This paper describes the experience of the Faculty of Economics at the University of Trento, Italy, in delivering online courses through the Web. The faculty chose to design and build its own system from scratch rather than buy one off the shelf. The paper discusses the considerations informing this decision, and presents the main functionalities…

Retention has been indicated as one of the greatest weaknesses in online instruction. While a preponderance of literature about online instruction is available, concrete ideas about how to retain students are lacking. A DHHS grant for over one million dollars made it possible for the Wright State University College of Nursing and Health (Dayton,…

This paper addresses the problems of collaboration in distributed Web-based learning. It reviews, treats and discusses these problems from the learning theoretical perspective of "communities of practice" as presented by Etienne Wenger (1998), with reference to past and future Web-based designs. The paper suggests the concept and design…

This paper explores the ways in which the perception of a real-time classroom exchange serves as the conduit to a grander socially constructed conflict through the mediation of an asynchronous online listserve. The sample of 25 listserve messages was selected from a class of 191 undergraduate students in the lecture section of an introductory…

This research examined what factors affect learners' discourse participation in a Web-conferencing environment operated in a graduate course. Subjects were nine master's degree students, majoring in Educational Technology at a women's university in Seoul, Korea. Results suggest seven factors that affect students' discourse in the following ways:…

Nine volunteers from a 17-member physics method class in a preservice teacher education program at Queen's University of Kingston (Canada) participated in a private WebCT forum in which they could explore various aspects of their learning during the second half of their program. This paper responds to two central questions from this use of WebCT…

This report describes and discusses several applications of new computer-based technologies which enable postsecondary students with deafness or hearing impairments to read the text of the language being spoken by the instructor and fellow students virtually in real time. Two current speech-to-text options are described: (1) steno-based systems in…

Competence refers to a state of being well qualified to perform an activity, task, or job function. According to the International Board of Standards for Training, Performance and Instruction (IBSTPI), a competency involves a related set of knowledge, skills, and attitudes that enables a person to effectively perform the activities of a given…

This study examined the risks associated with increased reliance upon technology, including e-mail, instant messages, and cellular phones. Subjects were undergraduate college students ranging in age from 17 to 29. A sample of 40 students was taken from a small liberal arts college in Pennsylvania. A second sample of 25 engineering students was…

This paper describes the development of an educational partnership between two disparate and geographically separated institutions--the Pennsylvania State University (PSU) and Saint Joseph's University (SJU) (Pennsylvania)--that is specifically focused on the food industry and, more specifically, the development and launch of new food products.…

The Web-based standard setting (WBSS) system described in Harvey and Way (1999) provides an online, Internet-based alternative for testing programs that use onsite judgmental standard setting studies to set their cut scores. Standard setting studies using the WBSS system were compared to similar onsite studies of two exams in the College-Level…

This book guides students through the entire writing process--prewriting, writing, and rewriting--developing an easy-to-use, step-by-step technique for writing the types of documents they will encounter on the job. It engages students in the writing process and encourages hands-on application as well as discussions about ethics, audience…

As K-12 schools connect to the Internet, a new method of communication opens up to educators and their students. This ERIC Digest describes some sample services and resources that are available to the K-12 community by electronic mail over the Internet (resources and addresses are subject to change). Question answering services, electronic…

Eliminating gender imbalances online should be possible with the ability to mask identity and move in worlds anonymously. If almost half of Internet participants are women, what is happening in the social realm of online space in relation to these numbers? This paper shows how a course at the State University of New York at Buffalo called…

Rapid development of new technologies has outpaced the development of related law, leaving educators in doubt about the management of copyright, privacy, liability, and security. A key provision of facilitating a healthy and safe environment for technology use is the school district's "Acceptable Use Policy" (AUP), which states that use…