Interview with Majda Cimperman, Principal: Sodrazica, Slovenia -- Quality in Education Series

Welcome to an interview with Majda Kovačič Cimperman, who lives and works in Slovenia. She is principal of a school that offers instruction to students grades 1 through 9, and also includes a kindergarten. The school, OŠ dr Ivan Prijatelj Sodražica, was named after a distinguished scholar. In this new series, we share the experiences of successful educators as they discuss their unique circumstances and their programs. In addition to sharing educational philosophies and approaches to teaching, the series gives educators the chance to compare notes and see where there are insights to be gained by taking a look at the opportunities and challenges that face each school. In this interview, Majda Kovačič Cimperman describes experience of the school and the winner of the a nationwide essay contest in conjunction with the children's novel, Good Deeds Society.

Where is Sodražica, Slovenia?
Slovenia is a small, yet diverse country with many points of interest and natural beauty. Sodražica is one such place located in the Lower Carniolia region of Slovenia and borders with the regions of Loški Potok, Velike Lašče and Ribnica and is situated about 500 m above sea level in the lowest region of the valley. It has an area of 49.5km² with 23 surrounding villages and approximately 2200 inhabitants. The villages are mostly in the lower region of the valley near the River Bistrica but 10 villages lie about 800 – 900 m above sea level.

Please describe your school: OŠ dr Ivan Prijatelj Sodražica.
Education / Schooling in the Sodražica Valley dates back more than 190 years with its beginnings as a Sunday School, developing into a Public School, surviving both W.Ws all up to todays' Primary School.

The school is named after Dr Ivan Prijatelj who was born in a small village Vinice and was named amongst the first university professors in Ljubljana in 1919. He was a literary historian, essayist, theoretic, translator ……..

There is also an affiliate school in Sveti Gregor about 5 km away with 15 pupils.
It caters for pupils from grade 1 till grade 5 and then children are included in the home school in Sodražica.

What are the ages of your students, and the grades? How many students do you have?
Children are obliged by law to attend school at the age of 6. We have a total of 221 pupils from grade 1 – grade 9.

Special assembly of students at OŠ dr Ivan Prijatelj Sodražica in conjunction with celebrations to honor the Slovenian writer France Prešeren.

What are the general demographics of the surrounding area? What are the major sources of employment? What types of diversity exist?
15 villages are demographically endangered. The population from the time of WW I is less and as a result there are less births, but the migration of the population has also contributed to the depopulation of the area. (America, Argentina, Germany)

The latest statistics show that there are about 908 active workers (614 employed and 65 in private enterprise), 39 farmers ( sheep, dairy,beef, rabbits,goats,..) and about 190 unemployed.
People make a living by working in factories in the valley: (FIPIS d.o.o producing metal, plastic and cloth filters for the automobile, pharmaceutical, rubber, petrochemical, building industries as well as in the field of ecology; FRAGMAT – IZOLIRKA different types of insulation and building elements; POS – a private company making products from plastic and FIBRAN-NORD producing insulation material). People are also employed in services like cafe bars, reaturants, post-office, bank, school, kindergarten, shops, bakery, hairdresser's salon, butcher's, greengrocer's.

Because the younger generation has attained a higher education many are unable to find jobs according to their qualifications in the home environment and therefore there is also a daily migration of people to work in Ljubljana (45km away) or nearby Ribnica ( 10km away), Bloke, Lož (20km away), Kočevje (27km away) .

It is worth mentioning here that farming doesn't represent enough income for a comfortable living probably because of the harsh weather conditions, so, many farmers compensate and manufacture the famous wooden-ware for which this region is well known (souvenirs,toothpicks, sieves, basket weaving, flooring, wooden tools, etc. ) Some pedal their goods all over Slovenia and some have placed their goods on the international market even to China.

What is your schools mission and vision?
Knowledge, respect and honesty are the foundation stones of our school.
I believe that school is a place where we learn and work together – weaving trust, respect and the feeling of belonging into the everyday life of our school.

I would like this everyday life to be filled with optimism and happiness. The time that we dedicate to education and upbringing – with the cooperation of teachers, pupils and parents- we build the mosaic of children's values which they will hopefully carry on into their future lives.

