Educational technology applications in California include (1) OTAN's Online Communication System--electronic mail and an information database; (2) Educard, a computer chip card for storing and retrieving student information; and (3) staff development via satellite in Los Angeles County Schools' Educational Telecommunications Network. (SK)

Advantages to telecommuting are flexibility, control, productivity, morale, quality of life, and, for employers, access to a wider skill pool. Disadvantages are frustration, isolation, sweatshop potential, and resentment of co-workers. Business education should emphasize keyboarding, telecommunications, time management, and communication skills in…

Community must be redefined to include those based on interest, need, and commonality not bound by location, distance, or time. Technological solutions to community development provide access to the participatory process. (SK)

Analyzes the communication norms of the major forms of computer-mediated communication, including electronic mail, mailing lists, Usenet and other bulletin board systems, interactive messaging, multiuser domains (MUDs), and mass-broadcast media. New uses and the development of standards, or norms, are discussed. (Contains 11 references.) (LRW)

Responses from 55 personnel directors of Fortune 500 companies (15%) found that clerical office professionals should have knowledge of and be able to use facsimile, voice mail, and electronic mail. They recommended that educators and employers form an alliance to ensure that relevant telecommunications concepts are taught. (JOW)

Examines Africa's initiative in building a regional plan for a national information and communication infrastructure (NICIP) in every African state and the challenges and opportunities confronting Africa as it enters the information age. The role of information, communication, and knowledge in accelerating African socio-economic development is…

Presents an analytical framework for considering multi-point videoconference classroom communication. Highlights include rhetorical theory and human interaction, dramatism and the dramatic pentad, interfacing with technology, the learner/teacher relationship, student/student interface, and collaboration in the classroom. (LRW)

Examines the role of telecommunications and the information infrastructure in the economic development of Botswana. Highlights include the SADC (Southern African Development Community), the role of the World Bank in telecommunications in developing countries, and the International Telecommunications Union (ITU) agenda for global telecommunications…

Discussion of the use of telecommunications systems in academic institutions focuses on the need for a policy to prevent inappropriate use by members of the academic community. Reviews relevant federal legislation, examines previous studies, and presents a sample telecommunications-use policy. (LRW)

Lucent Technologies' Learning and Performance Center links organizational learning and development to learner needs, delivers learning via technology when and where needed, and assesses the impact of learning programs on business results. The company believes the core of its competitive advantage is employees with up-to-date skills, knowledge, and…

Training for 561 executives in the use of information and communications technologies was based on a model, the Executive Learning Ladder. Results indicated that sense making was accelerated when conducted in peer groups before being extended to less-experienced managers. Learning preference differences played a role. (Contains 38 references.) (SK)

Highlights Kent State University's (Ohio) conversion of its physical education building to a technology building that features fiber optics and advanced cabling systems. Photos and a floor plan are included. (GR)

Describes the use of telecommunications in the aftermath of the Kobe earthquake. Topics include the use of e-mail for communication as well as for disaster relief efforts, use of the Internet and World Wide Web home pages, and the usefulness of portable computers with built-in modems for fax capabilities. (LRW)

Introduces "Videotapes for the 21st Century Classroom" for the use of inservice training. Provides useful Internet Web site addresses and brief descriptions of each site for several feature articles in this issue: PS 524 939-940, PS 524 942-945. (MOK)

Reports on the increasing numbers of colleges and universities which are establishing wireless networks to allow student and faculty with laptop computers to connect to the college network and the Internet from anywhere on campus. Discusses the design of these networks, effects of "nomadic" learning environments, design problems, and the…