CONTENTS
UPFRONT - About the FOCUS Author
FOCUS - Learning Readiness Assessments and Organizational Culture: Keys to Effective e-Learning by Major Jim Bischoff
UW NEWS - UW Requests Exclusion from New State Electronic Agency, UWEX Faculty Create New Impact Software, TTT
QUESTION/RESPONSE - Has anyone ever used the "Smartboard" interactive whiteboard over a videoconference system?
LINES - April News Highlights
ED - Accredited Higher Ed Questions Peterson's New Direction, Quality Matters, Napster May Herald a Revolution in Distance Learning, MIT Free Course Plan
BIZ/GOV/ED - e-Commerce Courses Big on Campus, e-Learning and Human Resource Executives, Experiment in Future Courtrooms Given Encouraging Verdict, Motorola U Trades Education and Training for Market Access in China
TECH/TOOLS - Virtual Reality on the Web, Virtual Tour in Your Palm, Tele-immersion: The Hottest App, AppleWorks 6.1 for Educators, U of MI Develops Ed Software for Handhelds, i-Glasses: the New Virtual Theater
READS/RESOURCES - College Times Web site, Forbes Special Edition on e-Learning, Accessible e-Learning Report, Creating Learner-Centered Courses for the World Wide Web
ISSUES/CHALLENGES - Three New Sites to Fight Hate, Verizon Foundation Offers eGrants to Non-Profits
POSITIONS - Northeastern U Assistant Dean of Distance Learning,
NEW ON THE LIST - Welcome to New Subscribers FYI - News, Events, Conferences
ENDNOTE - from "Changing Education is Education" by Steve Gilbert __________________________________________________________________________
MAY DESIEN ISSUE FOCUS - "The Ever Changing Nature of Copyright and Fair Use: Where Are We Today?" by Lisa Livingston, UW-Madison
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UPFRONT - In this month's FOCUS article, Major Jim Bischoff, on Active Duty with the US Air Force, explores the barrier of organizational culture to the effective implementation of e-learning and knowledge management initiatives. His article for DESIEN is a condensation of a more in-depth article. If you would like the in-depth article, contact Jim at the email address below.

Jim is Systems Acquisition Manager for Mission Planning, Simulators, Trainers and Rehearsal Systems and is presently involved with post grad work in Instructional Technology. "The concept of organizational assessments and the correct alignment of HRD, KM and e-learning with organizational culture is of interest to me," says Jim. He would be most interested in a continued dialogue with readers who have similar interests. His email address is: bischoffj@jotc.com (Rosemary Lehman) __________________________________________________________________________
FOCUS

Learning Readiness Assessments and Organizational Culture: Keys to Effective e-Learning by Major Jim Bischoff, US. Air Force

Introduction
Based on my research and experience, organizational culture represents the largest barrier to effective implementation of e-learning and knowledge management initiatives. The learning need assessments should specifically address organizational culture and the organizations' readiness to embrace e-learning. Learning Organizations (LO) are inherently more poised to reap the benefit of a substantial e-learning investment. Cultural readiness can often be ignored in the process to initiate e-learning.

Organizational Culture is the personality of the organization. Culture is comprised of the assumptions, values, norms and tangible signs (artifacts) of an organization's members and their behaviors. Edgar H Schein defines culture as: "A pattern of shared basic assumptions the group learned as it solved its problems of external adaptation and internal integration, that is considered valid, is taught to new members as the correct way you perceive, think and feel in relation to those problems".*

Learning Organizations and Readiness
There are parallels that can be drawn between the characteristics of the learning organization and an organization capable of embracing e-learning. A learning organization is one that:

- Seeks to create its' own future.
- Assumes learning is an ongoing and creative process for its members.
- Develops, adapts and transforms itself in response to the needs and aspirations of people, both inside and outside itself.
- Allows people at all levels, individually and collectively, to continually increase their capacity to produce results they really care about.

It is my theory that corporate e-learning initiatives have a higher probability for success if the organization is also striving to become an (LO). For example, a common trait of LOs is that they create knowledge. E-learning products, embedded performance support systems and simulations are clearly all examples of created knowledge. In learning organizations, cultural elements that are indicative of a learning organization include: sharing of knowledge, adaptation of existing knowledge and the practical application of knowledge. According to the North Central Regional Education Laboratory (NCREL),** the list below depicts what learning organizations encourage:

- Ongoing/sustained learning opportunities
- System support and expectation for continuous learning
- Interdependent tasks
- Well-established, open and accessible communication infrastructures
- Information rich ecosystems
- Accountability mechanisms that monitor performance and provide useful, ongoing feedback to system members
- Permeable boundaries
- Flatter organizational structures
- Flexible internal structures
- Methods for introducing the newcomer into the organization
- Methods for reinforcing cultural norms for existing members