What do you view as your core instructional strategy? How do you accomodate and reach out to diverse populations?
The People's University of Kočevje promotes the education of grown ups in all life learning. It carries out education programmes with professionals and has a net of »Education points« at local primary schools in the region. Every second Wednesday of the month the doors of our school are open to the public hosting different seminars,craft groups, computer studies groups.

Who is the principal ? What is the principal's role in your school?
Mrs Majda Kovačič Cimperman is the principal of the school and adjoining kindergarten.
She is the leader and coordinator of the school's life. She plans and leads work in the school and kindergarten, prepares the yearly work plan ; is responsible for seeing that children's rights are respected and that the pupils are made aware of their responsibilities to the school and learning; follows the work of teachers and is present in class offering an evaluation and advise for future work; responsible for enhancing cooperation between the school and parents ( parent – teachers's meetings, lectures for parents,..) and informing them of developmnets within the school and kindergarten; enhances the cooperation of the school and health care institutions; employs personnel; above all she ensures that the working environment is pleasant and healthy for all those employed as well as for the pupils and parents and carries out the demands made of her as stated by the law of the Republic of Slovenia.

How is English taught at your school? How are books in English made available ?
Children begin learning English at lower primary school level – last year we started in grade one and have followed through to grade two with one hour of English every week. The formal teaching of English is planned (formal curriculum and graded ) from grade 4 onwards . Because there is quite a lot of new material and a totally new subject for many, an extra curricula activity is offered to children in grade 3 – once a week . We believe that the introduction of a foreign language then, makes learning English in grade 4 less stressful and the children build their self-confidence as they have already met some vocabulary and continue building on this foundation in grade 4 .

In grade 4 we have two lessons per week. In grade 5, three lessons per week with one hour devoted to differential study ( ranking of »competent« and »less competent« pupils – two teachers ). In grade 6 four lessons per week with one hour devoted to differential study. In grade 7 four lessons with one hour of differential study. In grades 8 and 9 pupils have 3 hours of English per week. This year we have heterogeneric MIXED groups( »very competent« , »competent« and »less competent« pupils). There are also extra froms of work - like preparing for county and state competitions in English.

We use textbooks authorized by the Ministry of Education in Slovenia which are bought by the school and lent to the students for use and returned at the end of the year. Workbooks are bought by the students. Teachers have resources such as teachers books, CDs, DVDs that accompany textbooks and ofcourse internet sites for additional information and exercises for students who want to know more!

English books are made available by purchasing them via catalogues or from sales persons when visiting the school. There is however a limit associated (money alloted) to the buying of books. English teachers also bring their own books and share them with students whenever they feel student enthusiasm.

Please describe the contest that your school ran in conjunction with the release of the book. Good Deeds Society, and the activities that were held.
In September of last year, the teachers of Slovene received an invitation from KUD Sodobnost International and Vodnik Publishers to participate in a literary competition associated with the translation of the Good Deeds Club written by Susan Smith Nash and her visit to Slovenia.

Entrants had to write in the form of a »thinking essay« on one of the following themes:

· Kithie and her mother: who is the child?
· When does the internet hurt the most ?
· As the President of the school's Good Deeds Club I would…

Pupils from grade 6 to grade 9 were invited to enter, however the greatest response came from pupils in grades 6 and 9.

Every year we remember our famous writer France Prešeren the author of the official Slovene Anthem –( Slovene national cultural holiday, 8th February ) and this year we included Susan's visit into the school's activities . On Thursday 5th February pupils met with Susan and listened to her introduction and presentation of the Good Deeds Club- listening very attentively to her every word and trying to understand. Whatever words they didn't understand were translated .

The students who took part in the essay competition were given the opportunity to ask Susan some questions about her life and work in English. Pupils were also very eager to attain Susan's autograph which she gave with delight and also added a personal message for each pupil.
The day was made even more memorable by the fact that Blaž had his birthday on the same day as Susan came to visit . Who would have thought that receiving a prize and having a birthday happens all at once / at the same time? – quite an unforgettable experience!

Who won the contest? What were some of the themes the essay touched on?

Essay contest winner Blaž Kranjec, with principal Mrs. Cimperman, and Alenka Urh, from Sodobnost (l to r).

The contest was won by a pupil in grade 6A Blaž Kranjec - one of five pupils from the whole of Slovenia who were awarded with books and a visit from the author in person at their school.
The theme he chose to write about: Kithie and her mother: who is the child?

