U OF SOUTH DAKOTA EXTENDS PALM INITIATIVE - The University of South
Dakota started the second year of a two-year pilot program to determine how handheld
computers could enhance the educational experience. Under USD's Palm Initiative,
the university is exploring how mobile technology would help students develop
organizational skills, gain better access to course materials, improve communication with
faculty and peers, and encourage the use of other types of technology. About 2,500 Palm
devices have been distributed to students and faculty. Also, server-based data
synchronization software from Extended Systems Inc. has been incorporated into the
network, allowing students to access and update via Infrared ports around campus,
email course material and information from faculty and peers, notes taken during
lectures, homework assignments, and appointments.(Syllabus News, Resources, Trends,
20 Sept 02)

ACADEMICS CAN CUSTOM-BUILD THEIR OWN CONTENT - Online Custom
Books, recently launched by Kluwer Academic Publishers (KAP) offers online users the
ability to create individualized content from its electronic books collection. The
company's six-step process lets instructors choose chapters they want, title their
creation, and decide how they want the custom book delivered, electronically or
printed and mailed as a perfect-bound paperback. Available subject areas can be
browsed, individual chapters selected from different books, previewed and combined
in any order. Books electronically delivered are available in Adobe Acrobat e-Book
format. For more information, visit: http://www.kluweronline.com

FACULTY WANT LIMITS TO DISTANCE EDUCATION WORKLOAD - A
faculty union in Massachusetts is working to establish a collective-bargaining agreement
with the University of Massachusetts to ensure its members are not overloaded with
extra work when they teach in the university's distance education program.
Understanding that distance education programs often require significant additional
work from faculty, the Massachusetts Society of Professors wants an incentive system
to attract faculty, rather than a coercion system, according to the president of the group.
Professors are paid extra when they develop distance education courses or teach them,
but other issues will face negotiators, including enrollment caps and the potential for
administrators to "eavesdrop" electronically on a distance education course without the
professor's knowledge. For the full article see:
http://chronicle.com/free/2002/09/2002091201t.htm (Chronicle of Higher Education,
12 Sept 02 - Edupage 13 Sept 02)

TOP TEN DISTANCE EDUCATION ISSUES OF THE YEAR - The Faculty
Advisory Council of Teaching OntheNet recently ranked the Top Ten 2002 Issues of
the Year for faculty teaching online:

1. Course quality and evaluation standards
2. Institutional support for online courses
3. Student retention
4. Technical support
5. Development time and cost (Down from #2 last year)
6. Teacher pay (Up from #8 last year)
7. Who owns the course (Up from #9 last year)
8. Class size (Down from #1 last year)
9. Impact of shareable content objects (SCOs)
10. Facilitating online discussions (down from #6 last year)

Dropping off the list from last year's top issues were:
- Online classroom platforms
- Cheating online
- Testing online
- Role of f2f teaching

(Teaching OntheNet Sept 02)

12-HOUR RULE REVISION - 12 hours per week of in-class work may be on the
way out. The Department of Education is close to eliminating the rule which stipulates
12 hours per week in-class to receive federal financial aid. Few programs, however,
plan to change their current course offerings because the revised criteria from the
Department of Education still require "one day" of in-class instruction per week.
Though "one day" has not been defined, courses that allow students to study as much
and whenever they want would likely be disqualified, e.g. the University of Maryland
University College and the University of Phoenix. Both schools have fought to end
the 12-hour rule, but say they have no plans to change their programs. See the full
article at: http://chronicle.com/free/v49/i02/02a04301.htm (Chronicle of Higher
Education, 6 Sept 02)