Indicators: How Do You Know?
How do you know if the culture of your organization enhances or inhibits learning? Is the organization ready to accept e-learning. How will you know? Consider the following possible indicators:

- Is HRD aligned with the organizations strategic goals?
- Does the organization recognize the importance of learning?
- How does the organization motivate employees to learn?
- Do top-level managers support the vision of a learning organization?
- Are employees trained and coached in learning how to learn?
- Are there systems and processes to ensure knowledge is coded, stored and made available to those who need it?
- Are leaders, managers and employees already comfortably incorporating technology based tools into their daily routines?
- Is continuing education and training valued and supported by leaders and managers?
- Do existing HR systems help employees determine what training is desirable?
- Are employees encouraged to develop learning goals, learning plans and encouraged to seek avenues to obtain the training included in their plans?
- How do performance reviews and incentive systems support individual learning achievement?
- To what extent is development planned for all employees?
- To what extent is individual development nurtured and encouraged by the organization?
- Does the organization provide time for employee learning?
- Are corporate 'water-coolers' accepted and encouraged?
- Is the company aware of the importance of communities of practice supporting shared dialogue and collaboration?
- Do managers promote open communication and collaboration among employees?
- Are people allowed to fail and are failures used as examples for learning moments?
- Is learning a regular part of daily work?
- Is learning practiced at personal, work unit and organizational levels?

Conclusion
The organizational culture readiness assessment is of pivotal importance during the beginning of an e-learning initiative. It is highly advisable to deal with the systematic aspects of organizational culture concurrently with any significant e-learning initiative.

* Schein, Edgar H. (undated). Organizational Culture & Leadership at: http://www.tnellen.com/ted/tc/schein.html

(Edgar H. Schein is professor of management at the Sloan School of Management, Massachusetts Institute of Technology. One of the founders of the field of organizational development, Schein has authored numerous books and consults with organizations worldwide.)

** NCREL: "Indicator: Culture of Learning and Innovation," enGauge web site at: http://www.ncrel.org/engauge/framewk/sys/culture/sysculra.htm

(EnGauge is a tool that helps schools and school districts use technology more effectively. While the primary audience is schools and school districts, a number of other individuals and groups will find enGauge a valuable resource. The authors encourage use by teachers and other educators, policy makers, community members, parents, and students.)
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UW NEWS

UW REQUESTS EXCLUSION FROM PROPOSED STATE ELECTRONIC AGENCY - Because of the University of Wisconsin's (UW) unique mission and circumstances, UW System officials have asked that the system's IT department be excluded from the newly proposed Department of Electronic Government, a department that will organize and facilitate e-government throughout Wisconsin. According to UW System President Katharine Lyall, the rest of the state e-government is transaction-based, while the university IT department is education-based. A UW spokesperson, Kevin Boatright, added that the university cannot afford to siphon off its IT staff to the new department and that if purchasing authority were taken over by the proposed government department, the university might lose out in the area of higher education discounts. Boatright added that, "If there are ways we can collaborate with the state or assist in the e-government department when it's created, we intend to do that." (WI State Journal, 6 Apr 01)

UW-EXTENSION FACULTY CREATE NEW IMPACT SOFTWARE - New software that will comprehensively evaluate the consequences of development on a community has been created by Gareth Betts, UW-Extension, Walworth County community resource development educator and Steve Deller, UW-Madison/Extension community development economist. The software "...provides extensive documentation of the anticipated: 1) economic, 2) fiscal, 3) environmental, 4) social and 5) traffic-related aspects and impacts of a proposed development," said Betts. It makes use of existing information and also employs methods to gather new information. It's also 'user friendly' enough for local professionals to be able to conduct the analysis themselves. The impact assessment evaluates both positive and negative impacts of the proposed development for each of the five impact areas and places a high priority on community values and long-term goals when assessing impacts. It also considers the magnitude of the development proposal, time and resource constraints and then determines how detailed an impact analysis is required - and it's reasonable. While, in the past, consultants performed this service for $30,000, the software, anticipated to be available in early 2002, will cost about $1,000. For complete information CLICK: http://www1.uwex.edu/news/pressrelease/stories/302.cfm

TTT - Articles in this month's issue of Teaching with Technology Today (TTT) include:

* eWEEK Magazine Judges Web Learning Tools at UW-Madison by Jennifer Smith, CLICK: http://www.uwsa.edu/olit/ttt/eweek.htm