Blaž opened his essay with the thought » Age is not necessarily associated with being grown-up/ or an adult: what's important is responsible behaviour.«

He believes that the roles are questionable and that at times Kithie and her mum even change roles as far as responsible behaviour is concerned.

He presented descriptions of both mother and Kithie in different situations: their relationship as mother and daughter ; the relationship with her step-brother; the time Gus's father went missing, the Good Deeds Club - showing how both coped with the same situation.

He concluded his essay with a question, inviting Kithie for a comment – maybe to agree with his overall thought of the book- » Not everything is as dark as we see at first, from every bad experience you can learn something new and in this way steer clear of future difficulties. It is very important that we give one another support at these times, combining knowledge and the will to solve problems and thus get through/over hardships.

I'm New to E-Learning - What Do I Do?

Even though you've completed your online course orientation, and you've read all the material your school has given you on online courses, you may still have a few questions about the way things work. You're open-minded and willing to give the online courses a change because they are convenient, affordable, and just what you need. But, you're nervous. What are you supposed to do? How will you do it? Will you figure out the way it works before it's too late in the semester?

You're not alone. Everyone who has taken a course has the same questions. Although each program and school is different, here are a few tips and pointers that will help you get started, keep on track, and feel good about your course, your program, your fellow students, your instructor, and most of all -- your educational plans and your future.

Here is a list of activities and pointers for being successful with your online course.

Log In Early: Find out what your username and password will be, and where to find the portal or access point to your course. After you log in for the first time, be sure to review the entire course at least two or three times. Click on all the links, go to all the pages. Then, do it again. You'll be happy you did. You'll feel more comfortable and confident.

Acquire Texts Before the Course Begins: Have you ever waited until the last minute to buy your books, just to find out that the bookstore is sold out? Granted, textbooks are expensive, and everyone would like to delay the purchase. At the same time, though, it's best to get the books early to assure yourself that you'll have them for the first day of class. Ideally, when log into your course, you'll have your books at your side and will be able to review the readings and the required work.

Know the Mechanics of the Course: How Does It Work? Chances are, your course will be hosted on one of the most popular course management systems, or learning management systems. You may be using Blackboard, Angel, or Desire to Learn. Or, you may be using Moodle, which is the open-source learning management system preferred by many schools who wish to host their own solution and not pay the fees required of some learning management system providers. Alternatively, you may use a proprietary product. In any case, be sure to go through the orientation. One of the things you'll need to do early in the game is to download the proper plug-ins so that the elements in your learning management system actually work. Otherwise, you'll be very frustrated.

Introduce Yourself Early: It is a great idea to introduce yourself as early as you can in the discussion board area. Also, if your course allows you to create a homepage or to post photos of your pets, your interests, and landscapes from your vacation, please be sure to do so. You'll be amazed at how friendly the space becomes - how close and bonded you start to feel with your fellow students.

Check In Often: Some people think that checking in once every few days is sufficient. Not a good idea! You may miss an important announcement, and, more importantly, you may start to feel isolated. If you check in often, and read the discussion posts and announcements, you'll feel a part of the group.

Required Work: Familiarize Yourself Early. As you go through the course, be sure to print out your required work. Create a little timetable for yourself and map out your own travel, work, family, and other time-eating obligations. Budget time for work, study, and posting.

Find Out Professor Expectations: What does your professor expect? Are deadlines rigid? Will the dropbox shut off at 11:59 pm on the day things are due? Find out early, and work in a pro-active manner. Adjust yourself to the requirements of the course.

Due Dates: Use Them for Planning and Goal-Setting. Once you've mapped out your requirements, matched them with schedules, you can set out timelines, milestones, and "to do" lists. This will help you set goals. You'll be amazed at how comfortable you feel with things once you've started to hit those milestones, one after another. You'll feel confident. You'll start feeling what educational psychologists call a strong sense of "self-efficacy." Great job!

Keep Up With Readings: Nothing is worse than falling behind. One of the easiest ways to get yourself in a trap is to fall behind in the readings, and then try to do the work without actually reading the assignments. Not only will you have nothing relevant to say in the discussion board threads that have to do with the reading, you'll be bored when you read others. So, keep up and keep involved.

