Denver Dispatch | Day iii
12 July 2008
Denver Dispatch | Day iii
I'm sitting here in Sabbath School with a bunch of church leaders. Since this is a world forum on the internet and Adventist mission there are several folks on their laptops and new iPhones. Being able to blog in Sabbath School? Count me in!
General Conference Vice-president Lowell Cooper will be giving the sermon. Since my parents never let me read Guide or Insight during the sermon, I will be powering down soon. His sermon title is: Media Convergence and Impact on the Life and Mission of the Church.
One interesting thing here. You know how whenever Adventists from around the world converge they share reports from their regions, well here it's interesting because the "mission reports" focus on how technology is impacting their mission. Wow. The guy from Inter-America talked about how they are transitioning from generating content for their members to helping their members creating their own online witness!
One thing that I'm puzzled by is even here in a room of very interesting thoughtful folks, Sabbath School is not interactive. As usual it's folks up front talking while we all listen, which is fine, but we're missing out on a good discussion. I've been to forum in which they open up an irc channel and display the comments on a large screen up front. This adds to the idea exchange.
I just got handed the Summer 2008 NAD Internet Report so here's some interesting sites listed:
www.adventistchurchconnect.com
Search
- Audrey on Hate Speech?
- judeon on Mt. Ellis on the Brink of Winning Big
- Audrey on Fascinating Adventist Mathematics
- Real Cartoonists on Fascinating Adventist Mathematics
- Donna Haerich on Mt. Ellis on the Brink of Winning Big
- Elaine Nelson on Fascinating Adventist Mathematics
- Steve Moran on Mt. Ellis on the Brink of Winning Big
- Bonnie Dwyer on Mt. Ellis on the Brink of Winning Big
- Donna Haerich on Fascinating Adventist Mathematics
- victor on Fascinating Adventist Mathematics
Comments
What was interesting with the Sabbath School format as well as that while there was a whole lot of "mission stories" there was little about how the Internet is expanding the presence of the Church online (which was the published topic).
Can someone furnish the SDA schools that offer online courses and degrees, both undergrad and grad? This is something that should be particularly accepted with fewer SDA young people attending SDA colleges and universities.
What are the problems involved, and how soon could one expect to complete an accredited degree online? With the financial difficulties being experienced by SDA educational institutions, this would seem to be something that should already be operational.
Elaine,
Here's a link to the Adventist Digital Education Consortium. They have a list of all (most) SDA schools offering online degrees.
Though I'm usually a proponent for everything new and shiny on the web, I still have large reservations about online degrees. As I think you will agree, the classroom is only a small part of the collegiate experience. The interaction and discussion with classmates and professors outside of a formal classroom are often just as, if not more, enriching than the classroom itself. And the most enriching classrooms are those that foster discussion, something an online program still struggles to emulate.
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