_ .......................................................... __ __ __ __ __ __ web's eye view | | /| / /| | /| / /| | /| / / April 6, 2000 | |/ |/ / | |/ |/ / | |/ |/ / Maricopa Center for |__/|__/ |__/|__/ |__/|__/ Learning & Instruction .......................................................... http://www.mcli.dist.maricopa.edu/eye/ .......................................................... The freshest bag of URLs is ready for pickup at http://www.mcli.dist.maricopa.edu/eye/bag/curr.html Help us refill by dropping interesting sites into: http://www.mcli.dist.maricopa.edu/eye/bag/drop.html Interview with a Search Engine ============================== If you have ever used the useful search site AskJeeves http://www.ask.com/ (useful because you enter a search query as a natural question) you will enjoy reading this satirical "interview" with Jeeves from fnwire, in which the questions are sent to the search engine. http://www.fnwire.com/features/satire-jeevesinterview.html Alertbox: Mud-Throwing Theory of Usability ========================================== The Alertbox for April 2 is now online at: http://www.useit.com/alertbox/20000402.html Instead of rushing new websites to a premature launch that will scare away your best customers forever, it is better to run a few fast usability studies in the beginning of the project. News From EDUPAGE ================= Colleges Spending Record Numbers on Technology A report released by the Dun & Bradstreet Corporation shows that U.S. colleges and universities are expecting to spend $1.2 billion for the 1999-2000 academic year on computer hardware to support teaching and learning-some 24% more than last year's spending budgets. Although the larger-enrollment public colleges plan to spend more than twice as much as private colleges do on hardware, they will significantly reduce their spending, by an average of 29%, on academic software. Total spending on hardware and software to support both academics and administration was a projected $2.7 billion. The report's data is based on responses from 1,867 accredited two-year and four-year institutions. Of those institutions that responded to questions about distance learning, 72% said that they offer distance-education programs this year-up from 48%. Thirty-four percent of those colleges offer an accredited distance-learning degree program, up from 15% of last year's respondents. Nearly a fourth of the colleges surveyed offer student registration online, and the number of colleges that provide students with Internet connections in their dormitories has increased by 10%. More information regarding this report is available at http://www.dnb.com/ TEACHERS ONLINE BUT DISCONNECTED Teachers across the nation say they often lack the time, formal training, and readily available help required to effectively integrate technology into the classroom and create the kind of interactive learning atmosphere many educators and business executives believe enhances the learning process. Contrary to popular sentiment, simply putting computers in every classroom is not enough to ensure the equipment will be used to supplement classroom instruction. Some teachers spend hours at home every night attempting to create computer-aided lessons, but most abandon or avoid the undertaking altogether because they lack the patience or know how to successfully attempt such projects. Although some schools offer formal computer training and employ a technology specialist to help teachers with efforts to build technology into their instructional methods, the training is usually not extensive enough and the specialists must often be shared between multiple schools. Several different groups have recommended ways for school districts to improve the situation, including placing a full-time specialist in every school, building more planning time into teachers' schedules, offering more comprehensive computer training classes, and enacting more stringent standards for technology competency. (Washington Post, 18 March 2000) A FAST NEW NETWORK The next-generation Internet2 is serving as a test environment for new applications that will eventually improve the performance of the traditional Internet. Already, more than 170 universities participating in the project are able to collaborate on the high- speed network in real-time and move huge volumes of data in less than a second. Although individuals will never be able to buy Internet2 connections, some of the advances made on Internet2 will be incorporated into the public network over the next five years, says Internet2 director of communications Greg Wood. The Next Generation Internet, which includes several dozen networking projects such as Internet2 that are now in progress, eventually lead to a faster, more intelligent, and more reliable Internet. The Internet2 project began in 1996 as a way for the research community to continue with its plans for the original Internet, which became slow and commercialized in the mid 1990s. Internet2 applications such as video technology and multicasting are already making their way into the mainstream, says Wood. (Courier-Journal Online, 20 March 2000) GIVING THE WEB THE NEW COLLEGE TRY A recent survey of 10,000 high school students revealed a university's Web site is the third most important source of information for prospective students, subordinate only to a campus visit and a conversation with a current student. College administrators have acknowledged the importance of the Internet in attracting students and building a school's reputation, and are taking steps to ensure their Web sites are as attractive, organized, and informative as possible. Many of the university sites feature virtual campus tours, course catalogs, student testimonials, listings of scheduled academic and extracurricular activities, and e-mail links to professors. Educators believe university Web sites are important and efficient communication tools that will eventually replace traditional brochures and guidebooks. (Washington Post, 28 March 2000) UNIVERSITIES MASTER WEB-BASED ADMINISTRATION Penn State University, Ohio University, and Washington State University have each realized substantial efficiencies since implementing Web-based document management and knowledge management (KM) systems. At Penn State, the Accounting, Human Resources, Administration, and Physical Plant offices were the first to adopt new KM and document management