Practice "Active Reading": A great way to motivate yourself to do the readings is to perfect your own style of "active reading." What is active reading? It's a way that you read and think so that you're creating categories in your mind, and you're relating the reading to your own experiences, prior readings, and the beliefs you have developed. As you read, think of what you'll have to write for your course. Don't be afraid to start jotting down notes or outlines for papers or short essay questions.

Pay Attention to Announcements: It's easy to overlook them. However, the professor has posted them for a reason. Be sure to read them and to follow any links or suggested readings.

Inform Your Instructor Ahead of Time If Problems Foreseen: Will you be deployed? Will you need to travel for work? Do you have a vacation planned? Let your professor know ahead of time. Then, if you can, try to work ahead.

Turn In Work Ahead of Time: Rather than begging for extensions, take the pro-active route and turn in work ahead of time. If you do turn in work, let your professor know. Don't expect instant turnaround, though. The professor may need to grade your work with the others at the actual due date. Be patient and flexible.

Develop Back-Up Plan For Turning In Work: What do you do if your internet is down? What if you have firewalls in the place where you're working from temporarily, and you can't access your learning management system? Find a way to turn in your work -- even if it is via email -- so that you can make your deadlines. Work with the professor to find out the best approach.

Post Early and Often in the Discussion Board: The more you post, the more comfortable you'll feel with your fellow students. You'll learn a lot from each other -- and, be sure to be willing to respond to questions and demonstrate a helpful, supportive, upbeat attitude. You'll be amazed at how you'll feel. You'll start to develop a good, solid sense of affiliation and belonging.

Fellow Students and Peer Review: Very Valuable. One of the most engaging and interesting aspects of online courses is the fact that you'll really have a chance to see the work of others and to review / respond / and learn from each other. Share ideas, but be sure to keep a thick skin. Sometimes people think they're being humorous when they're not.

Know Where To Turn If You Need Help: Mentors, Study Buddies, Tutors. Check out your college's resources. Make sure you're aware of all the support that is available if you find yourself in need of help.

Assessments and Quizzes: Any Practice Exams or Example Papers? If you can find a place to do practice tests or quizzes, it may be a great way to feel comfortable with the course content. You may be able to practice for your exams and quizzes. Often, the textbook is the provider of the practice materials.

Log In and Use Your Virtual Library and Online Resources. Your college or university has invested money, time, and human resources in developing virtual libraries and resource bases. Be sure to check them out and visit the sites often. They will help you as you work on essays and research papers.

Use a Building Block Approach for Writing Papers. Waiting until the night before is not a good idea. Don't procrastinate! Start mapping out your strategy for writing a paper (essay, term paper, research project) and develop a building block approach that works for you.

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If you follow all these suggestions, you'll find your experience with online courses will be much more positive than you might have imagined. As you encounter friends and family who may be nervous about taking online courses, feel free to share your "lessons learned" and success strategies. Work together, win together!

Interview with Franklin King (Life in the E-Learning Organization Series)

This week's interview is with Franklin King, Associate Vice President for Distance Education at Jacksonville State University. His leadership has expanded educational opportunities for many individuals from diverse backgrounds and contexts. This interview is a part of Life in the E-Learning Organization, a series of interviews with e-learning and distance professionals.

What is your name, and what is your involvement with distance education and/or technology?

My name is Frank King. I am the Associate Vice President for Distance Education at Jacksonville State University, Jacksonville, Alabama . I am also a Professor of Instructional Media.

How did you get interested in distance education?

Our regional university serves a rural area in the northeast section of Alabama . Many of our students are employed and are non-traditional. Some are involved in shift work and require flexibility in their scheduling.

On a personal level, in the early 90s a mother contacted me about her son that had been paralyzed in an accident. She desperately wanted him to continue his education and to feel that he was still a part of a learning community. At that time, there were fewer options. Her desperate cry for help completely changed my attitude towards technology and the need to search for new answers.

Similar requests have come from parents of young men and women who have been incarcerated. I believe that no one should be denied the right to learn and to belong within an educational community based solely upon an unfortunate event or bad decision.

What is your favorite new trend in distance education?

A willingness to explore new options to reach students in which the best use of a variety of technologies is utilized. I remain confident that there is no one best way to reach all students.

What is your favorite technology?

