Discusses the concept of a Virtual Company--a collaborative, distributed learning environment built on the notions of competence-based, constructivist, open learning, and distance education. It features an authentic, role-playing game that is strongly modeled upon the functional structures of real-life companies. Outlines the set-up of a Virtual…

Discusses the Internet and how it works, beginning with its origins in the U.S. military and covering such issues as clients and servers, upload and download, and the World Wide Web. (Author/PVD)

Explores differences in the range and types of graduate students in a campus-based and a Web-based graduate course on teaching adolescent literature. Finds useful discussion in all class settings, with spontaneity and surprise being more apparent in face-to-face classes and in-depth discussion more apparent in electronic discussion on the issue of…

Presents an interview with an associate professor of psychology who has written extensively on the use of the World Wide Web in the classroom. Discusses various options and functions of the Web from the very simple to the more complex. Discusses student reactions for and against these innovations. (MJP)

This research examined whether collaborative hypermedia systems could improve upon results achieved in traditional collaborative and individual learning environments without a computer. The students did not feel positively disposed to sharing their ideas and work with their peers; the group experience did not improve the quality of individual…

Students and faculty in distance education programs encounter barriers to success that do not exist in traditional classrooms. This article explores student and faculty barriers, compares the current literature on barriers to success with data gathered from an online master-of-science degree program offered by Walden University (Minneapolis, MN),…

Defines telematics and argues that India should exploit telematics resources for training. Describes training through telematics and virtual means, as well as a redefinition of the notion of training. Discusses the cost factor and its influence on policy at different levels. (AEF)

Explores issues related to the design of collaborative-learning environments mediated by computer conferencing from the perspective of challenges faced in the sociocultural context of the Indian sub-continent. Examines the impact of online features on social cohesiveness, group dynamics, interaction, communication anxiety, and participation.…

Examines how multimedia communication networks can be viewed both as the technological enabler of the global information society and as creating barriers between cultural groups. Discusses the concept of the global information society from different perspectives; outlines the use of multimedia communication networks; and links the two concepts to…

Surveys were administered to 548 students from three regional universities in the southeastern United States, examining: how many students regularly use the Internet, hours per week regular users spend on the Internet, types of computers used, use of e-mail, use of the Internet to obtain university information, number of students who had home…

Describes an initiative at the University of Missouri-Columbia to design and implement a technology infrastructure and associated enterprises in a college of education. Outlines technology priorities (improve teaching, develop new media, create learning environments, increase information exchange); presents technology, facility, organizational,…

Examines the decline in Latin provision in English state schools before discussing practical, technical, and pedagogical issues arising from a small-scale, one-year project in which two state schools ran Latin classes without Latin specialists but with the support of Web-based electronic resources and e-mail tutors. (Author/VWL)

Argues for understanding distance education as a community of practice that must acknowledge and accommodate diversity in the context of increasing economic globalization. Suggests that any community of practice is embedded in a larger social context that influences values and practice. Examines the historic and contemporary social, economic, and…

Explains essential factors found in recent research for student accomplishment in Web-based degree programs and how these can be facilitated in the course level through instructional design, teaching, and technical assistance. Examines academic and administrative services at the institutional level, and explains factors of both types, with…

In a teaching experiment, 16 face-to-face and 11 e-mail Finnish university students studied academic debating in an argumentation course. Results indicated the e-mail students learned to identify and choose relevant grounds, while face-to-face students improved in putting forward counter-argumentation. The study suggests that argumentation skills…