* The IDEAS Website: A New Portal for Wisconsin's PK-12 Teachers by John Fischer, IDEAS Project Director, UW-Extension, CLICK: http://www.uwsa.edu/olit/ttt/fischer3.htm

* e-Learning is Work(ing) by Linda H. Straubel, Ph.D., Department of English, UW-Rock County, CLICK: http://www.uwsa.edu/olit/ttt/straubel.htm (Jennifer Smith, UW-System, TTT editor)
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QUESTION/RESPONSE

QUESTION
DESIEN subscriber Eric Kapono wondered if anyone has ever used the "Smartboard" interactive whiteboard over a videoconference system. He refers to Smarttech, CLICK: http://www.smarttech.com This company says: "You can use the SMART Board in a combined video and data conference by splitting the screen into video and application images. Just like picture-in-picture television, your video image would sit in a window alongside your data. You can still brainstorm and diagram as if you were at a whiteboard, control all of your computer applications directly from the Board's touch-sensitive surface and dedicate a portion of the Board to displaying the video of your remote team members." If it works will it work with their Polycom FX as a "hub" with 2 Polycom 512s at the remotes, the latter via 3 ISDN lines and the hub with a T1?

RESPONSE
Andrew Kerr, Associate Director, PR*TEC, PREL, Honolulu, HI responded: "I have used the SmartBoards with DL and must say that I really am impressed. While we, too, use Polycoms... I haven't used the SmartBoard with those. My previous position used VTELs and those worked fine with the SmartBoards...they worked so well that I am in the process of trying to get some for PREL. So...in short...I like the SmartBoards and believe they will interface fine with the Polycoms." (Andrew Kerr, kerra@prel.org.)

(Note: If you have questions that you would like DESIEN subscribers to respond to, send the questions to: lehman@ics.uwex.edu and 'll post them in the next DESIEN issue. Send answers directly to the person with the question and copy me. I'll collate the answers and include in the next issue. (Rosemary Lehman) ___________________________________________________________________________
LINES - April News Highlights

- A bill defeated last year and resubmitted this year would offer employers up to $1,500 in tax credits per technology worker toward technology training and call for HOPE scholarships or Liftime Learning tax credits for students in non-degree technology institutions, previously only offered to 2- and 4-year colleges and universities. The bill provides a boost to for-profit institutions and technology groups that offer certificates for IT training and is backed by the business sector. Extending these scholarships to for-profits, puts them in direct competition with the colleges and universities. According to Michael P. Aiken of the College and University Personnel Association, earmarking employees for education tax-free, would be a better idea. (Chronicle of Higher Education Online, 25 Apr 01)

- K-12 schools are gaining on colleges in classroom connectivity to the Internet, according to a recent Market Data Retrieval survey. In the survey 64% of college respondents reported wired classrooms, up from 49% last year, while elementary and secondary schools increased reported 63%, up from only 3% in 1994. Brian Hawkins EDUCAUSE President says, however, that this is not an indicator of the more significant aspects of university and college IT, where materials are likely to be distributed throughout libraries, dormitories and campus computer labs, rather than classrooms. Also, faculty knowledge and accessibility alter ways in which parents and prospective students evaluate a school's use of technology. The EDUCAUSE handbook ranks schools in this regard, he said. (New York Times, 18 Apr 01)

- Beginning this fall, the New School University in New York City will launch an online certificate program in teaching and learning with technology that can be applied to a traditional offline master's degree. Twenty-two teachers in the city participated in this year's pilot, which is administered through the New School Online University. The certificate program is aimed at current high school teachers who want to learn how to better integrate technology into their coursework. This fall the pilot teachers will join with several teachers across the nation in Classroom Connect. This project will provide online lesson plans and other Internet-based resources for teachers, and has its own Connected University, which offers quick skills training and continuing education credits with affiliated colleges and universities. (New York Times 25 Apr 01)

- According to the Consumer Electronics Association (CEA), the sale of digital TV sets and displays have increased 158% during the first quarter of 2001 over 2000. The announcement came during the National Association of Broadcasters (NAB) annual trade show and indicates that consumers are becoming more interested in the sharper digital image and broadcast options. Digital sets now cost thousands of dollars, with converters at $500 - but projections are that the set prices could fall to $1,500 by next year. The CEA and NAB plan to combine forces to create consumer awareness about digital's program options. Meanwhile, the FCC is querying whether tuners should be included in new sets to lower prices. The CEA, however, claims that including tuners may raise prices. For the full story see CLICK: http://news.cnet.com/news/0-1006-200-5689854.html?tag=prntfr (Reuters 11 Apr 01)

