Papers in PDF format

Introduction
Distant Education Materials via the Web - An Australian View
David Watson, Health Studies, University of New England, Armidale, NSW Australia
Email: dwatson@metz.une.edu.au
Kathy Watson, Education Studies, University of New England, Armidale, NSW Australia
Email: kwatson@metz.une.edu.au
The Australian government decision to establish the electronic infrastructure, Education Network Australia
(EdNA) and other related initiatives was intended to place information technology at the centre of educational
reform yet “this infrastructure has made little impact on the organisation of teaching and learning services in
the majority of universities” according to a recent report by the National Board of Employment Education and
Training (NBEET. 1996) Higher education has been reprimanded for a lack of attention to community and
industry needs by producing graduates lacking adequate exposure to, or awareness of, current technologies. In
order to meet the community and industry demands for technology literate graduates, we are developing new
modes of delivery to promote innovative ways to expose students to technology while creating the learning base
required for understanding the subject material. For students isolated from traditional university campuses
studying via distance education, the web offers a variety of telecommunication tools for course work delivery
and feedback.
Universities are facing the challenge of reconciling the relationship between education, work and employment.
The NBEET report specifically emphasises the importance of “information literacy” and suggests that
education and professional development “should seek to link explicitly the three elements of this competence:
• use of information technologies,
• information research and presentation skills, and
• higher order systems thinking skills” (1996, p 94.)
Tasks given to students should be considered as tools to accomplish goals rather than tasks to be mastered.
Use of the Web can provide students with many experiences: reading hypertext on the screen, using electronic
mail, using navigational tools to find out more about areas of interest, and interpreting symbols, icons and
command functions to access audiovisual resources. The motivation to learn blends with the tool use and does
not need to be externally imposed as learning to use the 'tool' is instrumental in the context of the task.
The ability to access and utilise the information on the web for research purposes is consistent with the type of
skills students will need in the world of work in order to problem solve in the world of work. Student exposure
to web based technologies is seen by many potential employers as beneficial to the overall outcomes of a
'corporate plan' as organisations incorporate emerging global technologies. Leading education, business and
industry organisations utilise the web for presentation of information via graphic images, hypertext links, and
more recently audio and visual resources.
The benefits for the student/professional community from interactive web use are diverse. For the education
sector, the ability to extend "classroom" teaching across a distance is a major benefit as staff resources are freed
up to focus on other teaching duties. For students, benefits come from a larger resource network to draw upon
and the chance to explore community values on topics beyond those available in their own communities. For
isolated communities, classes available by live audio offer expanded opportunities not normally available due
to location, student numbers, or suitable teaching staff. For professionals, the ability to tap into the latest
research or to hear a refresher lecture on a topic can mean the difference between being up to date in their field
or out of date with their profession.
Speaking, listening and learning...