead Sea) and Dubai in the United Arab Emirates.

In Jordan, speaking to hundreds of participants, many of them local professors and high school teachers, Larson said, "Until recently, the assets of a country lie buried underground, such as oil, gas, gold, silver and diamonds. Today, the key assets of a country lie buried between the ears of its citizens. ... Educating the mind is the key to a better tomorrow for all."

Larson is the founding director of LINC, a community of educational and technology leaders focused on helping emerging areas of the world leverage distance-learning programs via the Internet to deliver quality education to under-served populations.

By logging on to www.ocw.mit.edu, for example, educators and students worldwide can access more than 1,700 MIT courses and exams through its OpenCourseWare (OCW). The free publication of course materials offers the opportunity to study a great variety of subjects through downloads that include lecture videos, notes and demonstrations.

MIT's 2007 LINC Conference, the first to be held outside the United States, drew not only hundreds of participants, but also scores of top officials from the respective host countries. Her Majesty Queen Rania of Jordan, Patron of LINC-Jordan, participated in the opening ceremonies in Jordan, while the Patron of Dubai LINC, His Highness Sheikh Maktoum bin Mohammad bin Rashid Al Maktoum, chairman of the Dubai Technology and Media Free Zone Authority, attended a conference executive session in Dubai. As MIT noted in a press release, "the presence and participation of these esteemed leaders of Jordan and the U.A.E. demonstrate the strong commitment of the region to educational innovation — supported by technology."

In Jordan, Secretary General of the Ministry of Education for Educational and Technical Affairs Tayseer Nahar told participants that e-learning is part of Jordan's overall 2007-2012 educational strategy. "The overall aim of the strategy is to make the sector more relevant in programs ... and, hence, more competitive, both regionally and internationally. One major component is devoted entirely to technical and technological education, within which the expansion of e-learning is a key element," Nahar said.

In his opening remarks in Dubai, H.H. Sheikh Nahyan Bin Moubarak Al Nahyan, Minister of Higher Education and Scientific Research, said "The MIT LINC project represents a simple idea: using distance and e-learning to help countries increase access to a quality university education. To make this simple idea a reality takes technology for delivery, good content for courses and effective pedagogy for instruction."

Dr. Robert B. Kozma, one of 18 keynote speakers, said, "Technology can be a powerful lever for economic and social development when it is coordinated with other educational changes in pedagogy, curriculum, assessment and teacher training."

Following the success of the conference, Larson announced plans to assemble a LINC Action Task Force comprised of LINC participants from the Middle East as well as MIT faculty members that will examine further collaboration and possible joint research projects in technology-enabled education.

Source: Jordan Times, MIT

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