A Bold Experiment in Boundary-less Education

SMA: The Singapore MIT Alliance http://web.mit.edu/sma/

Internet2 Conference March 18, 2004

M.S. Vijay Kumar Assistant Provost & Director of Academic Computing

David MycuePrincipal Strategist, AMPS

The Singapore-MIT Alliance

• Joint effort between MIT, the National University of Singapore, and Nanyang Technological University

• Combines distance-learning with traditional on-campus learning

• Provides advanced engineering degrees that are highly collaborative– Between schools– Between disciplines

The SMA Program

• July 1999– Advanced Materials– High Performance Computation for Engineered

Systems

• July 2000– Innovation in Manufacturing Systems and Technology

• July 2001– Computer Science– Materials Science and Management

SMA Synchronous Delivery

• Live lecture format

• T.120 application sharing

• PowerPoint & PDF primary presentation tools

• Internet2

• Control Room– Videoconferencing codec– Near broadcast-quality production system

• Technical Support

Asynchronous Elements

• Central websiteAllows for easy access control and organization of

content

• Course materials include streamed video lectures, homework assignments, lecture notes, readings

Delivery is primarily Synchronous; On-demand streaming as backup and reference for

students

SMA - Context of MIT Education

• Extends MIT’s Value Proposition– High b/w of Interaction between excellent Faculty

and Students– Research-Teaching – Laboratory Experience (iLab)Truly interactive synchronous education involving

MIT and Singapore students

Phase 1: Can we provide MIT-class education at a distance?

SMA: Yes!

SMA - Context of MIT Education

Influencing Infrastructure for Education

– Level 5 Classroom

– Research Interaction Facilities

– Campus Network

– Stellar

– New Tools (Sympodium lectern, techcheck)

– Extended community service Considerations

Directions for Technology-Enabled Education (MITCET)

The visions cluster around two goals:

• Improve the experience “at home”

– Enhance the core educational experience

– Meet the lifelong learning needs of MIT students

– Create flexible ways to pursue educational and research excellence

– Engage and strengthen the MIT community

• Expand MIT’s reach and influence

– Expand MIT education globally to top-tier students

– Offer MIT education and training to corporate partners

– Create educational offerings for the mass market

Ahead: SMA-2

• 5 Graduate Engineering ProgramsAddition of a Biological Engineering program

• More PhDs; Fewer Masters of Engineering

• Dual admission and Dual Degree for Masters– MIT-Singapore (NUS/NTU)

SMA-1 students do not get an MIT degree

– 1 semester MIT Residency

• More Research and Collaboration

“Revolutionizing the Concept of Distance Learning”