The teaching and technology associated with the distance delivery of education are relatively new and rapidly changing. Effective teaching and learning methods are still being developed. The following suggestions are based primarily on patterns and experiences in instructional telecommunication within the University of Alaska System: (1) students…

On July 1, 1991, the ACRL (Association of College and Research Libraries) Research Committee launched a pilot project to mentor academic librarians in their conduct of research. Since the mentors and protegees were potentially from all over the United States, the decision was made to mentor using the electronic conferencing capability of BITNET…

This manual from the PC Working Group of Rutgers University Libraries is designed to help computer users to use electronic mail through computer networks effectively. There are two sections: MAIL commands, and VAX commands. The MAIL commands section includes step by step instructions for addressing, sending files, reading files, replying,…

Arguing that serious students of telecommunications policy must consider the impact that government deregulation will have on virtually every aspect of communications policymaking, this paper examines two goals that deregulators have deemed essential: convincing regulators that the marketplace is synonomous with public interest, and demonstrating…

This report identifies factors that have an influence on the successful institutionalization and transfer of innovative uses of telecommunications. It examines which factors promote or deter the institutionalization of demonstration projects in the public service field, as well as alternative strategies for institutionalization and innovation…

With fiber optic networks that can deliver library materials directly to the user from computerized data banks, is there any need for the library function? For the short term, public libraries will survive. The answer for the medium and long-term is much less certain. Libraries will survive if librarians see themselves as active providers of…

Different views on the future of research libraries are presented in this collection of papers from persons affiliated with the State University of New York (SUNY) at Albany. Joseph Z. Nitecki (library director) discusses the effect of social change on library missions, operations, and procedures. Warren F. Ilchman (vice president for research and…

The article describes how the use of a two-way conference telephone enables industrial experts outside the local community to conduct lectures or discussions in the classroom. The telelecture programs offered by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration are emphasized. (Author/MS)

The Task Force on Educational Telecommunications was formed to develop a statewide approach to educational telecommunications (e.g., public, cable, and satellite television; audio and video tapes; teleconferencing; and computer conferencing) for the Virginia Community College System (VCCS). The task force assumed that the instruction should have…

This publication describes the giant-capacity space communications installation called the "Tracking and Data Relay Satellite System" (TDRSS). Chapters include: (1) "A New Communications Bridge to Orbit" (illustrating what it is and how it looks); (2) "TDRSS Goes to Work" (describing how it functions); (3) "The…

California State University (CSU) at Chico has been an innovative leader in distance education for many years. In 1969 CSU began offering external degree programs, delivered by faculty who commuted to community college locations around rural northern California. In the early 1970s a study on the needs of higher education in the area resulted in…

This exploration of ethical conflicts created by information technology and their impacts on teachers, scholars, and students begins by discussing the issue of fairness or ethics, with emphasis on what is fair or ethical in obtaining access to electronic information. Technological barriers involved in obtaining access to desired electronic…

With the dramatic increase in minorities in certain parts of the United States and expected continued increases in the populations of these minorities, the need for radio communications directed at such communities is apparent. Twenty-thousand or more low-output radio stations could air programming on that portion of the FM radio band which the…

Satellite telecommunications are part of an integrated grid of technologies that make possible what many call the Information Age. The English language is the dominant language of this age and of global telecommunications, based in part on its already clear role as the major "universal" language, especially in science and technology.…

This report describes Earth Lab, a project which is demonstrating new ways of using computers for upper-elementary and middle-school science instruction, and finding ways to integrate local-area and telecommunications networks. The discussion covers software, classroom activities, formative research on communications networks, and integration of…