In this article, we describe the evolution of a statewide alternative teacher preparation program for teachers of students with disabilities and explain current processes to revise and expand the program to increase accessibility to teacher candidates in rural schools. We will identify important features of the program including (a) significant…

This article describes a statewide online alternative teacher preparation program in early childhood special education. The history and evolution of the program is explained along with the programmatic changes that resulted from working with noncertified teachers with a wide variety of backgrounds in both rural and urban districts. Challenges and…

This article describes a collaborative, distance-delivered, teacher preparation program for rural, culturally and linguistically diverse (CLD) teacher candidates. Multiple institutions partnered with one university in order to diversify the teaching force in the region and meet the needs of CLD students living there. In describing the program's…

A new project, designed by educators in Minnesota, will develop, evaluate, and disseminate model procedures for integrating new information and communications technologies into precollege instruction in rural areas. Consortia of small rural schools using interactive telecommunications will serve as pilot sites for developing and assessing the…

Thirty-three member schools of the Organization of Rural Oklahoma Schools cooperated in the creation of six school networks that participated in a series of electronic "field trips" for rural students. The field trips were actually conference telephone calls that allowed students and teachers to talk with experts in areas such as…

Outlines characteristics of effective technology-based distance-learning programs that meet specific local needs, incorporate current educational theory and practice, and satisfy the social and emotional needs of the students. Presents guidelines for program development in rural schools. (SV)

The key to preparing today's teachers to carry out their professional responsibilities is not necessarily found in high-priced technologies, but rather in a new level of cooperation between universities and public schools and in new ways to deliver coursework. Indiana University offers inservice teacher education coursework through interactive…

A discussion is provided of the ways in which audio teleconferencing can provide instruction to students in rural areas using the regular telephone network. After introductory material describes the benefits of audio teleconferencing (e.g., its low costs, familiar technology, and wide availability), a technical description of its operation is…

This keynote speech discusses the rise of telecommunicated distance education in the United States. Interactive satellite broadcasts for K-12 instruction are now received by more than 1,000 schools in more than 40 states. Similarly, many states are working with two-way interactive television projects, slow-scan television systems, and…

The University of South Carolina distance education program for preparation of personnel to educate visually handicapped people utilizes a video delivery system with a two-way audio talk-back system, teleconferencing, videocassettes, and alternative scheduling. Course descriptions and students' responses are described. (JDD)

A series of U.S. Department of Education grants has enabled the University of Kentucky to deliver a graduate program on low incidence disabilities to students in rural areas via distance education. In 1989, the initial Training Rural Educators in Kentucky (TREK) project involved physically moving coursework to rural London, Kentucky. In subsequent…

As the population of minority pupils continues to increase, the need for special education personnel to identify and educate culturally and linguistically diverse exceptional students will also rise. Continuing shortages of qualified personnel in special education have been declared a national emergency, with "diagnostic staff" ranked as…

The establishment of the Nigerian National Commission for Nomadic Education in 1989 created wider opportunities for an estimated 9.3 million nomads living in Nigeria to acquire literacy skills. This commission was struck to address low literacy rates among pastoral nomads and migrant fishermen, which put literacy rates at 0.28 percent and 20…

This report describes the activities of the first 5 years of the Lesotho Distance Teaching Center, which uses distance teaching methods to bring education to more people in Lesotho. Also described are the Center's internal organization, its relationship to other organizations in Lesotho, its costs, and some evaluation findings. Background…

This book provides information supplemental to the accompanying videotape regarding the implementation and use of two-way, full-motion interactive television. Based on a study conducted by the Southwest Educational Development Laboratory, "Local Heroes" describes in detail how citizens have implemented the technology in small rural…