The Global Virtual Faculty Program

Background

Fairleigh Dickinson University has embarked on a bold venture in distance learning. Effective with the Fall 2001 incoming freshmen class, every undergraduate student is required to enroll in one distance-learning course for each year of study during his or her baccalaureate career. One of the primary reasons for this requirement is the University's commitment to global education and the way in which distance learning allows us to bring the world to our students.

Global Virtual Faculty - Program Goals

The primary role of a global virtual adjunct faculty member (GVF) is to bring a global dimension to the learning experience by offering different perspectives and observations to students on the issues under study. For example, GVF may be involved through:

• Participating in a threaded discussion on a course topic;
• Presenting relevant narrative material or case studies;
• Directing students to useful web sites within the Global Virtual Faculty member's area of expertise.

Each Global Virtual Faculty member will be assigned a campus-based partner, who will help shape and design his or her participation. The campus-based faculty member is responsible for the syllabus, primary material, assignments, and evaluation. All communication and participation is web-based, with the Global Virtual Faculty member remaining in his or her home environment.

Levels of Involvement

There are two levels of involvement of the Global Virtual Faculty:

Level One (L1) involvement includes consistent participation in a course throughout the semester (14 weeks). The average amount of time spent on-line is 1-2 hrs/week.

Level Two (L2) involvement includes participation in a course for a period of up to 7 weeks and is content-area based. Global Virtual Faculty members who prefer to participate in discussions on specific topics within a particular course, rather than throughout the semester, opt for this level of involvement. In such cases where those topics are not in consecutive order, the participation should not exceed a total of 7 weeks/semester. The average amount of time spent on-line is 1-2 hrs/week.

The nature of the participation for Level One or Two is mutually agreed upon by the main facilitator of the course (FDU faculty member) and the participating GVF and typically includes:

• Engaging in an on-going dialogue with students on a weekly basis in the form of threaded discussion;
• Postings of original writing on a topic under discussion;
• Sharing observations on a previously published or presented paper;
• Directing students to useful web sites within the global faculty member's expertise.

Nomination and Selection

FDU global virtual faculty are nominated by a member of the FDU faculty and/or by another Global Virtual Faculty member. Each nominee must complete an application form, provide a current CV and meet the following expectations:

• Demonstrated intellectual expertise and/or practical experience in a specific field,
• Ability to adapt to the course curriculum and Internet delivery modality,
• Adequate English proficiency,
• Access to appropriate hardware and software applications that allow consistent and effective web-based participation.

Additionally, each individual must agree to abide by the policies Fairleigh Dickinson University sets up for this program. After receiving completed materials, specific opportunities for participation will be discussed with each nominee. GVF appointments will be made after review and approval of the relevant academic department and/or dean and administered by the Office of Interdisciplinary, Distributed and Global Learning. Assignment of a GVF to a particular instructor/course will only be made with the consent of that course instructor.

Training, Preparation and Evaluation

Global virtual faculty members will participate in an on-line training program that familiarizes them with the pedagogical details and expectations of the program. The GVF will collaborate with the FDU course instructor, whenever possible, in planning the delivery of a specific course. At the conclusion of each course, students will be asked to complete a formal evaluation of the course and of both the campus-based faculty and the global virtual faculty member's participation. This is a normal practice at FDU. Continuation as a GVF is contingent upon achieving consistently strong evaluations. Participation by all global virtual faculty will be coordinated through the Office of Interdisciplinary, Distributed and Global Learning. Individuals will be assisted in their training and participation, as appropriate, by the staff of this office.

Compensation

FDU Global Virtual Faculty will generally receive an honorarium of $1000 US for each course for which they serve on a Level One (L1) involvement basis and an honorarium of $500 US for each course for which they serve on a Level Two (L2) involvement basis.

Contact Dalila Suhonjic for more information.