In last month's "Adult Learning," the authors introduced the notion of "the silver surfer", a third-age learner adept at using the internet and other technologies for a mixture of formal and informal learning episodes. They suggested that neither this image nor its obverse, the truly disconnected older adult, is helpful in understanding the ICT…

Discussion boards have the unique capacity to support higher-order constructivist learning and the development of a learning community, This chapter provides ten conditions that support the effective use of an online discussion.

Technology is the key to improving student achievement, but without high-quality professional development, technology will never be successful in fulfilling that role. To create successful professional development, it is necessary to carefully plan programs and activities that model constructivism and take into consideration characteristics of…

The ongoing debate over the difference between education and training may soon become totally irrelevant as research continues to suggest increased learning potential, irrespective of discipline, when computer technology is incorporated within learning environments. At the postsecondary level, where adults are amassing and assimilating huge…

This paper is a summary of a "how to" workshop, focusing on design guidelines when moving from an onsite course to an online course. Three most basic considerations are content knowledge, pedagogical skill, and higher-order thinking dispositions. Transferring content to an online environment requires technological expertise, and…

Although all New Zealand polytechnics and institutes of technology are making some use of new information technology and Internet-related technologies, developments incorporating effective use of these new technologies and media remain somewhat uneven. Educators seeking to embrace the Internet as a delivery medium face numerous critical design…

As a medium for delivering lifelong learning, the Internet makes it possible to customize education to individual needs, deliver education anywhere and anytime, and enable learners to interact with other learners and teachers collaboratively to solve problems and learn new skills. Nevertheless, as a medium for delivering lifelong learning, the…

The case of Singapore illustrates how well-deployed information technology (IT) can be a change agent in education and national development. IT has been a catalyst and enabler of the shift from didactic, passive instruction to interactive, learner-centered and learner-directed instruction. In technical education in particular, IT has served as a…

This five-part report synthesizes current theory and research on the adult as learner and generates implications for design and delivery of learning systems, particularly those involving computer-mediated technology and related software. "Adult Learning in Context" (Sean Courtney, Jiali Luo) examines the current situation of the adult…

Computer-mediated instruction is particularly well-suited to typical community college students because it offers an alternative to the time and place constraints of traditional classrooms. Key characteristics of computer-mediated learning are as follows: instructors and students are separated by distance; instruction is delivered via computer…

In 1997, the South West Institute of TAFE (Technical and Further Education) in Victoria, Australia, and Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology jointly developed an online workplace delivery model for administrative and clerical workers. The model was aligned with national standards encompassing the formal qualifications for four certificates in…

Trends in using computer technology for career development and human resources development in companies in the United States and worldwide were reviewed, and the possibilities of adapting the latest advances in digital technology-based training delivery systems in school-based contexts were explored. A model was proposed that entailed having chief…

This paper discusses policy regarding learning in later life in the United Kingdom. The following are among the topics discussed in chapters 1-12: (1) the importance of lifelong learning; (2) the importance of learning to older people; (3) opportunities for lifelong learning in the United Kingdom; (4) the United Kingdom's aging population; (5)…

In 2000, the American Society for Training and Development and the National Governors Association convened the Commission on Technology and Adult Learning. The 31-member commission included representatives of the business, government, and education sectors. They formulated a vision for the future of e-learning in the United States and identified…

This document contains 12 papers about lifelong learning in rural communities in Great Britain. The papers, which are intended for lecturers, tutors, and guidance professionals but may also prove useful to organizations providing lifelong learning and policymakers, include conceptual tools as well as empirical case studies documenting lifelong…