My favorite technology, on a personal level, remains interactive video-conferencing. I feel that it is underutilized and is an excellent augmentation to existing internet based courses that can result in a well balanced hybrid.

What kinds of instructional materials do you use in elearning or distance education?

Like the State of Alabama with its pioneering Alabama Connecting Classrooms and Educators Statewide (ACCESS) initiative, we make use of both the Internet and IVC. We utilize Blackboard as our course management system.

Do you have a favorite social network (LiveJournal, MySpace, FaceBook, etc.)?

FaceBook Its popularity among students ensures its vibrancy.

How do you view them in e-learning?

While not having a personal site on one of the social networks, I see the merit and the benefit of such utilization. It certainly augments the use of e-mail, cell phone usage and other personal formats in a very convenient way allowing for general postings and the sharing of information. In many ways, it is a social eportfolio that can be used effectively, or it can serve as a future detriment to the student when unwisely used.

Do you have a favorite web application (Google Scholar? MapQuest? iGoogle? Del.icio.us?).

I do use Google Scholar. For much work, however, Google is sufficient and the materials are more readily available.

What is your favorite quote? Or, what’s a book that caught your eye recently?

“A perfection of means, and confusion of aims, seems to be our main problem,” Albert Einstein

Watch the latest videos on YouTube.com

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Articles of Note: Corgi Catches, Nov. 4, 2007

We dig through databases, online journals, an e-learning magazines for online learning articles of interest. In this weekly series, we present a few articles that you might find useful, thought-provoking, or simply interesting. Instead of giving you only the citation, we'll give you more. We'll provide a brief overview and synopsis of the article.

We hope you find this to be helpful!

Articles that caught the Corgi’s eye this week:


Woodward, D. (2007) Work-life balancing strategies used by women managers in British "modern" universities. Equal Opportunities International. 26:1, pp. 6-17.

This article takes a look at how women managers of university programs balance work and their outside life. Although this article looks exclusively at women in British “modern” universities, the findings may apply to many other situations, and can give insight into the challenges and commitments faced by women working outside the home, which can include time with family, raising children, professional development, and education. In this study, it is clear that women are faced with a variety of time-consuming obligations and it is important to establish priorities and manage their time. How they make the decisions to prioritize and why certain choices are made depends on the urgency of the demands, and how critical they are to one’s primary survival. It is assumed that women managers need the work, and, on some fundamental level, they like it. Thus, women are willing to sacrifice time to it.

Woodward uncovered several findings that could be useful to individuals. First, in this study, all the participants reported unmanageably large workloads, with some seasonal variability. This seems to be a universal in programs and with women managers. The main problem reported by women is that unanticipated urgent items would arise and would interrupt the normal flow. Lunch breaks were a rarity. Many women arrive early and stay late. They did so to avoid rush-hour traffic and to give themselves some quiet time before the majority of workers arrived. All the women interviewed worked in excess of contracted hours, and usually ended up with 50 to 60-hour weeks. Few women took all their annual leave, and when they did take leave, it was often used for childcare purposes. Women had different attitudes about work, which ranged from finding work enjoyable to seeing work as an all-consuming malign force. Recreation, well-being, travel, and continuing education were challenging issues for women as they were often required to take work home. Because of the workload issues, boundaries between work and home were often fuzzy. Flex-time and work-from-home schemes would not necessarily solve the problem except in cases when it might help with childcare issues. For Wodward, the most useful finding was in organizational culture with respect to gender. Women are expected to be workaholics, concludes Woodward. For women to be able to dedicate time to family and continuing education, organizations must find ways to discourage negative work habits and workaholism. A woman who is mired in a culture that requires 60-hour work weeks just to manage the work flow is not given the opportunity to keep current with skills or knowledge, and will start to lose currency.

Articles of Note: What Caught the Corgi's Eye... Aug 24, 2007

We dig through databases, online journals, an e-learning magazines for online learning articles of interest. In this weekly series, we present a few articles that you might find useful, thought-provoking, or simply interesting.

Instead of simply giving you the citation, we'll provide a brief overview and synopsis of the article. We hope you find this to be helpful!

