Conventional Teaching – Inside to Outside
The conventional approach to remote teaching, especially after the Pandemic, is to teach students at home, or at least at a distance. The teacher gives a lesson and interacts with students over a shared desktop application like Zoom or Teams or WebEx. The underlying model is the same as traditional teaching. The teacher broadcasts the class material to students who consume it in real time. Ideally, students can interact with questions or answers.
This only difference with this video is that the teacher (me) was located outside the classroom and I was broadcasting the class to students on campus. Some were in the classroom. Some were in computer labs using headphones and some were lounging at home. However, even though I was teaching from an external location, the method was strictly conventional for an on-campus distance teacher.
Teaching Outside to Inside
The following examples show a different strategy.
Video and desktop sharing lecture using Google satellite
A lot of academic topics rely on geography (aka maps). Even though Google Maps/Satellite is focused on the present, the features that impacted history, that now constrain world trade, and drive global ecology are well depicted. Combine Google Maps, Zoom/Teams and an expert or two and you can spontaneously construct a compelling subject exploration.
In this example, I tried to explain why China invested so much time and money to build the Yangshan deepwater container port south of Shanghai. I was able to use Google satellite views (zooming in, out and around interactively) and videos published to Youtube to explain how the port allowed Shanghai to overcome shallow waters near the shore and silt at the mouth of the Yangtze river.
Interview an industry Expert using Google Satellite and Web Video
I invited staff from CSX to explain how the intermodal rail system works. I happened to live in a condo that overlooked the CSX Hulsey Intermodal Yard in Atlanta. Despite some knee-jerk security concerns, the fact that I could legally video yard operations from the window of my home convinced the company that it was better to cooperate (coopt?) with me than to try to prevent me from recording a class. As a result, two senior executives joined me for a live class.
In this sample, Patrick McCrory used Google satellite and web video that CSX had made public to explain the operations of a new, state-of-the-art intermodal terminal in Ohio. This is the model that CSX hoped to follow to upgrade its network of older yards like Hulsey. The lecture was live and interactive with class members in Auburn. Some students participated from home, some from computer labs and some viewed it projected at the front of the class.
Interview with Motorola exec on MODEX tradeshow floor
I was teaching a supply chain course and noted that a large industry trade show was occuring in Atlanta and admission was free and open to the public. I invited some of my students to visit the show and, together, we walked around the show, talking to vendors while the remaining students watched and spoke with us live from home, computer lab and classroom 100 miles away.
This clip was typical of several where we spoke to a vendor about their products to support supply chain. It would have been impossible to bring the people and the equipment to Auburn, but students could get an interactive sense of the current technological landscape from a distance.
On-street interview with shop owner in the “Urban Food Desert”
One of the ironies of modern supply chains for food products is the fact that it is now heavily optimized to deliver food to big supermarkets. The old time local delivery trucks are becoming more scarce and big distributors don’t really value small retailers much any more. In my view, this is an important aspect of modern supply chains that the supply chain industry doesn’t talk about enough.
A friend of mine in Atlanta decided to re-open an iconic small store in an historic neighborhood, Cabbagetown. This brought basic sundries and food to a residential area where the next nearest source was now a 15 minute drive away. Previously, if a resident didn’t have a car, getting food was nearly impossible. The class was simple. We chatted live about the issue and his entrepreneurial solution while my class in Auburn watched and listened in. I used Google satellite and a web cam to show the area and wander inside the store.
A Corporate Logistics Director Explaining the Company’s Approach
When you teach in a college town, everything is geared to support the university. One of the downsides is that a lot of important, real-life activity tends to occur in other towns and cities. Or, just as often, the activity is local, but the decision-making happens at some remote corporate HQ. The local managers and professionals, such as they are, just follow directions handed down from somewhere else. Interactive, live web video offers a way to reach out and talk to the real decision-makers.