Work Plan
During the first year of the project the Maxwell School had extensive discussions with
the leadership of SPA concerning distance learning goals. In the Spring 2001 two visiting scholars, Dr. Olga P. Molchanova and Mr. Vladimir V. Smirnov, were selected based on their interest in distance learning. These Visiting Scholars studied the Maxwell School's initiatives in distance learning and worked closely with Professor Matt Bonham.
Dr. Molchanova developed an implementation plan, which resulted in a distance learning course on Innovation
Management that requires two weeks of on-site instruction and approximately eleven weeks of on-line instruction. On her return to Moscow, Dr. Molchanova developed two additional Web-based courses, Strategic Management and the Management of Social Services.
In the Spring 2002 Semester, Dr. Anna V. Kashirova, a scholar and educator in the field of Accounting and Financial Control, is a Visting Faculty member at the Maxwell School. She is using an on-line course site template to develop a distance learning course on Financial Control.
The On-Line Course Site Template
To facilitate collaboration between the Maxwell School and SPA faculty on the distance
education courses, a workspace (http://www.maxwell.syr.edu/collaboration/msu/development)
was established for the construction and testing of Course Site materials. One model Web site has been constructed and is undergoing testing: An On-Line Course Site Template. This Course Site, consisting of sixteen Web pages, can be opened in MS Word 2000 and tailored for any distance learning course. A Russian-language navigation bar, a bulletin board, a chat room, as well as a set of instructions, will be added to the site.
Innovation Management
One pilot distance learning course will be initiated in the Fall 2002 semester: Innovation
Management will be offered by O. Molchanova. This distance learning course will be Web-based with live text chat (from the Maxwell and SPA domains) to facilitate the interaction. The students will also work in forums to discuss specific topics that are covered in the course.
Financial Control
A second pilot course, Financial Control, is being develped by Anna Kashirova in the spring of 2002 for testing in 2003. With the change of the forms of property in contemporary Russia, and widely known problems of rational management of federal and local budgets, it is evident that the importance of State Financial Control has increased. The rapid development of new state financial control bodies during last several years has attracted attention to state and local finances generally, and especially to the management of financial sources.
This course examines the role and responsibilities of state financial control bodies and prepares students for career at all levels of governmental organizations. The objectives of this course include knowledge of the budgetary process, forms and methods of financial control of budget expenditure, law basis of budgeting, and financial analysis.
Text Chat
Chat rooms for text chat sessions have been implemented through a client on a SPA server at Moscow State University. These chat rooms can be accessed from only SPA and Maxwell domains at http://chat.spa.msu.ru/. SPA users can register for the SPA chat room and the SPA/Maxwell chat room. Maxwell users can register for the Maxwell chat room and the SPA/Maxwell chat room.
The new SPA Videoconferncing Classroom will be ready for use by the end of 2003. The wall dividing two standard classrooms was removed to create a large space for videoconfernces. New flooring and a new ceiling with better lighting was installed, and the room was repainted. A digital video projector will be installed from the ceiling to project the distance image onto a large screen. A plasma display will be used to display PowerPoint slides or Web pages. A secure space for storing the videoconferencing equipment was fashioned from a previous entrance to the room. Room darkening shades and new front facing lighting will help to illuminate the faces of the participants. A new sound system will also be provided.