systems. On average, 80 percent of job applicants now submit their applications and resumes electronically to the Human Resources office. The remaining paper and fax applications are imported or scanned into the system. As a result of the new system, Penn State now interviews applicants and fills positions much faster than before and has reduced the number of employees handling the applications. Washington State University's admissions department is in the process of implementing a document management system to handle the 10,000 undergraduate admission applications it receives every year. Washington State is using a system that includes scanning, queuing, and workflow technologies that enable the school to simplify and reduce the amount of paperwork involved in the application process. Ohio University is now transferring its 140,000 legacy documents to Web-based storage and access systems. (Imaging & Document Solutions, April 2000) ONLINE LEARNING MOVES TO HEAD OF CLASS Companies offering Internet-based training services, or e-learning, including SmartForce and DigitalThink, appear to be well-positioned to take advantage of an expected boom in the online training market. SmartForce, viewed by many analysts as the market leader, has attracted 160,000 subscribers to its online business training courses. SmartForce says its clients, including large companies such as Unisys, save travel and training costs, improve their access to quality business training, and receive more feedback on employee performance by taking advantage of its online services. Rival DigitalThink says its client list includes America Online, Intel, and Charles Schwab, for whom it produces The Learning Center, a financial and investing tutorial for visitors to the Schwab Web site. The corporate e-learning market is expected to reach over $7 billion by 2002, up from just $197 million in 1997, according to International Data. Further, an IDC survey reports that 60 percent of e-learning users would highly recommend the process to others. (Investor's Business Daily, 29 March 2000) E-TUTORS FOR HIRE Some people are turning to the Internet to find tutors for their children. Patricia Fennessey of Wellesley, Mass. recently hired a tutor for her daughter, Gina, using contact information given to her by Tutor.com, a free Web-based service that contains the names of 7,000 tutors. Tutor.com can run background checks on its tutors, an essential service that proves that the instructors are who they say they are. If immediate tutoring is required, Tutor.com's fastMatch can place students in an Internet classroom that is presided over by an instructor. This service can range in price from being free to costing $200 an hour. Two other Web sites, www.tutornet.com and www.childu.com, also offer tutoring services through virtual classrooms and online exercises. Students preparing for their SATs can prepare for the test online by visiting three different Internet sites, www.kaptest.com, www.test.com, and www.collegeboard.org. (Family PC, March 2000) PARTNERS IN EDUCATION AIM TO CREATE GLOBAL LIBRARY ON WEB Six prestigious educational institutions today will announce the formation of an Internet company called Fathom.com that will distribute information and offer online classes to users around the world. Fathom's founders include Columbia University, the Smithsonian's National Museum of Natural History, the New York Public Library, the London School of Economics, Cambridge University Press, and the British Library. Over the next year the partners will invest $80 million in the company, which will charge for some of its offerings. Fathom will also provide some free content, and the partner's Academic Council will verify the integrity of the site's information. The partners believe Fathom will aid their goal of disseminating information widely, as the site aims to help users who are trying to further their education outside of the school environment. (Financial Times, 3 April 2000) SAVVY E-LEARNERS DRIVE REVOLUTION IN EDUCATION There is a revolution underway in the field of post-secondary education, driven primarily by the desire of traditional corporations and dot-com startups to take advantage of the flexibility and efficiency of the Internet. This revolution comprises three interrelated trends--the rapid growth of distance learning, the advent of corporate universities, and the extreme competitiveness of the job market. International Data reports that nearly 710,000 students in 1998 were enrolled in at least one online course, and predicts that figure will reach 2.2 million by 2002. Businesses are realizing the potential internal educational facilities have to quickly and cost-effectively train employees, and also to successfully attract and retain more skilled individuals in a tight job market. Traditional universities and colleges face a bleak future unless they significantly alter their instructional methods to keep pace with developments spurred by the Internet. In order to survive, these institutions must examine the educational undertakings of such companies as Dell Computer and Sun Microsystems, understand their own strengths and reputation among the public, and customize teaching methods to the different age groups of students. (Financial Times--Business Education , 3 April 2000) ENSURING ONLINE QUALITY Even with distance-learning courses proliferating, educators and policy makers say the lack of common standards of quality is limiting online education. Addressing the standards issue, the nonprofit think-tank Institute for Higher Education Policy (IHEP) last week presented 24 "quality benchmarks for distance learning in higher education" at a forum of higher education policymakers. A high-quality online program should ensure the accuracy of information through electronic security, and allow students to communicate with instructors in a range of ways, according to IHEP. Students should also receive rapid responses to their questions and assignments, and instructors should provide lessons on conducting research. The benchmarks also include guidelines for course development, effective design, and a reliable delivery system. Instructors should receive help in developing courses and applying their knowledge to an online environment. Finally, courses should be compared with "intended learning outcomes," which should be frequently reviewed. (Education Week Online, 29 March 2000)