- The way is being paved for the Next Generation Internet (NGI) with the testing of the 128-bit Internet Protocol version 6 (IPv6) and is expected to replace the current version, 32-bit IPv4. Reliability, intelligence, simpliciy, speed, security and natural feel best describe the predictions for the NGI. Further predictions are that NGI will simulate server replication and that data volume will increase by 2010 from petabyte to zettabyte. (Federal Computer Week Online, 23 Apr 01)

- A $13.3 billion project, "eLearning Action Plan" was recently approved by The European Commission. The plan will provide assistance for IT-related education at universities across the continent. Both economically advantaged and disadvantaged areas will benefit. The advantaged will receive funds for their computer-science departments, while the disadvantaged will receive support for their IT infrastructure. The four-part plan includes: 1) infrastructure and equipment upgrades, 2) teacher training, 3) content development and 4) network construction. Online content will focus on three areas: language, arts and culture, and science and technology. Officials anticipate that the plan will make the continent's IT-related economy more competitive with that of the United States. The commission is also considering providing standard IT diplomas, which would provide individuals with a direct entrance into the digital age. (Chronicle of Higher Education Online, 16 Apr 01)

- Republican Congressman Fred Upton of MI is attempting to convince the Bush administration to forgo plans to cut the Technology Opportunity Program budget. Upton, chairman of the House Commerce Subcommittee on Telecommunications, is urging full funding for the program which enables public and nonprofit organizations to pay for computers and Internet access. The proposed deep budget cuts would reduce the program's funding from $42.5 million to $15 million. According to Upton, "It's imperative that we have this type of funding where people need it most or else these communities will fall behind," Upton said. (Washtech.com, 6 Apr 01)

- Users have flocked to sites like Gnutella and LimeWire to acquire copies of music since the Napster decision. Recording labels are now soliciting bids from tech companies to monitor and even block illegal file-sharing over these decentralized networks. These peer-to-peer networks operate using a users' own computer as a server, making centralized filtering an overwhelming task. Still, some software firms claim they can identify and disrupt these transfers. If this can be done, recording labels can demand that an ISP disable a user's account, once an infringement is identified. If the person claims innocence and the service is restored, the recording label can sue. This is, however, a nearly impossible task, if the recording label's objective is to shut down a network of over 1 million users. (Los Angeles Times, 29 Mar 01)
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ED

ACCREDITED HIGHER ED QUESTIONS PETERSON'S NEW DIRECTION - Many administrators of mainstream institutions are worried about the new direction Peterson's Guide to Distance Learning Programs has taken. The word is that the guide's researchers are now collecting information about unaccredited colleges. The concern is that the unaccredited colleges will be listed in future guidebook editions. Rocco Russo, the vice-president for institutional research and relations at Peterson's, said the fall guidebook will still list only accredited institutions that have online and other distance-learning offerings and that they are now simply collecting both types of information. He added that the new information could be the basis for a second book. Kay J. Kohl, the executive director of the University Continuing Education Association (UCEA), stated that ,"Over the years Peterson's has developed an excellent reputation as being a reliable source of information, and obviously it is a concern if that position shifts." For the full article CLICK: http://chronicle.com/free/2001/04/2001041801u.htm

QUALITY MATTERS - Education consulting firm WorldClass Strategies recently conducted a survey of 110 college and university faulty members engaged in online learning projects and studied 100 online courses. WorldClass Strategies President Lee Alley, formerly a college professor at University of Wisconsin System, said the study revealed that such programs have a great deal of progress to make. "We found the great majority of courses online are not very high quality pedagogically," he said. Online programs seemed to be paying more attention to how the sites looked and functioned than to how they worked as vehicles for instruction. In other words, Alley said, faculty members were being asked to be Web masters, not educators. He pointed to a number of ideas that educators must grasp if the online learning phenomenon is to grow. First, educators must accept that online learning will, for the most part, be self- directed by students. Also, educators must be willing to engage online students at a different level, treating them more as "cooperating instructors." Finally, Alley stressed the importance of piloting these types of programs before introducing them to a general audience. (Online Learning, Mar 01 - Edupage 30 Mar 01)

