Examines the extent to which fostering learning communities can improve literacy skills. Shows possibilities for improvements in writing and reading by fostering a community of learners that focuses on scientific inquiries using computer technology, and that learning communities can enhance the reasoning, problem solving, and learning strategies…

Discussion of the human-technology interface highlights computer technology in relation to the management of open and distance learning for adults. Examples from higher education and continuing education in Australia are presented, and design considerations for technology-based delivery systems for adults are suggested. (13 references) (LRW)

Continuing Education Centers at the University of Helsinki and the Helsinki University of Technology (Finland) established the Information Technology Center for Schools by combining and developing their expertise on information technology across the curriculum. (AEF)

Considers the effects of educational technology on eastern European countries. Highlights include the relationships among organizations, technology, human resources, and social environment; technological education and society; information systems and the evolution of political, economic, and cultural structures; and the use of free time and the…

Considers ways in which technology such as computer networks may affect the future development of education in Turkey. A historical-cultural perspective of Turkish education is provided; education as an agent for transmitting cultural values is discussed; computerized information networks are described; and obstacles are considered. (eight…

Focuses on the several levels of questions that need to be considered before planning and implementing a distance education program. Discusses systems procedures to be followed in developing pilot lessons (modules) prior to "rapid prototyping." Concludes by providing a generic research plan for ensuring the development of sustained quality…

Results of a survey requested by the International Council for Educational Media (ICEM) measuring the extent that video technology is used in Hungarian elementary and secondary schools show that it is a positive and complex element. (AEF)

With the appropriate software, it is possible to create a pedagogical environment where children can learn to read and write at their own pace; by using the software Fairy-Tale-World, children can print their drawings and texts and learn foreign words easily. (AEF)

Discusses the integration of technology into the learning environment and considers how best to equip the teacher of the future to accommodate such changes. Summarizes the findings of student and teacher reactions to online Web-based courses at the University of Central Florida and suggests further research. (Author/LRW)

Discusses the influences of mass media and other communication technologies on small linguistic communities using examples from the Catalan and Occitan/Aranes communities of Spain. Highlights include hardware, linguistic software, national character sets and sorting, spelling checkers, automatic translation, multilingual software, networking, and…

Describes five pilot projects in Australia which apply telecommunications to the concepts of distance education and open learning strategies for teachers at the preservice and posttraining level. Future projects using telecommunications for inservice teacher training based on results of the pilot projects are described. (EAM)

The National Film Board of Canada (NFB) is focusing on interactive and multimedia technologies, within the framework of a virtual commons, to promote the study of people, their environments, and their resources. (AEF)

Examines distance education as a global movement (development, technology, telecommunications); identifies research constructs (transactional distance, interaction, learner control); social context that can help in applying research to practice; and discusses using research to inform practice, eliminating political and economic roadblocks, and…

Describes research that was part of the European Community's "Socrates Mailbox" project that investigated changes in learning produced by the introduction of information and communication technology (ICT) in primary and secondary schools. Effects of e-mail, the Internet, the World Wide Web, and teleconferencing on both pupils and…

Describes the implementation of a training course in computerized educational resource management provided for staff of Pedagogical Resource Centres in Catalonia (Spain). Training in telematics is explained, including documentary training and an ongoing process of permanent training assistance; the telematics infrastructure is discussed; and the…