In many web applications, such as the distance learning, the frequency of refreshing multimedia web documents places a heavy burden on the WWW resources. Moreover, the updated web documents may encounter inordinate delays, which make it difficult to retrieve web documents in time. Here, we present an Internet tool called WEBCAP that can schedule…

"We need a clear citizens' vision of the way the Net ought to grow, a firm idea of the kind of media environment we would like to see in the future. If we do not develop such a vision for ourselves, the future will be shaped for us by large commercial and political powerholders" (Rheingold, 2000, p. 6). If the online environment is not…

Online education for post-secondary instruction is a rapidly expanding enterprise among public and private universities. While the quantity of courses over the past 10 years has exponentially increased, the quality of these courses has not. As universities accept the challenge of creating effective and responsive online learning programs to…

An innovative ICT project called "Compose" has been implemented in some New Zealand primary schools in an effort to counteract the lack of classroom composition opportunities. "Compose" combines the use of music software and online learning with attempts to address barriers to primary classroom composition. This article…

With growth of online course enrollments outpacing enrollments in traditional courses by 500%, institutions of higher education are experiencing significant changes in terms of long-term strategic planning. Along with providing for the infrastructure requirements associated with online course offerings, the issue of faculty preparedness and…

Castilla-La Mancha University has decided to implement two tools: WebCT and Moodle, "Virtual Campus" has emerged: www.campusvirtual.ulcm.es. This paper is dedicated to the analysis of said tool as a primary mode of e-learning expansion in the university environment. It can be used to carry out standard educational university activities…

This article reports the findings of a recent empirical study that was conducted at a large university in the United States. The study compared the findings from modern learning theories to reported perceptions of undergraduate and graduate students taking courses in online learning environments. The intention of the study was to compare perceived…

Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to evaluate the usability and interface design of e-learning portal developed for primary schools in Singapore. Design/methodology/approach: Using Singapore-based learning EDvantage (LEAD) portal as a case study, this paper reviews and analyses the usability and usefulness of embedded learning objects (LOs)…

This paper traces the development of the BBC Learning English [http://www.bbc.co.uk/worldservice/learningenglish/] online community, focusing on tools such as e-mail discussion lists, message boards, comments boards, student/teacher blogs, competitions, and voting. It describes how relationships between the intermediate level users of all…

How has the new interactive distance education system facilitated by satellite technology been utilised and incorporated by teachers and learners? Has it changed the ways teachers deliver education to remote students? What have been the implications for the curriculum delivered via distance education? How has it affected the ways learners interact…

This three-part paper discusses how the contemporary use of computers in distance education is helping to connect students from our rural communities, whether they are located at pastoral stations, remote community schools or are on the road, travelling with parents or carers. The paper is in a sense organised like a sandwich, with technical…

The move toward online course facilitation in tertiary education has the intent of providing education at any time in any place to any person. However, the advent of blended learning and e-learning innovations has ostracised, marginalised or ignored those who cannot afford or who are unable to access the latest hardware and software to take…

Purpose: The aim of this paper is to share the experiences and challenges faced by the Open University Library (OUL) in using screen capture software to develop online literature search tutorials. Design/methodology/approach: A summary of information literacy support at the OUL is provided as background information to explain the decision to…

This article presents a study of Web 2.0 articles intended to (a) analyze the content of what is written and (b) develop a statistical model to predict whether authors' write about the need for new instructional design strategies and models. Eighty-eight technology articles were subjected to lexical analysis and a logistic regression model was…

Ana-Paula Correia offers a case study of an experiential e-learning pedagogy used in one of this program's distance courses. This graduate course in instructional design brought experiential learning into an e-learning community by asking students to apply knowledge and skills to real-world instructional design projects. Correia explores how the…