“Interactive Multimedia Education at a Distance-Linear Algebra (IMED-LA)”: Its Present Status and Special Features of Its Content

Abstract

The IMED-LA or Interactive Multimedia Education at a Distance — Linear Algebra is the ongoing international joint project by the collaboration of the Japan Team currently consisting of five members and the Center for Digital Innovation (CDI) of the University of California at Los Angeles (UCLA) headed by Director Maha Ashour-Abdalla. The project started in July, 1999. Its goal is the production of virtual university content in linear algebra, intended primarily for graduate students and working students who need a fast-paced study of the basic facts from linear algebra; hence the content can also effectively be used by the beginning college students under a proper guidance from the teacher. Our partially completed content is already available on the Internet at the following URL: http://www.cdi.ucla.edu/linearalgebra.

This Internet course has several special features worth mentioning: in its approach to the subject matter, the topics selected, the way and style the exercises are supported and the provision of the philosophical or historical notes for encouraging the learners or opening up new horizons for them. At the same time no mathematical rigor is sacrificed and a high level of standard is maintained.

It is our pleasure to state that, thanks to our collaboration, the Japan team mainly providing authoring and the UCLA team the needed IT and project management expertise, the project has been enjoying a steady progress and the both teams are gaining valuable practical experiences. At the present this project is probably only one of its kind as an international joint Virtual University Content Production Project between Japanese and US universities. In this paper we will discuss the content under construction, the needed IT support and the project management technology being employed. For the activities of the CDI/UCLA, see their home page: http://www.cdi.ucla.edu.