In the past decade, virtual worlds have progressed from isolated sectors of the Internet, inhabited by computer and fantasy role-playing enthusiasts, to one of the fastest growing sectors in the gaming industry. In the process, they have established themselves as promising venues for the delivery of online instruction. Unfortunately, during that…

Views of learning and teaching have a direct relationship to the treatment of subject matter in online instruction. Two instructional theories, Elaboration Theory and Cognitive Flexibility Theory, are discussed in the context of online learning. Elaboration Theory (C. Reigeluth) is primarily concerned with the organization of course materials. The…

Describes the development of McGill medical school's online, multimedia-enhanced, undergraduate medical curriculum. Pedagogical values were deemed to include: (1) the ability to use the media to implement adult learning principles such as learner-centered, self-directed, and guided learning; (2) the inherent interactivity of the technology; and…

Discussion of the use of telecommunications in the social studies curriculum focuses on three main areas: (1) searching and reading information in databases, including the appropriate use of commercial database services; (2) electronic mail and bulletin boards; and (3) the role of the telecomputing teacher. (five references) (LRW)

Over the past two years, a statewide initiative has been led to create a virtual university in Minnesota. With one million dollars in state funding, the two public higher education systems--the Minnesota State Colleges and Universities and the University of Minnesota--have collaborated with private colleges, state departments, industry…

As the University of Arizona implemented its curriculum reform initiative, faculty became much more planful about their teaching, but also much more demanding of credible advice about instruction. Faculty make sometimes paradoxical demands in these circumstances: demands for tools that make it easy to do new things, and demands that these tools be…

This paper presents a guide, based on the experiences of some online teachers and students at Ohio University, offering practical information for instructors who want to teach online more effectively. Online instructional tips are organized and provided in four main areas. The first area of guidelines focuses on pedagogical aspects, and discusses…

Factors that increase the likelihood of sustainable on-line learning community success fall into four general categories: the selection of an ease of learning and ease of use application permits an adequate default setting to begin operation yet permits users and managers to customize their on-line environment; creation and support of users,…

Describes how to design an interactive course for the Internet, using as an example the development of a graduate course entitled Accessing Information through Technology. Course design includes development of a needs assessment, goal analysis, student assessment, instructional strategy, and course evaluation. (SM)

Describes methods used by Marywood College (Pennsylvania) in setting up a series of online education courses. Highlights include administrative base; educational relevance and standards; assessing learning quality; the physical connection; personnel issues; and the benefits of using an outside provider (i.e. America Online) for support and course…

Presents seven strategies to assist educators in providing students with a high quality online communication experience: begin with curriculum; spend time planning; encourage a positive social climate; understand the unique nature of online communication; encourage good reading and writing skills; deal with inappropriate behavior and attitudes;…

Introduces the Amazing Space program which is designed to enhance student mathematics, science, and technology skills using recent data and results from the National Aeronautics and Space Administration's (NASA) Hubble Space Telescope mission. Explains the process of designing multi-media resources in a five-week summer workshop that partners…

Describes ICONnect, an online project developed through the American Association of School Librarians to help school librarians, teachers, students, and parents use the Internet effectively. Services of ICONnect are explained and new roles for librarians are discussed. (LRW)

Discusses categories of common approaches K-12 and higher education faculty members take to adapt their courses for distance delivery. Describes the "dive-in technique," the "chunking approach," and the "start-from-scratch" approach. These different approaches to the problem of distance education illustrate that there are a variety of ways to be…

Collaborative online course development brings together a group of staff with experience in course content, instructional design, multimedia, graphic arts, and HTML formatting to create a course. The process is illustrated through by a collaborative design initiative at Grant MacEwan College to convert existing print-based distance courses to a…