Reviews the literature on distance learning. Devotes particular attention to the telecourse and the role two-way communication plays in distance learning effectiveness. Concludes that a broad theoretical framework that can be applied to distance learning is lacking and needed. Suggests needed research. (JOW)

Reviews the origins of the lecture as the format of choice for instructional television in the 1950s, and evaluates the effectiveness of this format. The development of educational television, including the trend away from liberal arts curricula and the role played by the government and the Ford Foundation, are also discussed. (13 references) (CLB)

Two-way interactive television (ITV) can broaden the variety of instructional programs available to students, ease the logistical problems of teacher inservice, provide new services to community members, and sometimes be a magnet for the collaboration of business and education. This special report, third in a series, examines the technology,…

Discusses the progress of educational television systems in Latin America. Three types of systems are identified and evaluated, one a direct import of the European or North American models of conventional schools instructional television, and two that have been developed in Latin America. (CHC)

Argues that television has unique educational characteristics that separate it from other media and have implications for teaching and learning. Discussion of distributional and social, control, and symbolic (audiovisual) characteristics is based on published surveys and on research carried out at the Open University. Thirteen references are…

The demand for postsecondary education on a part-time basis has been rising rapidly in Canada, due in part to the growing need of students to maintain full-time employment and due also to increasing requests for continuing professional education. Since part-time students are often unable to attend regularly scheduled classes and may find frequent…

This keynote speech discusses the rise of telecommunicated distance education in the United States. Interactive satellite broadcasts for K-12 instruction are now received by more than 1,000 schools in more than 40 states. Similarly, many states are working with two-way interactive television projects, slow-scan television systems, and…

This handbook is designed to serve the needs of colleges and universities considering the development of distance degree programs. Its objectives are to report on current practices among colleges offering degree programs primarily through telecommunications; to describe current distance degree programs that can be used as models; and to identify…

A framework for classifying the uses of telecommunications in higher education is suggested, with examples of current programs and developments at a variety of institutions to illustrate the range of possible applications. (MSE)

Based on a review of existing literature and interviews with more than 50 individuals at television stations and colleges, this report describes the state of the art of telecourses. Following an introductory chapter, 13 chapters discuss the following aspects of telecourses: (1) definition and scope; (2) the institutional environment; (3) the…

An analysis and summary of 19 recent Canadian and U.S. reports on training needs show that all of them warn that Canada (like North America generally) is facing a serious skills crisis at a time of growing demand for capable workers. In addition, the studies point out that the private sector must contribute much more than it has so far to human…

Research pertaining to adult second-language learning from television is reviewed. It is proposed that course design and marketing must begin with considerations of basic factors such as students' needs, nature of the target language, the uses to be made of the language, and the linguistic skills being taught. Decisions can be made best by keeping…

This paper presents a definition of distance education and a rationale for it both in pragmatic, problem-solving terms and in relation to a larger view of society. The geographic, political, educational, and technological context of distance education in Canada is then discussed. Traditional correspondence courses, satellite-delivered credit and…

The history of instructional television, the development of the telecourse concept, current uses of instructional television, economic factors, and cooperative arrangements are considered. After the initial approach of presenting a professor lecturing as if before a class, producers of instructional television began to dramatize the subject, adopt…

Intended as a practical inventory of ways that public broadcasting has been used for education, this volume is divided into three sections that deal with television, radio, and research articles. The section on television discusses the method, material, and changing context of educational broadcasting; analyzes the programing and funding of…