NAPSTER MAY HERALD A REVOLUTION IN DISTANCE LEARNING - Napster may turn out to be the harbinger of a new era in distance learning if Sun Microsystems cofounder and Chief Scientist Bill Joy has his way. According to a recent report in The Philadelphia Inquirer, Joy and his team are now field testing a prototype peer-to-peer (P2P) computing technology at technical universities in the U.S. and Asia. "We see the potential of P2P specifically in the way online education will be delivered to students in an academic setting," Marc Hamilton, director of technology at Sun, told the Inquirer. The P2P model promises to provide more flexible delivery at a lower cost by eliminating the need for network servers and expert system administrators. In a P2P learning model, courses may reside on the personal computers of one or more instructors, questions and completed assignments on student computers, and grades on a registrar's computer, with these resources being shared among the individuals involved in a given course or program. One potential benefit is that instructors will find it much easier to customize course content to meet the needs of their students. And, faculty will be able to share research and scholarship simply by providing P2P access to designated files on their personal computers, converting the Internet into the most comprehensive and accessible research library ever created. However, a host of potential pitfalls, including security, need to be addressed by the team before the technology is ready for implementation. Read more about the potential of P2P on The Philadelphia Inquirer website CLICK: http://www.inq7.net/inf/2001/mar/16/inf_3-1.htm. (E-News From UCEA, no 41, 2 Apr 01)

MIT FREE COURSE PLAN - Plans are to make courses from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology freely available on the Internet over the next ten years. Included on the Web site - MIT OpenCourseWare (MIT OCW) - would be lecture notes, course outlines, reading lists and assignments for each course. The project expects to provide materials for more than 2,000 courses across MIT's entire curriculum - in architecture and planning, engineering, humanities, arts, social sciences, management and science. A large-scale pilot program would begin over the next two years. The pilot would include the design of the software and services needed to support such a large endeavor, as well as protocols to monitor and assess its use by MIT and worldwide faculty and students. At the end of the pilot, it is expected that materials for more than 500 courses would be available on the MIT OCW site. For more information CLICK: http://web.mit.edu/news/ (New York Times, 1 Apr 01)
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BIZ/GOV/ED

e-COMMERCE COURSES BIG ON CAMPUS - Although the tech-driven economy has begun to slowdown, the demand for e-commerce is rising. For example, at Northwestern Oklahoma, enrollment grew from 50 in the fall to 750 in the spring. The number of students is expected to double in coming semesters. The rationale is that in spite of the economic slowdown, half of the 1.6 million IT jobs in the US remain unfilled. Graduates are needed who understand e-commerce, know the basics of business and can avoid the mistakes of the earlier dotcoms. They believe that the e-commerce courses will give them this grounding. (Knight Ridder, 16 Apr 01)

E-LEARNING AND HUMAN RESOURCE EXECUTIVES - Elliott Masie of The MASIE Center shares key perspectives and lines of questioning from HR executives:

* e-Learning in a Time of Layoffs: Several vice-presidents of HR talked to Masie about their new need for e-Learning for implementing and surviving significant layoffs and reductions in force. They saw e-Learning a fast reacting tool to help them cross-train and redeploy remaining staff, as a way to offer access to e-Learning collections and courses as part of termination packages.

* Skills Assessments and Inventories: there was strong interest in finally being able to have skills (and recently verified competencies) available as part of an ERP system and a driver for learning and training investments.

* Digital Collaboration and Communities Highly Ranked: The HR perspective was extremely favorable towards the development of communities of learning, communities of practice and communities of support. In addition, there was a fever for using virtual classrooms.

* Covering the Teleworker: A fair number of folks drilled down into ways in which e-Learning could be harnessed for teleworking.

* The X Generation Learning Style: One company sent a team of 5 HR associates under age 26 as a way of getting a different perspective. The team was emphatic about moving away from the metaphor of the classroom for e-Learning offerings, to visit Knowledge World, access on- going content and not feel like they were in a class. They were shocked that multi-players, and ongoing simulation learning experiences were not offered.

* Business and Soft Skills Development via e-Learning: While many groups are successfully using e-Learning, there were pockets of resistance about how to deeply impact people through e-Learning. The most common solution seemed to be in the blended approach.

* High Potential Leaders: A number of companies have high-potential programs that identify future executives and focus development attention on this group. A good number of Fortune 500 companies are looking for new models for blending e-Learning with high employee programs.

When Masie asked 600 HR executives, how they learned to do their jobs. NOT ONE PERSON indicated they learned to do their job in a classroom. Adding e-Learning to the mix of corporate offerings is one way in which the HR executives see expanding the reach and reality of training expenditures. (TechLearn Trends #201, 14 Apr 01)

