ERIC Number: ED511818
Record Type: Non-Journal
Publication Date: 1996-Dec
Pages: 12
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: N/A
EISSN: N/A
Available Date: N/A
Teaching Educational Issues to Secondary Student Teachers Using Computer Mediated Communication (CMC): An Educational Innovation
Palmer, Bill
Online Submission, Paper presented at the International United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO)-Asia-Pacific Centre of Educational Innovation for Development (ACEID) Conference (2nd, Bangkok, Thailand, Dec 9-12, 1996)
I have been responsible for the teaching of a secondary teacher education unit called Educational Issues (EDN 482) for the past seven years, in the Faculty of Education in a small, regional Australian University. A brief look at the map will show how geographically isolated form the main centres of population in Australia, Northern Territory University is. This was one reason why I felt that some experimentation with computer mediated communication might be justified. I taught part of an educational issues unit as a limited form of CMC discussion on a dedicated listserver. A considerable proportion of the course involved teaching the students appropriate computer skills in order to practice CMC, as, surprisingly, the students, who are all graduates, had little experience even of e-mail. Even a limited form of CMC has provided some degree of technological difficulty. After teaching about the technical aspects, students then discussed a variety of educational issues on the listserver EDN482-1. Unlike many CMC units, the aim of the on-line discussion was to improve the overall quality of classroom discussion and presentation. The methodology and details of the unit will be explained in the paper. In the future, I hope that some of these students will be encouraged to start using CMC in their own courses in schools, when they start teaching. I am introducing these changes slowly, as I have been in education too long not to have seen numerous technical and philosophical innovations disappear without trace. [This paper's abstract was published in: Rupert Maclean (Ed.), Report on the UNESCO-ACEID International Conference "Re-Engineering Education for Change: Education Change for Development" (2nd, Bangkok, Thailand, December 9-12, 1996). UNESCO, 1997. p365-366.]
Descriptors: Foreign Countries, College Students, Discussion, Computer Mediated Communication, Rural Areas, Rural Education, Preservice Teacher Education, Blended Learning, Internet, Discussion Groups, Educational Innovation, Education Courses, Electronic Mail, Technology Integration, Barriers, Computer Assisted Instruction, Foundations of Education, International Education
Publication Type: Reports - Descriptive; Speeches/Meeting Papers
Education Level: Higher Education; Postsecondary Education
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Identifiers - Location: Australia
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A
Author Affiliations: N/A