The First Chinese-American Conference on E-Learning Resources was recently convened in Shengyang. The conference was held jointly by National Digital Learning Resources Centre, American Trivantis Company, Shengyang Radio and TV University (RTVU), and Enterprise and Education Research Centre of Peking University.

A total of 196 people, including leaders, software and hardware developers from the system of The Open University of China (OUC), vocational institutes, online schools of universities and colleges, training departments of enterprises, online training institutions, digital publishing industry, and E-Learning service providers attended the conference to discuss and share developing industrial trends, and to push forward the construction and application of digital learning resources in the interest of future industrial development.

Vice President of the OUC Yan Bing delivered a speech. He emphatically elaborated on the effect of information technology on education, the importance the state has attached to digitization of education, the transition of the OUC, and the development of the National Digital Learning Resources Centre. He stressed that the construction and application of digital learning resources should primarily pay attention to education, and not just technology. 

Party Secretary of Shengyang RTVU Yin Xunfa introduced the profile of Shengyang's old industrial base and the current state of Shengyang RTVU's digital learning resource construction in his speech. He said that, in 2011, relying on the National Digital Learning Resources Centre, Shengyang RTVU set up the Shengyang Sub-center. In 2013, relying on digital learning harbor, it set up Shengyang Research Centre of the OUC Digital Learning Resource Centre and Digital Resource Research Centre of Shengyang RTVU. He explained that by taking advantage of open education, teachers and students have more access to digital learning resources, which not only better equips the teachers to impart knowledge and solve problems, but also facilitates communication among students. There would be no open universities without digital learning resources, and high-level open universities will not exist without high-level digital learning resources. 

CEO of American Trivantis Company, Charles J. Beech, and Director of Enterprise and Education Research Centre of Peking University Wu Feng addressed the conference separately. They each introduced the efforts and achievements made in respect to digital learning resources of their own institutions.   

The subjects of the conference included: digital learning resources — OER and micro lectures, new educational applications based on the Internet — ubiquitous teaching, mobile learning, MOOC, teaching environment revolution and the professional development of teachers, construction and application of digital learning resources — community teaching courses construction, vocational teaching application, micro lecture construction and application, online industry education and the general education. More than ten scholars and specialists from higher education institutions such as the OUC, Tsinghua University, Peking University, Chinese Culture University and Shengyang RTVU gave wonderful speeches related to the above mentioned subjects. 

During the conference, the National Digital Learning Resource Centre called for the establishment of a “Chinese Micro Lecture Construction and Sharing Alliance”, which got a positive response from participants. All people expressed their interest in joining the alliance to mutually promote the construction and sharing of micro lectures.

The plate awarding ceremony for the sub-centre of the National Digital Learning Resource Centre was held at the meeting.

The "Second Chinese-American Conference on E-Learning Resources” will be held in Cincinnati, United States, in May of 2015. 

By Shengyang RTVU