Articles that caught the Corgi’s eye this week:

Ndasi, H. (2006) The use of innovative methods to deliver technology education laboratory classes via distance learning: A strategy to increase enrollment. Journal of Technology Education 17(2): 33-42. http://scholar.lib.vt.edu/ejournals/JTE/v17n2/ndahi.html

Ndasi reports on advances in the delivery of technology education laboratory classes using distance learning. The author addresses the decline in technology education and suggests that distance education can help correct the problem. “Technology education programs with a history of hands-on learning at the undergraduate level have been slow to implement distance learning techniques and strategies” (Ndahi, 2006, p.34).

The author analzyed where attempts are being made to incorporate distance lab classes and found that they include engineering mechanics, environmental monitoring, electronics, heat transfer, thermodynamics, strength of materials.

Instructional technologies and lab course delivery methods utilized include two-way audio and video, compressed video, Internet CDs, virtual software (simulations), and videotapes.

Instructional events and activities studied included learning kits, demonstration labs (especially if / when too dangerous), field trips, and residential and summer schools. The study concludes that the effectiveness of distance learning in replicating technology education laboratories is mixed. There is a need for more technology to result in more sustained student engagement. Assessment is very important as well.

The author concludes that technology education laboratories delivered via distance learning can be effective, and that they are improving. They, however, should not replace face-to-face labs, but should represent an alternative form. The study seems to reinforce a hybrid model of education.

Simpson, V. and Oliver, M. (2007). Electronic voting systems for lectures then and now: A comparison of research and practice. Australasian Journal of Education Technology. 23(2): 187-208. http://www.ascilite.org.au/ajet/ajet23/simpson.html

The authors report on the results of two separate literature reviews on the use of electronic voting systems in online education, the first conducted in 2002, the second in 2006. They also compare and contrast the results, with the goal of finding strategies to address the problem of lecture-dominated online learning: “Lectures are still seen as the dominant form of teaching and are associated with the tendency to emphasize content transmission over student engagement (Simpson & Oliver, 2007, p. 188).

The search included indexes of journals and scholarly publications, as well as web-based search engines. In 2002, the study found that electronic voting systems were often used in science and engineering disciplines. In 2006, articles had also been published on the use of electronic voting systems in economics, management, psychology, philosophy, medicine, and statistics. In 2002, electronic voting systems were used mainly in large groups. In 2006, large groups still prevailed, but small groups were also beginning to use them.

The electronic voting systems helped students and instructors know more about themselves and each other. On the instructor side, the systems helped the lecturers increase their understanding of the students and gauge effectiveness. On the student side, the systems helped them understand the material, check their knowledge, gain an idea of instructor expectations, and helped mastery of difficult materials. Pedagogically, the systems address the fact that content transmission is not the most effective way to teach, and that in order to achieve student learning goals, it is important to improve student engagement and to provide quality feedback. The electronic voting systems address those pedagogical issues. The electronic voting systems also can be used in order to provide an environment of constant attunement and to help improve teaching and teaching methods.

Falowo, R.O. (2007). Factors impeding implementation of web-based distance learning. AACE Journal, 15(3), 315-338. http://www.editlib.org/index.cfm?fuseaction=Reader.ViewAbstract&paper_id=21710

This is a good web-based distance education overview for a person who is new to web-based learning and who would like to have an idea of definitions, history, contexts, opportunities, expectations, and challenges. The article begins with current definitions of distance learning, and then follows with a discussion of the demographics of distance learning and characteristics of distance students.

The reader will find basic, yet useful discussion of student, faculty, and organizational institutional barriers. Student barriers include technological problems, lack of instructor feedback, and ambiguous directions. Faculty barriers include legal issues, copyright and ownership questions, perceived negative impact on the pursuit of tenure, lack of prestige, inadequate training. Organizational institutional barriers include undercapitalized and under-funded distance learning efforts (insufficient personnel, supplies, budgets), lack of funds, lack of training and technology, and finally, course quality concerns.

The article provides a very nice overview, especially for someone new to the field, or an administrator who is seeking to add distance education to face-to-face offerings. This is not a report on the latest research, but a useful overview for newbies.

About the Corgi (the Queen's companion animal of choice):


The Corgi digs through databases, online journals, an e-learning magazines for online learning articles of interest. In this weekly series, we present a few articles that you, dear reader & faithful E-Learning Queen (or King), might find useful, thought-provoking, or simply interesting. Instead of simply giving you the citation, we'll provide a brief overview and synopsis of the article. We hope you find this to be helpful!