NEW TRAINING MODELS FOR IN-COMPANY CERTIFICATION TRAINING

Though visual communication and collaboration technology is considered mature, it has not yet been widely integrated into in-company educational settings at a large scale. An important reason for this apparent failure is the lack of expertise on behalf of teaching and supporting technical staff regarding the capabilities of the equipment itself, as well as access to good practices on the in-company integration of the equipment into pedagogical methodologies taking into account underlying infrastructure constraints. A new European framework is currently developing an information base solution targeting such distance learning environments and in-company training. It will disseminate and deploy new pedagogical models by exploring coordinated use of video streaming and high quality real time audio, video and data communication and collaboration services. Welders and welding organisations constitute model user groups. It will be completed in 2007. The information base solution will offer examples on good practises, learning activities, technical advices based on expert knowledge, good practice based on collective end-user knowledge, train-the-trainer program for in-company teaching personnel, and model recommendations for the wide adoption and effective integration of visual communication and collaboration services into distance in-company training programs. This paper reports the work in progress, i.e. economical issues, design considerations of the information base aiming at the dissemination of pedagogical and technical know-how related to the integration of audio and video technology, and pedagogical methodologies offering improved learning activities and experience to welder trainers and welders. The proposed system aims at the creation and fostering of a community for the sharing of information that originates both from experts and peers publishing their experiences.