EXPERIMENT IN FUTURE COURTROOMS GIVEN ENCOURAGING VERDICT - The College of William and Mary held a simulated trial in Courtroom 21, a model of a courtroom of the future. Fred Lederer, director of Courtroom 21, explained, "We're doing it to learn what happens when you use all the technology available at our disposal to determine the legal and ethical questions that occur when you have a high-stakes case." The courtroom features technology such as plasma televisions and LCD monitors, digital projection technology, and automatic speech transcription. Participants can communicate from remote locations using two-way video. The highlight of the simulated trial, participants agreed, was a nearly lifelike video animation of the incident at the center of the trial, the midair collision of a passenger jet and a military plane. Lederer says the technology on display in Courtroom 21 has been used as a model for the War Crimes Tribunal in the Netherlands. He estimates that between 300 and 500 high-tech courtrooms are now in use in both the United States and Australia. (Associated Press, 5 Apr 01 - Edupage 6 Apr 01))

MOTOROLA U TRADES EDUCATION AND TRAINING FOR MARKET ACCESS IN CHINA - Motorola University, the education arm of US communications and technology solutions giant, Motorola Corporation, plans to move 50% of its employee education services online by 2003. With 103 sites in 24 countries the super-corporation has a lot of ground to cover. The University's operations in China may prove one of the trickiest to convert. Cultural, governmental and technological factors combine to force Motorola University to find ways to acquire the technology infrastructure-or create alternative means-to educate its employees in China. Motorola has been in China since 1988. In the early 1990's the corporation reached an agreement with the Chinese government to provide education initiatives in exchange for business privileges. Read the entire article online at the Virtual University Gazette CLICK: http://www.geteducated.com/vugaz.htm. (The Virtual University Gazette, vol. 4, no 4, Apr 01 ISSN #1099-4262) ________________________________________________________________________
TECH/TOOLS

VIRTUAL REALITY ON THE WEB - Several Web sites now provide Web-based virtual reality environments, using Virtual Reality Modeling Language (VRML). The University of Michigan has such a site. Called the Crystal Explorer, the site allows students to build and examine virtual crystals. At another site from the University of Manchester, neurosurgeons can practice a variety of procedures and scientists and others can share their latest discoveries worldwide. In two other examples, archaeologists at Manchester Metropolitan University, have created a virtual representation of the Tomb of Menna, from Thebes and made it available online, and the National History Museum has created online VRML-based trilobite fossils. (PC AI, Apr 01)

VIRTUAL TOUR IN YOUR PALM - InPlace recently announced that its NetVisits virtual tour technology will soon be available for use with handheld devices using the Palm OS such as the Handspring Visor Prism, Sony Clie, and the recently announced Palm M505. For more information CLICK: http://www.inplace.net.

TELE-IMMERSION: THE HOTTEST APP - Tele-immersion applications could be truly revolutionary in the way we interact and learn. They could allow people from around the world to be "present" at important events without leaving their offices, and to hold critical meetings without having to travel. While tele-immersion is still in the early stages, the University of North Carolina recently provided images that had a one-second delay with a speed of two or three frames per second (fps). At Brown University, a more advanced trial allowed users to collaborate on a model environment within a virtual shared space, a hint at what the technology could soon bring. (Scientific American, Apr 01)

APPLEWORKS 6.1 FOR EDUCATORS - Apple recently announced the AppleWorks 6.1 update, now featuring DataViz MacLinkPlus translators allowing users to view, modify, share and exchange Microsoft Office documents. A special edition of AppleWorks 6.1 exclusively for educators features support for both Mac and Windows computers. The software combines word processing, page layout, image manipulation, spreadsheets, databases and presentations in one application. AppleWorks 6.1 also includes a library of Internet-based, education-specific templates, designed by educators. An updater is available immediately as a free download to all Mac users currently running AW 6.0.4. The updater includes a preview version of AppleWorks 6.1 for Mac OS X. A retail package including versions for both Mac OS 9 and Mac OS X operating systems is expected to be available in spring 2001. (Syllabus e-News, Resources, and Trends 10 Apr 01) For more information CLICK: http://www.apple.com/education/k12/products/appleworks.

U of MI DEVELOPS FREE ED SOFTWARE FOR HANDHELDS - A team of researchers at the University of Michigan is working to develop a suite of educational tools for handhelds. Elliot Soloway, a professor of education and computer science at MI believes that handhelds, with their low cost and portability are the way to go. He argues that education will never be transformed until technology comes out of the lab and is ubiquitous. Soloway, along with others, believes that the only thing holding back handhelds is a lack of software. He hopes to have his "cool dozen" educational tools available for downloading at no charge by September. The small software programs for the Palm OS will offer the essential tasks of word processing, sketching, manipulating images, graphing equations, printing directly from the PDA and more. The project is being funded by the National Science Foundation. (eSchool News Online, 4 Apr 01)

