An electronic decision making process was studied as an approach to an educational problem. Data suggested that students beginning kindergarten in large southern urban areas were not prepared cognitively or socially for a successful school experience. Twenty experts in early childhood education were invited to attend one of two sessions in a…

Structural communication applies principles of cognitive psychology to the design of self-instructional materials. While most early implementations took print form, advances in computer and interactive video technologies offer increased opportunities, especially in distance education. Summarizes studies on structural communication in writing…

Although the early settlements in cyberspace have tended to be male-dominated, diversity does exist on the Internet. In fact, a 1994-95 study revealed that women comprise 34% of Internet users. Feminism, as it came of age in the 1960s, often equated technoscience with the Vietnam War and with forces in opposition to nature and life. Postmodern…

In training courses for writing tutors, an electronic mail forum is a particularly useful writing-to-learn activity because it gives tutors-in-training important experience with the collaborative intellectual processes at the heart of writing centers. In one particular class for tutors at Marquette University, Wisconsin, the assignment for the…

The Internet is a decentralized collection of computer networks managed by separate groups using a common set of technical standards. The Internet has tremendous potential as an educational resource by providing access to networking through worldwide electronic mail, various databases, and electronic bulletin boards; collaborative investigation…

Learning to use technology can be traumatic for adults. This study is qualitative and based on personal e-mail diaries written by adult learners. It identifies six stages adults may go through as they learn to use technology to communicate electronically. Initially, 30 teachers studying in a post-graduate university course were involved in a…

This paper reflects on a two-semester experiment using computer technologies in the university political science classroom. The instructor incorporated electronic mail (e-mail), the Internet, and an on-line conferencing program into the course requirements for an upper-division course on the Supreme Court and an introductory honors tutorial on…

As enrollments decline, many institutions rush to implement distance education programs, often with only crude or solely administrative guidelines for program development. The following seven principles of good practice can be useful to guide initial program development: (1) programs should have purpose, direction, leadership, and clearly…

Use of electronic mail (e-mail) as a resource in a Universiti Kebangsaen Malaysia (UKM) English-as-a-Second-Language (ESL) teacher education course in 1997-98 is described. The second-year undergraduate course, "The Teaching of Reading Skills in an ESL Context," enrolled 115 students with a range of experience with computers. One course…

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…

This paper examines the process by which an immediate access-to-technology environment influences the frequency, form, and substance of collegial interaction among classroom teachers. The longitudinal study, part of the Apple Classrooms of Tomorrow project, covers a 5-year period and utilizes data from 32 elementary and secondary teachers in five…

The present study reports results of an experiment in which the author and her students at King Saud University (KSU) in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia shared an online grammar course with a professor and his students at Umm Al-Qura University (UQU) in Makkah, Saudi Arabia using www.makkahelearning.net. The experiment proved to be a total failure. Factors…

This study examined processes through which two teacher educators and their students learned about online collaboration. Participants collaborated on a set of integrated units of curriculum design that would be relevant to what students in three different courses were studying and would show them the advantages of collaboration. Students selected…

A study investigated the writing strategies used by English as a second language (ESL) students in writing electronic mail (e-mail) messages, and to what extent certain ESL teaching variables influenced students' use of writing strategies. Subjects were 16 ESL teachers and their 208 university students. Students were administered a 50-item…

This study examined the consequences of establishing e-mail communication between two classes in different schools: a fifth grade of children with hearing difficulties and a fourth grade of children without hearing difficulties. The arrangement provided an opportunity for children to interact with peers whom they would not normally meet at school.…