“The LORD is exalted, for he dwells on high; he will fill Zion with justice and righteousness.
He will be the sure foundation for your times, a rich store of salvation and wisdom and knowledge;
the fear of the LORD is the key to this treasure.” (Isaiah 33:5-6 NIV)
FAQ...Frequently Asked Questons about InterGlobal
1. How might this "hook up" to other settings where I already have ongoing relationship and have taught onsite
or anticipate doing so? (like Nigeria, Malawi, Burma).
Any setting, any institution, any individual... with internet service, can hook-up to your class with InterGlobal via our
online software. I could help you construct your class, tutoring you as you go. You could communicate with your
contacts and let them know that "your class...whichever" will be available via internet - and they would then register
with us, and pay a small fee (which would be used to pay you a small stipend and mitigate our expenses). It does not
matter where in the world the student resides, nor does it matter where the institution is that wishes to provide its
students with our courses via internet.
2. Are "degrees" or certificates offfered (not that I am big on them as Acts 4.19 suggests) but for some of our
brethren as you know this is important and I don't know how to deal with the tensions? What do you think?
InterGlobal is not presently accredited. Instead, we are seeking agreements with other institutions to accept our
classes for credit. Thus students will be able to get credit toward degrees. We think credit is important in some
settings, and are thus working to provide that option.
3. Is there any cost to me? the student? (is there any way to recieve any renumeration since this is the way God
has called me to make my living?). I am assuming not but want to ask.
(January 2004)
Your cost is your time and your connection to the internet, etc. Student costs are minimal, but students will be
charged - in order to generate an income stream. These funds will in turn go towards paying online teachers, just as
teachers get paid for their teaching at universities and such. To-date 99% of our students have been totally
scholarshipped. We cannot pay teachers now, but as an income stream is generated from tuition-paying-students,
the plan is to then pay our online teachers for their Kingdom labors. ("The workman is worthy of his labors...")
4. Is InterGlobal a network, institution or what??
InterGlobal was established in 2001 as a non-profit 501(c)3 organization. It is governed by a board of directors. We
enable evangelical teachers to teach online by providing training in online learning and access to our online platform
to teach from. Students anywhere can register online and study ministry related courses.
We serve to:
1. Train teachers to become capable internet teachers.
2. Provide the e-platform for teachers to easily teach their classes online.
3. In cooperation with evangelical teachers and institutions, provide critical needs classes and full tracks of training
for ministry.
5. What kind of time commitmment is normally required?
Teacher time commitment varies with how the class is set-up. A teacher can use methods that are very
time-consuming, or methods that are just as effective - but less time intensive for the teacher. I estimate that a
facilitated class online, with discussion thread reviewed five times a week, would require about 5 hours minimum
per week, depending on the type of class.
An independent study course can be created, where the student is totally on his own, and only a few hours per
course is required by the teacher to supervise these.
6. Are there any doctrinal guidelines given? Are all classes open to anyone?
All courses are subject to review by our staff and board of directors. Within
reason, the teacher can set his own guidelines and class pre-requisites, etc. We
aim to make most courses acceptable to most all evangelical Christians, but
realize that some issues will be difficult, and may require separate
classifications and requirements.
Doctrinally we adhere to
the THE LAUSANNE COVENANT
http://www.lausanne.org/lausanne-1974/lausanne-covenant.html and the
THE MANILA MANIFESTO
http://www.lausanne.org/manila-1989/manila-manifesto.html,
and so must all our online courses. My personal background is the Christian and Missionary Alliance church, and I am a member here in Big Bear Lake, CA.
Any more questions, be sure to ask.
:) Keith
YOU CAN set-up a computerized learning center...
Basically: WHAT IS INCLUDED IN AN e-LEARNING CENTER:
*internet computers
*software basics
*onsite management
*scheduling for students
*full-time availability of the center
*student requirements standards
*use limitations for eLC: must be at the disposal of qualified users.
I realize that poor churches cannot afford nice facilities and such, but, since we are conceptualizing: It
would be good if the center could be developed as a learning café, with an ambiance like a cross
between a StarBucks coffee shop (!) and a quiet library, and have a ministry like a coffee house ministry of the
1970’s with extra seating to lounge and converse, but culturally adapted to the local area. Just a simple 10’x10’
windowless room would be a start! But the better the ambiance – the more likely it will become “the place to go”.
A computerized learning center can be located anywhere conducive to study: church, an office, a public shop, a
local coffee shop. Ideally you can make it self-supporting. Idea: "lease it" to a local Christian business man who will
run it like a business - but be culturally and spiritually sensitive to the purpose of the center (the lease would
stipulate your conditions for continuation of the center). Think outside the box!
Answers to possible questions about
e- LEARNING CENTERS:
1. What are the financial obligations involved? You can decide how to run the center costwise. We will bring-in
and set up the initial set-up. You must pay for the ISP (internet service provider) monthly charges, and any computer
maintenance. You can charge per hour or per student and per page printed or on a donation basis, or as part of your
budget....
2. How much space is needed? One desk space per pc. We can start you with about 5 computers and a
printer, so you will need 6 "desks" (table top space) and working space around them, which includes a printer space
(one printer networked for all to access). Ideally the monitors should face public space for easy monitoring by the
supervisor.
3. How is it promoted? Locally with churches, pastoral and church associations, etc, and...online?
4. What would our responsibilities be? Keep it staffed with a supervisor during open hours (by a
volunteer probably? or church staff). The supervisor manages the sign-up sheet, answers questions, makes sure
pc-use is monitored, and maintains order. Ideally the supervisor works another job there already and this becomes
an added responsibility.