I-GLASSES: THE NEW VIRTUAL THEATER - I-Glasses, a new tech tool that provides private showing of DVD and other video sources may become the new virtual theater. Called the "televisor," this new technology features twin embedded LCDs with 375 lines of resolution and a 180,000-pixel display to create the illusion of an 80-inch screen floating 11 feet in front of you. The I-Glasses can be used with any video source or the Pioneer Portable DVD and allow you to watch your favorite movies anywhere, anytime - a real breakthrough for frequent travelers. They also work for playing video games. The lightweight glasses have over-the-ear stereo capability headphones, foldable ergonomic frame design and an adjustable elastic head strap, as well as cables and adapters for a wide range of components, and accept composite and s-video. For more information CLICK: http://www.smarthome.com/8085.html ___________________________________________________________________________
READS/RESOURCES

COLLEGE TIMES WEB SITE - This New York Times site allows college students and faculty to locate information related to specific interest areas. They can access recent Times articles by subject and sign up to receive free email alerts as new articles are published on NYTimes.com Additional resources include student career-planning information and faculty instructional resources. The Faculty section includes: Teaching with The Times, free curriculum guides with innovative ideas for augmenting courses with the Times and tips for lectures, discussions, research essays and tests. Direct links can also be found to education news and other relevant content from NYTimes.com See the new College Times Web site at CLICK: http://www.nytimes.com/college

FORBES SPECIAL EDITION ON e-LEARNING - For those of you interested in trends in corporate use of e-learning, you might want to take a look at the "Forbes Special Section on eLearning" at CLICK: http://www.forbes.com/specialsections/elearning/contents.htm It provides information about:

Market and corporate drivers of e-learning
Corporate e-learning economies
Benchmark study of best practices
(from Bruce Dewey, ICS, UW-Extension)

ACCESSIBLE e-LEARNING REPORT - An Accessible e-Learning Report is now available to help you meet new Government regulations. Do you know how to evaluate your e-learning for accessibility to people with disabilities? Are your e-learning products accessible by the 57 million people in the United States with disabilities? Are your e-learning products compliant with the new federal standards mandated by the Section 508 regulations?

"Accessible e-Learning: 2001 Market Trends and Evaluation Tips" is written to help both educators and suppliers...to increase the accessibility and instructional effectiveness of their e-learning programs/products. A full 30% of the proceeds from the sale of the report will be donated to non-profit organizations involved in providing assistive technology and rehabilitation training to people with disabilities. The report is available free of charge to any disability-related organization wishing to convert it into particular accessibility formats. Academic pricing is available for accredited schools and universities, and non-profit organizations. For more information CLICK: http://www.brandon-hall.com/acel.html (from Brandon Hall - News and Notes from brandon-hall.com 19 Apr 01)

CREATING LEARNING-CENTERED COURSES FOR THE WORLD WIDE WEB by William Sanders, Allyn and Bacon, (c) 2001, ISBN# 0-205-31513-5

This book would be best used as an instructional guide for teaching naïve instructors in an academic environment how to create their own courses from scratch using HTML and Javascript inside common authoring platforms such as Netscape's Composer or Microsoft's Front Page. Naïve academic Website designers will benefit from the many practical tips concerning instructional Web site design ranging from the type of font to employ for easy reading to how to design a multiple choice test template. Chapters cover the basic parts of a Web page, essential HTML, designing with tables, active learning with links and frames and using forms to gather feedback. (The Virtual University Gazette, vol. 4, no 4, Apr 01 ISSN #1099-4262) __________________________________________________________________________
ISSUES/CHALLENGES

THREE NEW SITES TO FIGHT HATE - Partnersagainsthate.org, Tolerance.org, and Hatemonitor.org will replace Hatewatch.org, the activist Web site that recently decided that online hate was no longer a threat. The three sites will focus on helping school-age children understand hateful material they encounter online. The Hatewatch database will be used and built on as an online source of anti-hate court cases, law, historical documents, theory and other research. In addition to identifying hate-speech, the sites will concern themselves with the many hate-driven, quasi-historical Web sites such as Holocaust denial sites and anti-civil rights Web sites. The rationale is that the information found on these quasi-historical sites is often so convincing it is sometimes used in students' research papers. (Wired News, 5 Apr 01)

VERIZON FOUNDATION OFFERS eGRANTS TO NONPROFITS - On April 16, Verizon Foundation announced the availability of eGrants for dialup Internet access or high-speed Internet access, from the ISP (Internet Service Provider) of their choice. eGrants will be given in the amount of $240, and are targeted to non-profit organizations with annual budgets under $500,000. This grant program will enable small, non-profit organizations to open their doors to online resources and communications - including email, chat-rooms, and Web searches - and to expand their fundraising efforts with new donors and potential donors. Apply online for an eGrant today at CLICK: http://foundation.verizon.com/egrants.html __________________________________________________________________________
POSITIONS

