Taken together, the articles in this special issue contribute to the collective sense of recent progress in research on networked learning in higher education. In combination, they help explain some of the key relationships between teachers' and learners' intentions and experiences, the affordances of text-based communications technologies and…

Explores the complexity of researching networked learning in higher education. Suggests that no single theoretical model currently available is sufficiently powerful to provide a framework for a research agenda that takes into account key aspects of human agency. Presents findings of a multi-method analysis of the learning and tutoring processes…

Reports part of a wider study aimed to develop a theoretical understanding of learning in networked courses, where the subject matter is directly related to participants' practical experience. Proposes a taxonomy as a tool for analyzing the learning potential. A phenomenographic perspective on learning underpins the study. (AEF)

This article discusses the creation of an archive that permits online access to digital copies of back issues of the "Learning Disability Quarterly." It describes how to access the archive, select and order an issue, and the benefits of providing information in digital formats. (Contains 3 references.) (CR)

Examines the effectiveness of asynchronous electronic discussion assignments in university-level language courses. An exploration of syllabus issues provides some insights. (Author/VWL)

This article highlights some of the defining characteristics of distance education courses and their impact on traditional assessment practices for instructors and students, including those with learning disabilities. Factors that instructors need to consider for dealing with test accommodations for students with learning disabilities are…

Notes that distance learning, especially in computer-mediated environments, is the new trend in education. Describes a bilingual education course in which participants were involved in extensive writing and publishing of their ideas on the Web. Explains that through bulletin board postings, power relationships between majority and minority…

Describes a study conducted in a fifth- and sixth-grade classroom in Toronto that explored gender differences from two perspectives: student interaction patterns, and communication patterns. Examined interaction patterns of students' math and science learning in terms of taking turns, initiating conversation, and follow-up conversation; and…

Determines business department chairs' ratings of topics typically covered in the business communication course. Indicates that department chairs perceive writing skills to be more important to business communication courses than other communication skills, such as speaking, technology-mediated communication, interpersonal communication,…

Discussion of the low use of Web resources in K-12 classrooms focuses on a study that tested the hypothesis that teachers who discussed how to use Web resources during computer-mediated communications would have higher attitudes toward the use of Web resources in their classrooms than teachers who did not. (Author/LRW)

Describes a 1994 survey about an introductory class in online communications at Wright State University. Discussion includes a profile of respondents, prior online experience, personal development, impact on personal and professional knowledge and skills, impact on communication, and barriers and limitations to the effective use of…

Reviews the creation and implementation of a pilot program at Northern Arizona University's Center for Excellence in Education that delivered instruction to graduate students via America Online. Discusses the program's interactive teaching/learning processes and the benefits of the communication medium, instructional materials, and instructor…

The headmaster of a private school contends that computer technology is being heralded as the savior of education. The time students spend with computer technologies is time they are not devoting to learning how to become ethically, morally, culturally, and functionally literate. (MLF)

Discusses the availability of virtual communities on the Internet. Stresses that there are online environments for nearly everyone, and offers advice for those designing new communities by relating experiences from the development of the specialized MediaMOO, a multiuser dungeon. Discusses restricting access, shaping development of the community,…

This special issue contains 12 articles written by science fiction authors and futurists who present imaginative visions of communication technologies that impact on daily life. Topics address redefinition of the library, legal aspects of regulation and censorship of the Internet, and various ideological and intellectual ideas about technology…