SHEYIBANEH BEIT HAMIKDASH...
A series of articles on Beit HaMikdash-related topics by Catriel Sugarman intended to increase the knowledge, interest, and anticipation of the reader, thereby hastening the realization of our hopes and prayers for the rebuilding of Jerusalem and the Beit HaMikdash.

Distance Education in the Mikdash! [2]
Anyone who was anyone in the Mikdash community was jammed into the cavernous Mikdash conference room on Har Habayit. Even the Kohein Gadol was sitting in his place of honor. Standing room only, there was a real air of excitement and anticipation as the spacious room filled up. The Segan and Meir Hakohein were seated at the head of the table. A number of chairs near the head of the table had been left vacant for the guests of honor, the members of the Mikdash Committee for Distance Education (MCDE). Everyone was interested in hearing the preliminary report of the pilot study examining the utilization of the internet to expand the Mikdash's role as the primary Jewish educational center.

When Chaya Devora and her staff entered the room, they were promptly shown to their seats. Rising to acknowledge the presence of the newcomers, the Segan then turned to the assemblage and said, "Birshut Hakohein Hagadol, Birshut Hakohanim Hamechubadim, Birshut Rabanan Verabotai, and honored guests. Two years ago, various members of the Mikdash Computer Department together with my old friend Meir Hakohein and I were introduced to Chaya Devora, distance education expert. Meeting in her office, we asked her if the new developing technologies available for distance education could somehow be exploited to deepen the connection between the Beit Hamikdash and Kohanim residing abroad. We noted that even Mikdash- Shlichim confessed to a certain disconnection with the Mikdash while they were serving in Chutz La'aretz.

We wanted to create a 'worldwide Mikdash community' and we wanted to convey the Chavaya - the ambiance - of the Mikdash to Am Yisrael in Chutz La'aretz and as much as possible make the Mikdash part of their daily lives. Somehow, we felt that the Mikdash was not living up to its responsibility as the premier educational institution of Am Yisrael. However, as a result of that meeting, we established the MCDE. Under Chaya Devora's guidance, the committee initiated a study to examine the feasibility of using distance education to maintain contact with Kohanim in Chu"l. The Segan concluded, "I now give the floor to Chaya Devora."

Chaya Devora rose and explained that there are two kinds of distance education, synchronous and asynchronous. In synchronous distance education (SDL), those registered in an on-line course simultaneously log into the same site and listen to the teacher 'together' even though they are physically in different locations. An asynchronous setup, on the other hand is more flexible and easier to set up and run. Participants log in at their own convenience and download previously uploaded materials. "We soon realized in that designing a system to meet the needs of the Mikdash community, we needed a system that incorporates both methodologies, synchronous and asynchronous. We decided to start 'small', an on-line Shi'ur for 20 students from Chu"l, the Magid Shi'ur would broadcast from the Beit Midrash Hagadol on Har Habayit. We - the MCDE - placed a small ad in the on-line publication Mikdash Tidbits. Furnishing all the relevant details, we said that we were organizing an on-line synchronous distance education Shi'ur featuring an introduction to Avoda 101, and that it would 'meet' three times a week. We also explained that each student from Chu"l would be paired with an age-background matched student from the Beit Midrash Hagadol on Har Habayit and before each Shi'ur, they would expected to prepare together using SKYPE. We thought that it was vital that the 'Chulnikim' have an opportunity to learn with a Chevruta from the Mikdash community.

"We did not know what kind of a response we would get but we needn't have worried. Within TWO days, we had enough applicants to fill two Shi'urim! However, we did not lack problems. We realized that students who study at a distance are separated both from their teachers and from their peers. For some this can be a particular problem, and for all, the separation poses potential difficulties. To a great extent, social interaction, the sharing of ideas, discoveries, successes and failures, and general social support, are missing from the distance-learning environment. Therefore, the role of the Magid Shi'ur is crucial. He must address many of the problems noted, by mixing and matching techniques, creating and maintaining a stimulating environment, and offering opportunities for students to communicate with each other and with him on a regular basis. 'E-moderators' need to know when to 'stand back' and let students discuss, and when to intervene to change the direction or introduce new ideas. The Magid Shi'ur will also need to change his traditional role as well. Many 'remote students' need a great deal of social support, and distance educators may be tempted to spending more time offering one-to-one tutorials and less time lecturing, to the detriment of the other students in the Shi'ur. We also realized that some teachers feel threatened by the introduction of new technologies and methods since Magidei Shi'ur who practice distance education methods will soon discover that they need to develop a new set of skills if they are to be effective educators. For this reason, we did not find it easy to recruit suitable Magidei Shi'ur at first. Fortunately, in the end, we did find a number of wonderful Magidei Shi'ur who came to understand that distance education was an excellent opportunity to provide quality- learning opportunities for those who were physically but not spiritually distant from the Mikdash." The people in the conference room were fascinated.

"Well before the date of the Shi'ur, we sent an email to every participant explaining how to download a short PowerPoint video from the Mikdash distance-learning site instructing him how to use the Shi'ur program. Before the first Shi'ur, Yehuda, our technical consultant, held a 'dress rehearsal'. Each student (taking account the various time zones) was invited to log in to the Mikdash distance learning site at a specific date and time. Then Yehuda ascertained that each student could hear and see him and that, he, in turn, could hear and see them. (Each student sat before a webcam at home.) Baruch Hashem, the first Shi'ur was an unqualified success, the Magid Shi'ur turned out to be a 'natural'. Entranced, the students participated enthusiastically. All of us, Yehuda, the Magid Shi'ur and the students were simply amazed how smoothly things worked in the end. After the Shi'ur ended, we emailed questionnaires to all the participants to get reactions. However, before we even had a chance to collate and analyze the results, we were inundated with emails from young Kohanim in Chu"l requesting to be permit- ted to join the Shi'ur. First the emails were from acquaintances of the participants, but it did not take long until vast numbers of emails started arriving from non-Kohanim, eager to share in the Chavaya of the Mikdash."

Smiling, Chaya Devorah said, "We were on our way!" <to be continued>
Catriel's book in progress: The Temple of Jerusalem, A Pilgrim’s Perspective; A Guided Tour through the Temple and the Divine Service