- Northeastern University, Austin, TX - Assistant Dean, Distance Learning - this person should be an entrepreneurial leader with a vision for the role of Distance Learning in a major Research University. He/she should have a Master's degree, five years plus experience, be technically savvy and have a background of success in business development, operations and systems. For further information CLICK: http://www.utexas.edu/cee/dec __________________________________________________________________________
NEW ON THE LIST - Welcome to new subscribers: Kevin Brinnehl, Howard Bashinski, Ashley Lovette, Kathryn Green, Amy Campbell, Jeff Gale, Jeff King, Melissa Miszkiewicz, Maria Vizzi, Thomas Cunningham, Mark Siebers, Marie Lewandowski, Jim Friscia, John Carney, Irwin Ozer, Sandra Surman, John Lyons, Monica LeBonte, John Taylor and John Kahler. __________________________________________________________________________
FYI - News, Events, Conferences

* UPCOMING ONLINE SESSIONS - Generational Learning Styles, May 7-11, CLICK: http://www.lern.org/edctr/upcoming_online/generational_learning_styles/index.htm

Designing Online Instruction, June 11-15, CLICK: http://www.lern.org/edctr/upcoming_online/DesigningOnlineInstruction/default.htm

Creating Streaming Audio Lectures on the Web, July 9-13. Web description coming next month.

Building Learning Communities in Cyberspace, July 23-27, CLICK: http://www.teachingOntheNet.org/courses/building_learning_communities/default.htm

* ICIMADE - The International Conference on Intelligent Multimedia and Distance Education (ICIMADE) will take place June 1-3, 2001 in Fargo, ND. Specific details are available at the conference web site at CLICK: http://www.ndsu.edu/conted/ICIMADE

* FUTURE FAIR USE SEMINAR - The Future of Fair Use Seminar is scheduled for June 15, 2001 at the University of Maryland University College Inn and Conference Center, Adelphi MD The event is hosted by The Center for Intellectual Property. This one-day seminar will explore the role of Fair Use in the new Information Society where new technologies make digital rights management possible and may impact whether Fair Use continues to exist. For full information CLICK: http://www.umuc.edu/distance/odell/cip/workshop_6-01/

* TEACHING ON THE NET CONFERENCE - See and hear Rena Palloff, Keith Pratt, Rita-Marie Conrad, William Draves and 15 other presenters at an in-person conference June 25-26 in Minneapolis, MN For complete information CLICK: http://www.lern.org/learning_online/default.htm
For scholarships, email Virginia at virgina@lern.org.

* THE MERLOT CONFERENCE - The Multimedia Educational Resource for Learning and Online Teaching (Merlot), will hold its first international conference, August 12-15 at the University of South Tampa, FL The conference theme is "Faculty Approaches to Instruction" at CLICK: http://taste.merlot.org/conference/

* AAHE/ACE CONFERENCE - The Adult Higher Education Alliance/ACE 21st annual conference, "The Changing Face of Adult Learning" will be held October 10-13, 2001 in Austin, TX Four tracks will be featured: Technology and Innovation, Learners and Educators, Values and Conflicts and Globalization and Diversity. Call for Papers specifies a May 4 deadline. For full information see CLICK: http://www.ahea.org

* SYLLABUS FALL2001 - The Syllabus Conference is now accepting proposals for its Conference and Exposition, entitled "Next Steps: Moving Forward with Campus IT." Held in the Boston area November 29-December 2, 2001 at the Sheraton Ferncroft Resort in Danvers, MS, the conference will attract faculty, administrators and IT professionals who want to explore the latest applications of information technology in higher education. The deadline for submissions is June 1, 2001. Conference updates and a detailed call for papers are available at CLICK: http://www.syllabus.com. ____________________________________________________________________________
ENDNOTE - "...the process of changing education more widely and deeply is, itself, an educational process - a transformative one. Changing Education is Education. So, lifelong learning, for educators, is no longer a choice, it is a responsibility.

If changing education is education, then it cannot be done quickly, casually, or easily. It will require much good will, direction, and hard work. Increasing the quality and accessibility of education and information will be worth the effort - it already is." (from AAHESGIT-103: "Changing Education is Education" by Steve Gilbert, 24 Apr 01 05:59:28 -0700. With permission from Steve Gilbert, CLICK: http://www.tltgroup.org/listserv/copyright.html) __________________________________________________________________________
MAY DESIEN ISSUE FOCUS - "The Ever Changing Nature of Copyright and Fair Use: Where Are We Today?" by Lisa Livingston, UW-Madison
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