The purpose of this study is to investigate facilitation in an online learning environment. The types of facilitation are examined using distance course students as subjects. Students' characteristics such as prior experience in distance courses, demographic attributes such as age, gender, and grades are incorporated as variables to explore their…

The main purpose of this Naturalistic inquiry study is to explore four ethically diverse Web-based Computer Supported Collaborative Learning (CSCL) students' perceptions of and experiences in knowledge construction and group collaboration. Findings suggest that individual and group successes are interconnected and rely on successful negotiation…

Recent issues of training, computer, and management magazines all suggest that Web-based training (WBT) is the best way to reach geographically dispersed employees quickly and at low costs. The purpose of this paper is to explore the many unique characteristics of WBT and to discuss important issues related to the use of WBT in a corporate…

In professional development, attention to both collaboration and critical thinking in the various interactive socialization processes of teaching practices should be essential strategic elements in a formative environment. This study presents contributions from the teleinteractive dynamic established in a virtual environment for the critical…

Necessary conditions for successful integration of computers and other media into education include accessibility of hardware and software, opportunities for training and familiarization, and positive ideology. If these conditions are met, the result will be the development of demand on the part of faculty, pressure for more efficient systems and…

This book is designed to assist educators' exploration of the Internet and educational resources available online. An overview lists the five basic types of information exchange possible on the Internet, and outlines five corresponding telecomputing options. The book contains an overview and four sections. The chapters in Section One,…

This guide is intended for the secondary school teacher (especially math or science) or the student who wants to access and learn about scientific data on the Internet. It is organized as a self-guided exploration. Nine exercises enable the user to access and analyze on-line information from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration…

While distance education can be traced to correspondence courses that in the 19th and 20th centuries relied on mail services to transmit communications between student and teacher, it is the advent of computers networked via the Internet that has dramatically affected the character of distance education. For the purposes of this paper, distance…

College students (N=151) completed surveys assessing the relationship between e-mail use and extraversion. The variables studied included time spent on e-mail; the frequency of e-mail usage; and the purposes e-mail served for each student. The results suggest that extraverts use e-mail as a form of procrastination more than introverts, and that…

As a followup to a survey of distance education faculty, the National Education Association conducted two 3-hour focus groups with 12 higher education faculty members in June 2000. The purpose of the groups was to gain more understanding of the complexity of feelings and opinions expressed in a telephone survey conducted in March 2000. The…

The purpose of this paper is threefold: (1) to discuss issues related to the design of interaction on the World Wide Web using models of interaction developed for distance education; (2) to examine several techniques for the analysis of interactions and the quality of the learning experience in a computer-mediated group conference; and (3) to…

This paper summarizes what the author has seen go wrong in six years of participation in online discussions and recommends some remedies. The emphasis is on helping discussion leaders to structure and guide online discussions for maximum effectiveness. The paper has a focus on learning environments, which are central to both formal academic…

Noting that electronic communication places new demands on language that leads to interesting variations in written language use, this Digest summarizes insights gained from research on writing behavior and performance in the electronic age. It concludes that both the process and the content of writing are evolving in response to the increased use…

The intention of those in the helping professions is to support and heal those who seek out their professional assistance. Ethics are based on the ongoing collective development of professional experience, the natural outflow of desire to care effectively for the needs of fellow human beings. Ethics help define what is and what is not an effective…

Recent growth in national attention directed toward online courses and virtual schools underscores the importance of e-learning policy and online learning practices. In response to these needs, this edition of "Policy Issues" aims to: summarize the critical e-learning issues related to education policy; provide an overview of what works,…