Effective teaching at a distance is more the result of preparation than innovation. The distance educator can employ a number of strategies focusing on planning, student understanding, interaction, and teaching to ensure a successfully delivered course. This digest discusses six topics in teaching at a distance: (1) What's Different about Distance…

As K-12 schools connect to the Internet, a new method of communication opens up to educators and students. This updated digest describes some sample services and resources that are available to the K-12 community by electronic mail over the Internet. Information services and resources covered include: question answering services; listservs…

Instructional development provides a procedure and framework for systematically planning, developing, and adapting instruction based on identifiable learner needs and content requirements, a process essential in distance education. Although instructional development models and processes abound, the majority follow the same basic stages of design,…

An effective staff development program for rural teachers will have identified the needs to be met, will incorporate good management principles, and will make use of a variety of resources--the community itself, nonprofessional staff, business and industry, and shared teaching efforts. Distinctive staff development needs of rural teachers may…

The Internet is an international computer network composed of thousands of smaller networks. State and regional education networks and commercial providers have made the vast resources of the Internet increasingly available to administrators, school library media specialists, and classroom teachers. This updated digest lists a selection of no-cost…