5. Anything else you can tell us to help us decide.
· The center provides access to online learning to those who do not own a computer
· The center utilizes the many good courses and materials available online from many organizations
· The center enables training in ministry skills for church leaders
· The center provides training in doctrine and theology
· Students use the sign-up sheet to reserve desired hours of study
· Good supervision is a must - to maintain a good reputation as a good place to study, free from
internet pornography, with clean spaces, and nice ambiance.
Hope we can do this with you,
><>Keith
E-learning with the InterGlobal Platform
Three major considerations for you - as you consider e-learning options: Quality, Cost, and Time. Teaching with the
InterGlobal platform will give you a very robust system (good quality), save you lots of money (cost), and will greatly
reduce the time it takes to develop an e-class from start to finish (time).
The IG e-learning platform is a very robust system. It provides capabilities for:
1. A portal entrance that is private, and password accessible worldwide online.
2. A student home page from which students access the course resources;
3. Chat and Text-based dialog through threaded discussion;
4. Libraries for research (containing documents you upload to your course library, and shared libraries made
available by other teachers);
5. Exams students take online; and
6. Links on your home page connecting to any documents the teacher/developer establishes. These documents
typically are: guide pages for each module (normally weekly), special instructions on use of the platform, and typical
course administrative pages (syllabus, course map, assignments, bibliography, dialog questions to stimulate online
discussion).
7. User-friendly interface for developers of e-classes, and also for the students.
8. Low Per Class Cost. Frankly, other commercial platforms may have a more attractive home page and more "bells
and whistles" (such as WebCT and Blackboard), but InterGlobal has a far less expensive per class cost, and since
teachers can easily prepare their materials in many formats, the development time and cost is immensely less expensive.
Good stewardship! That is why I am so happy about InterGlobal! Currently (*2007) 99% of courses are on scholarship.
9. Less
E-Development Time and Cost. Non-tech teachers can easily construct their own e-class online with
InterGlobal, whereas other systems are more technical and require more intensive training in specialized software
(such as Dreamweaver/Flash/etc.)
10. Course Longevity. Since course materials are prepared in HTML and other common software, future
platform advances will be less problematic than with many other platforms, since little extra development is
required to construct an IG class from the original document's format.
The bottom line is that, with InterGlobal, teachers and institutions can get online with their classes more quickly,
with less development time invested, without tech experts... and for less cost per class than with other commercial
platforms. We are here to serve evangelical Christians in the Latin world with their training needs.
Come help us build a better system of education!
We are on the tip of the iceberg... with an explosion of e-learning in Christian circles
on the horizon. (SEE: The Potential
of Internet Ministry Worldwide.) My prayer is that InterGlobal will be greatly used of God to assist the
evangelical Church as it reaches into the 10/40 window for Christ!
The goals of InterGlobal are somewhat unique from other online groups. We are aiming
to empower Latin leaders to teach their own courses, with or without affiliation with
an institute or seminary. And our focus is on certification level training, although we
are already doing some masters level work, and could do that also. However, the
greatest training need in the Latin world is with the 3,000,000 or so grassroots leaderswho have almost no formal training in their area of Christian service.
The formal education system, according to Ralph Winters and others, is not, and does
not have the capacity to be, providing for all the training necessary for the Church's
need with the exploding numbers of leaders in the Latin world. The new economy of
the internet, I believe, is a different economy from the traditional educational system.
InterGlobal is not trying to adapt to the internet, it is part of the internet economy - a
system that is capable of delivering training more efficiently, mentoring more
effectively, providing more cheaply... than the formal education system within ground
based denominations, schools, institutes and seminaries. InterGlobal is free of financial
encumbrances and administrative bottlenecks, and can therefore move more freely into
the internet. We were created to operate as an internet organization!
Put a
computer in every church,
and
every church member becomes a potential student!
Come help us build a better system of education for evangelical Christian
church leaders in the Latin world! We aren't building an online bible institute, but rather a radical
educational co-op. Eventually, with InterGlobal, teachers anywhere can teach their
course to anyone anywhere online. Christian students anywhere with any ministerial
training need, should be able to access that training cheaply (in their own economic
context), and conveniently (a click away), and use that training immediately to be more
effective for the Kingdom. Come help InterGlobal realize the vision! Make training
ubiquitous! If we challenge churches to put a computer in every
church, then every church member becomes a potential student. No need to own a pc! Go to your local
church learning center - and sign-up for a learning slot of time and learn online, even in
the poorest barrio! How's that for a dream!
><>Keith
Keith S. Swift
info@InstitutoInterGlobal.org
(909)585-9817 www.InstitutoInterGlobal.org
Training church leaders for
ministry online - Now!
About
InterGlobal's Director, Keith Swift.
My personal background is written online.
I am a missionary kid ( MK) born in Peru. My
parents were missionaries with the Christian and Missionary Alliance.
Denise (my wife) and I served initially in Mexico under LAM, and
I first started teaching online in 1999 at Campus Crusade's ISOT in Fontana,
California, until ISOT went bankrupt! InterGlobal was started in 2001
to continue online training for church leaders as a non-profit 501(c)3.
STORY... Rocks in YOUR Head?! 13-year old boy Roger was taken to the hospital in Pucallpa, Peru, to take out the little stone that his sister put in his ear years ago that was keeping him from hearing with that ear. Praise the Lord his ear is fine and he can now hear well with it and has no infection or any apparent damage to the ear drum.
Got rocks in your head!? (02-2004) -Story by Kenneth Swift,
Wycliffe linguist
