Aboriginal educators and economic development practitioners in Canada are developing and implementing initiatives to promote the achievement of "digital opportunities" so that Aboriginal communities can both develop and be in a position to take advantage of economic opportunities without falling deeper into the "digital…

The advance of online technology and instructional delivery such as Web-based learning (WBL) has heralded new changes in education. Students using the WBL environment in various courses at eight universities in Malaysia were surveyed. Results showed that five main factors influence the effectiveness of the online learning process: students'…

Two studies explored how well English and French speaking colleges and universities in Canada address availability and access to new computer and information technologies for individuals with disabilities. In Study 1, 156 professionals who provide disability-related supports on campus responded to structured interview questions. In Study 2, 40…

A schoolnet program is an organized set of activities that expands the use of ICTs and promotes sharing of educational resources by teachers and students at schools. Schoolnet programmes may be located inside or outside government, may be large initiatives with substantial funding, or may be smaller innovative projects without big budgets. The…

Rural and remote learners are disadvantaged even with online provision due to poor connections. Broadband offers a potential solution. This paper looks at the initial results of a project to install broadband services in the Western Isles of Scotland. It focuses on the educational potential of broadband and the design implications for online…

This article addresses the historical context, current development, and future challenges of distance education in Indonesia. Conditions related to the geography, demography, socio-economic and cultural situations, as well as the availability of technology have encouraged the use of distance education as a valid choice in providing access to…

This paper is about the introduction of blended online and face-to-face learning to the Faculty of Education at Eduardo Mondlane University (EMU) in Mozambique. The main objective of the intervention was to explore the use of a course management system (CMS) within a flexible, student-centred teaching and learning strategy. The author selected two…

During the 2001 summer holidays, the main Social Science classroom at St Ursula's College, a Catholic Secondary Girls' school of 740 pupils in Toowomba, Queensland was renovated. A mini-computer laboratory of four nests of computers was incorporated into the traditional teaching space. (See Diagram 1 and photograph). This room was named the…

Technology in secondary schools has become of increasing interest as the power of the microchip has developed. For the students of Mathematics, computers and handheld graphic calculators need to be accessible to all. They are relevant to the needs of the students' courses and to support and develop their Mathematical learning (Smith, 1997).…

The learning needs of older adults living in rural Tasmania, Australia, and the potential of online technologies to foster local literacy and community well-being were examined. The study used a qualitative inquiry strategy that included visits to three sites to investigate the literacy and numeracy implications of senior citizens' use of online…

This paper is the first in a two part series, this first part describes the findings from visits to two isolated and remote schools in the far north of Western Australia in 2001, the second part to be published in the next issue of AEC will describe a visit to the same schools in late 2003 to see what has changed. Parts of this first paper were…

The development of digital content raises new issues as rapid technological developments challenge existing business models and government policies. This OECD study identifies and discusses six groups of business and public policy issues and illustrates these with existing and potential OECD Digital Content Strategies and Policies: (1) Innovation…

The adult literacy community is undergoing a period of rapid change due to the expanding role of information and communication technologies (ICT). Developments in instructional and educational design and enhanced technical capabilities have impacted on the range of online learning being offered. The online learning environment has evolved into a…

A two-phase study examined the skills required of competent end-users of computers in the workplace and assessed the computing awareness and technological environment of first-year students entering historically disadvantaged technikons in South Africa. First, a DACUM (Developing a Curriculum) panel of nine representatives of local business and…

This collection of 14 first-hand accounts from experienced and accomplished learning technology practitioners highlights issues in using learning technologies for flexible, distance, and open learning. The papers are as follows: "Using Learning Technologies: An Introduction" (Margaret Haughey); "Naming the Learning Technology Issues…