The rapid growth of information and communication technologies (ICT) has prompted concerns among parents, educators, and policymakers over the suitability of many educational applications and electronic toys for young children. This book provides information on how children from birth to age 6 develop an early awareness--and subsequently develop…

This paper reports on a course, offered at the University of South Alabama, that was designed to assist occupational therapy students with the transition from student role in an academic environment to entry-level professional role in the work environment by providing World Wide Web-based support to students who leave campus to complete two…

Two faculty members from Volunteer State Community College (Tennessee) were assigned the charge to design an institution-wide faculty training and development program for distance learning. The approach to planning began by reexamining the evolution of their use of technology, culminating in online course delivery. This paper explores the…

This theme issue focuses on the challenges and opportunities of online technology as it is used by teachers and students in rural classrooms in Alaska, Arizona, Colorado, Georgia, Mississippi, New Mexico, South Carolina, and Vermont. "Computer Country" (Cynthia Baughman) is an overview of online collaborations of teachers in the Bread…

Interpersonal presence refers to the cues individuals use to form impressions of one another and form/maintain relationships. The physical cues used to convey interpersonal presence in face-to-face learning environments are absent in text-based computer-mediated conferencing (CMC) courses. Learners' perceptions of interpersonal presence in CMC…

To provide preservice teachers with opportunities for contact with people from racially and ethnically different backgrounds, one university initiated intercollegiate reader response groups using the WebCT format, which allowed students to converse with one another over distances, both within and across universities. Students from separate…

Current teacher educators are being challenged to find opportunities for their preservice teachers to develop both competence in, and confidence for, integrating technology into their curricula. Given the difficulty involved in trying to arrange successful classroom technology experiences for preservice teachers, this study was designed to examine…

This paper examines the impact of networked technologies on educational reform in the context of linking home and school within this context of political and social struggle. The theoretical framework is presented first, grounding the study in an understanding of the curriculum as an educational process that is currently subject to challenge as a…

This collection of conference papers includes the following: (1) "Four Decades of Foreign Language Education: Are We Still at Cheese Station N?" (T. Bruce Fryer); (2) "Teaching French with the Internet: What the Students Want vs. What They Do" (Jean-Louis P. Dassier); (3) "Learning Behind the Screen: Computers,…

Research has offered evidence that teacher candidates are continually frustrated by a perceived conflict between the ideas expressed in methods course and the practices they see in classrooms where they carry out their observations and practicums. The hypermedia tool Reading Classroom Explorer (RCE) was developed in response to this problem.…

The papers presented as part of this symposium explore several aspects of integrating technology in teacher education. The title paper, presented by Christy J. Falba, reports on a study to investigate the process and progress of integrating technology into university level teacher education courses from the perspective of the university…

Recent developments in media and communication technologies are set to revolutionize the provision of education and training. With modern technology, it is possible to deliver lectures, assignments, tutorials, simulations, and even the contents of the world's best libraries to anyone in possession of a modem and computer. Diminishing funding and…

Teaching within a student-centered paradigm in an information society means accepting the responsibility of teaching for the acquisition of integrated information habits and fully adaptable lifelong information skills. Education today demands classroom teachers who can: model good practice in education programs that teach students to become aware…

This summary provides an overview of the findings from the 1997 Study of School Uses of Television and Video, which surveyed principals (n=1,059) and teachers (n=1,285) throughout the U.S. The study analyzed key measures of the use of television and video for instruction in U.S. schools in terms of availability of equipment, programming, support,…

Educational technology has changed the definition of classroom in terms of location, size, composition, learning environment, and teacher role. Educational technology in developing nations helps accommodate people in poor and rural areas. Distance education through open universities has increased in several countries. It includes two-way…