Rapid developments in computer and telecommunications technology have allowed U.S. students unprecedented access to information about people, cultures, and events from around the world. In this article, the author argues that schools need to exploit the opportunity that this provides to further global understanding. Sections include: (1) Access to…

More and more school districts, as well as for-profit companies and nonprofit organizations, are offering Internet-based summer classes in core subjects, such as algebra and reading, and electives such as creative writing. In this article, the author discusses the growth of enrollment in online education for summer. The logistical ease of…

This paper describes a CALL approach which integrates software for speaker independent continuous speech recognition with embodied virtual agents and virtual worlds to create an immersive environment in which learners can converse in the target language in contextualised scenarios. The result is a self-access learning package: SPELL (Spoken…

This article reports on how a social sciences instructor teaching contemporary global issues implemented collaborative learning among students in a virtual environment. A substantial part of this particular course was delivered at a distance with the help of the Web. The bulletin board feature of WebCT was used to implement a simulation game where…

Students are most successful in online courses that provide ample opportunities for them to interact with the instructor, other students, and the course content. An interactive online course must engage students as active learners rather than as passive participants. How can instructors design virtual classrooms that offer students with a variety…

This article discusses another ancillary project of the Writers In Electronic Residence's (WIER) program, "The Virtual Practicum," which provides online practice teaching placements to pre-service candidates. WIER offered its first virtual practicum in 1989 through the former Faculty of Education, University of Toronto, and has since…

This article describes the Quest Atlantis (QA) project, a learning and teaching project that employs a multiuser, virtual environment to immerse children, ages 9-12, in educational tasks. QA combines strategies used in commercial gaming environments with lessons from educational research on learning and motivation. It allows users at participating…

The course creator, not the course, empowers collaborative communities. Using the Internet to communicate without restraints due to place or time has allowed the quantity and quality of human relationships to increase. To prepare our students for the 21st century, we must understand who our Audience is, how we can Benefit from virtual communities…

In June 2004, "Thwarted Innovation: What Happened to e-learning and Why," a report by Robert Zemsky and William F. Massy, created a minor stir among many professionals associated with distance learning. This article addresses many of the issues arising from the publication of "Thwarted Innovation," and in addition, it borrows several concepts from…

The current investigation sought to understand the relationships between college student alienation, academic achievement, and use of WebCT. Fifty-three students enrolled in an undergraduate educational psychology course provided three types of data: 1) self-rating of eight Likert scale alienation items, 2) academic achievement measured with four…

Online course delivery can be a dynamic learning experience where information is used to shape and extend thinking. The challenge is creating a virtual classroom that combines evocative resources with tasks that enhance and stimulate student learning. New models are needed to reflect the changing learning environment that began with the advent of…

Purpose: The paper argues that virtual situated learning environments (VSLE), designed as authentic learning experiences, can provide managers with broader learning opportunities while also cater for the learning needs of the increasing number of peripatetic managers. Design/methodology/approach: An action learning methodology, using first person…

In the winter of 2000, a class of K-8 preservice teachers were introduced to "TesselMania! Deluxe," a software product that visually and manually engages students in the study of transformations but, more specifically, tessellations. Prior to discussing the topic of transformations, students were only slightly familiar with two types of…

The Qualifications and Curriculum Authority (QCA) has made no secret of its desire for teachers to introduce more creativity into UK classrooms. Imaginatively minded teachers have found a number of ways to introduce creativity into the classroom. Dance, music, problem solving and role-play exercises are all well trodden routes, but it was the…

This article introduces two studies showing the perceived usefulness reported by the participants of Intranet Based Learning (IBL) (N = 226) and the effectiveness of IBL measured by the outcomes of two instructional groups and the control group in a Korean private company (N = 132). It is suggested that additional aspects of IBL need to be…