#breBytes Educación en línea, 1986

No puedo cerrar los #breBytes de septiembre de 1986 sin pararme aunque sea un minuto en la editorial de la revista…

EDITORIAL College Credits Through Telecommunications We urge colleges and universities to expand the practice of granting credits for courses taught through computer conferencing. We have become aware of the need for computer-mediated instruction because BYTE's offices are located in a rural area. In order to advance professionally, members of our staff often need to take university courses to increase their knowledge of computer science or engineering. Unfortunately, we have no universities in easy commuting range that offer broad curricula in these fields of study. Some of our staff members have endured long commutes to continue their studies, but work loads are high at BYTE, and few employees can both do their jobs well and undertake regular university studies at distant sites. The Instructional Medium Direct observation has shown us that computer conferencing works as an instructional medium. We have seen tutorial topics spring up in many conferences on BIX. People learn about programming a new machine, for example, from volunteer teachers in distant areas. Sessions have the quality of free and open classroom discussions. The lack of face-to-face contact has not proved to be a hindrance. We also know that instruction by computer conferencing has already worked in a university. The New School for Social Research, through an association with Connect Ed, has already taught graduate courses in media studies. Connect Ed uses the EIES conferencing software developed at the New York Institute of Technology by Murray Turoff. Some members of the BYTE staff visited the New School last year and spoke with students and teachers in the New School/Connect Ed program. All agreed that the system works. In their program, computer conferencing is supplemented by some actual classes. The requirement of occasional classes on campus is much less daunting than a long commute several times each week. From the teacher's perspective, computer conferencing has some advantages as an instructional medium. It is easy to monitor attendance and to measure participation. Questions can be addressed to the whole class or to an individual. Since students can think as long as they wish before replying, dialogue conducted through computers is in some respects easier than spoken conversation. And, of course, shy and quiet people can always have their say in computer conferencing. The loud and aggressive can't drown them out. Examination tools to simplify the administration of exams on-line would not be difficult to create. New Educational Opportunities The use of telecommunications as a means of instruction can enable potential students in rural areas to gain access to outstanding teachers and scholars at major universities. If computer conferencing software is used, students can enjoy discussion and debate with students from different regions and backgrounds. The community of higher education will become accessible from remote areas as never before. Potential students in rural areas will enjoy unprecedented educational opportunities. Moreover, computer conferencing can make many educational opportunities now beyond commuting range available to everyone. Even the opportunities available to those in urban areas will increase. Cost Advantages Sadly, the cost of higher education has now become prohibitive for many people. Instruction through computer conferencing can alleviate this situation by reducing expenses for both the university and the student. Universities will be able to add more students without building more dormitories and classrooms. The student can continue to live at home, incurring no new room and board expenses. This will effectively reduce the student's expenses to the amount of tuition, which can be exactly the same for on-line students as for on-campus ones. With tuition remaining the same, the university will experience no loss of revenue. Combined Study It seems likely that universities will be able to combine on-line instruction with on-campus instruction to provide improved courses. Daily on-line instruction could be supplemented by on-campus instruction— perhaps one or two Saturdays per month. Another intriguing possibility would be letting on-line students compete for on-campus scholarships to complete their studies. On-line interaction with prospective students might also permit both students and universities to make better choices in the admissions process. The Big Step We urge universities to offer credit courses through computer conferencing in order to test the limits of the medium and to learn how best to combine on-line and oncampus instruction. We believe computer conferencing can help preserve and extend educational opportunity in a time of prohibitive costs for many students and many universities. If universities do this, they will open their curricula to millions of potential students— personal computer users everywhere. Through their computers and modems, personal computer users, even those located in rural areas, will gain access to an enormous range of courses. Let's hope that universities and accrediting associations will seize this opportunity to extend educational programs. — Phil Lemmons Editor in Chief

Ya habíamos hablado brevemente de educación en línea en 1986 en el último post dedicado a las Computer Chronicles, de este mismo mes, pero es maravilloso leer cómo, desde la revista, se animaba a las universidades al mundo del online, hablando de ruralidad, formación continua y lifelong learning, entre otros aspectos :-)

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