Over the last 30 years, there has been a giant leap in methods of educating beyond the traditional classroom extending from recorded lectures on VCR tapes to synchronous learning modalities. This article will review the history of distance education, the strengths and limitations of online learning, as well as discuss the integration of Blackboard…

This study, first in a three-part series, looked at distance education at Boise State University, Idaho, to explore the current distance education delivery methods, the growth in distance education, enrollment, and teaching in distance education. Data from various university sources show that in the past 5 years, the numbers of distance education…

Examines the Schooldisc program developed jointly by the American Broadcasting Company and the National Education Association and compares Schooldiscs with "ThinkAbout," an instructional television series produced by the Agency for Instructional Television. (IRT)

Telecourses can offer quality learning experiences and be effective means of serving nontraditional students. Most of the quality telecourses have been produced in the last five years, although some instructional areas are not well represented, and educational and commercial producers will be increasing the choices and control of offerings. (MSE)

Comparison of students taking a televised (n=19) or classroom-based (n=52) course on aging found that telecourse students completed more readings; the classroom group had significant increases in knowledge and better access to instructors. After course revision, telecourse students made significant improvements in knowledge and got higher grades…

Results of an evaluation of the Washington Higher Education Telecommunication System (WHETS) are summarized. The system links Washington State University (WSU) in Pullman and the University of Washington (UW) in Seattle with the off-campus sites in Spokane, Tri-Cities, and Vancouver. The system also expands the microwave link between WSU and the…

Presents a follow-up study gauging the reactions of an Open University Course Team to the developmental testing of the broadcast element of their course. Problems in modifying the television component are identified and conditions necessary for the broadcast component to be tested and modified are suggested. (Author/CMV)

"Growing Old in a New Age," a Public Broadcasting Service telecourse, was evaluated by 40 faculty, 29 state aging administrators, 2 international public broadcasting users, and a training specialist. The course was generally considered effective, but improvements were recommended in content, integration of video and text, and updated…

In the fall of 1979 a third-year course in educational administration at the University of Victoria was presented via an interactive communication satellite called Anik B. Students enrolled in this first Canadian university satellite course for credit were 65 administrators and potential administrators of schools, and classes met in community…

The study examined the effectiveness of three two-way interactive television courses offered by the University of Utah in providing special education teacher instruction. The courses utilized technology which allowed course instructors as well as distance learners to hear and see each other during instruction. The three courses were offered…

A summative evaluation of the effectiveness of the educational television series, "Statistics," that aired on South African television is presented. The two episodes chosen from the six-episode series covered pie charts, pictograms, and pictographs (episode 1); and point-of-view interpretations of statistics (episode 4). The evaluation…

The cost effectiveness of videocassettes and television broadcasts for the Open University's instructional purposes is examined, and the relative inexpensiveness of videocassette production and distribution is weighed against other issues, including access to equipment, changes in format necessary to take advantage of videocassettes' instructional…

To assess how early in the development of content materials for a televised course learner review should occur, data were gathered from adult students who reviewed either the script, scratch track audiotape, or rough cut videotape for a course on Japan. (Author/JEG)

Faculty from three universities cooperatively prepared and delivered a special education course for general educators. Interactive television was used for four of the six remote sites. Two sites reviewed videotapes of presentations. Participants preferred interactive presentations and judged content and teachings as less effective when it was not…

This evaluation report focuses on a broad range of issues associated with the work of the Electronic Text Consortium (consisting of San Diego State University, University of Wisconsin, University of Nebraska, and WGBH Boston), whose year-long task was to develop and test a variety of electronic text services and to assess which configurations of…