Alberta (Canada) is experiencing a phenomenon common to many other regions the world over: there is a movement of population away from rural areas to urban centers. Such migration has a profound impact on rural schools and school systems in these areas, including a decrease in school population, school staff, and school programs. In an attempt to address this problem, the Alberta government established a distance education project in 1987 to deliver, via diverse means, high school courses in quality and quantity sufficient to allow students to graduate. Three forms of technology were incorporated: facsimile transmissions (FAX), telephones, and teleconferencing convenors. Electronic mail and electronic bulletin boards were added subsequently. The project resulted in a shift in emphasis on teacher roles to increased independent study. However, due to the traditional instructional orientation of project personnel and students, patterns of use of the new technologies revealed a tendency to stay with the more familiar telephone and FAX machines. (9 references) (DB)