THE DIGITAL DIVIDE (CONT'D ) - In many ways (Norm) Coombs is right about the Digital Divide mirroring other social divides, but there are a couple differences. First, the similarities. In a study done by the Bellcore Corporation in late 1995 when the internet was still new, results showed that the usual social groups were left behind. Of those who had never heard of the internet, 21% were African-American, 10% Hispanic. And the usual education and gender influences were present. Of those who were already using the Internet "over half the users reported that they were introduced to the Internet either by learning at work or being taught by friends or family." Put another way, social and work connections led to digital connections. Those without one set of connections struggled to gain the other.

But there are differences in the new technology too - mostly in potential. If we define the Internet as a new kind of information source - a digital library, or more recently, digital cable TV with ten thousand channels, we prepare students for this as librarians often do - working on information literacy as a kind of filtering skill - learning which sources to trust. These are important skills, but miss much of what makes the Internet new. If we see the Internet not just as a space to see and listen, but as a space to speak, then we address the potential of the medium to make invisible peoples and communities visible. With this view, the most important information "literacy" skill is the ability to build web pages and participate in chatroom and listserv discussions. This kind of literacy gives voice to most of the world that doesn't publish books, own a radio station, or produce TV shows. They may publish alien abductions or UN conspiracy theories or celebrity sightings, but they may also give us views of their community or views of their country that are totally absent in other media.

It is that potential that makes this divide so maddening, since the opportunities are so powerful and so obvious. Fortunately, there are lots of good people around the planet Trying to make these opportunities real. (Bill Wresch: wresch@vaxa.cis.uwosh.edu (16 Feb 00 Ð AGHHESGIT)

CONTROVERSY: IT GURU MURRAY TUROFF SOUNDS OFF ON INTEGRATING DISTANCE LEARNING - NJIT computer science professor Murray Turoff likes to stir up controversy, and he's done it again in his new article, "An End to Student Segregation: No More Separation Between Distance Learning and Regular Courses." Turoff shares his vision of traditional universities that have adapted to offer students multiple modalities for course completion, and of new eUniversities that have lured away distinguished faculty with the freedom to live anywhere in the world and continue their teaching careers as "remote professors." Investigate Turoff's brave new world of higher education on the University of North Carolina website at: http://horizon.unc.edu/horizon/online/html/8/1/
(Distance Learning News UCEA 17 Feb. 00)