TELECONFERENCING WILL SAVE MONEY AND IMPROVE ACCESS - A
new teleconferencing system will connect all of the California Community Colleges' 108
campuses and will provide access to users with disabilities. Community colleges in the
state are having to work with significant budget cuts and the new system is expected to
allow substantial savings in travel budgets. The system also satisfies accessibility
requirements of the Americans with Disabilities Act and Section 508 of the Rehabilitation
Act, according to officials from Palomar College, which is heading the project. Colleges
will initially use the system for virtual meetings, though the technology could be used
later for online courses and other functions. See:
http://chronicle.com/free/2002/10/2002102502t.htm (Chronicle of Higher Education,
25 Oct 02 - Edupage 25 Oct 02)

STUDY CHARTS GROWTH OF FULLY ONLINE DISTANCE LEARNING -
Research firm Eduventures, Inc. released a study on the distance learning market that
shows that the market for fully online degree programs is growing at a rate of 40%
annually. Currently, more than 350,000 students are enrolled in fully online degree-
granting programs, which generated $1.75 billion in tuition revenues for institutions in
2001/2002, according to the study. A key to institutional success is the comprehensive
integration of direct and indirect services in support of online programs. The study
looks at success factors of fully online degree programs at Bismarck State College,
the University of Wyoming, and Strayer University. For more information, visit: http://www.eduventures.com (Syllabus News, Resources, Trends, 4 Oct 02)

ORGANIZERS PLAN ONLINE MEDICAL SCHOOL - A group of more than
50 schools in 16 countries are working to create an online medical school. The
International Virtual Medical School is led by the University of Dundee in Scotland,
and includes Scotland's other four medical schools at the Universities of Aberdeen,
Edinburgh, Glasgow, and St. Andrews. Organizers said that because degrees would
be granted by individual participating schools, all of which are accredited, students
should not have to worry about accreditation problems. Students would spend about
30% of their time in clinical settings during the first two years of the program and
about 70% after that. American schools participating in the project include Brown,
Wake Forest, West Virginia Universities, and the University of Miami. (Chronicle
of Higher Education, 9 Oct 02)

INITIAL MIT COURSEWORK GOES ONLINE - MIT recently began placing
courses online as part of its OpenCourseWare project (http://ocw.mit.edu/). The
university opted not to develop a for-profit learning initiative, choosing instead to
make its courseware open to the public. MIT plans to put lecture notes, syllabi,
assignments, tutorials, video simulations, and reading lists from over 2,000 courses
on the site over the next ten years, though no credit will be offered for those who
complete the assignments. Questions remain about technology tools for the site
and intellectual property issues, but a representative of the program said that so far
the response has been overwhelmingly positive. Critics said the offerings to date
are limited and that merely posting such resources online does not substitute for an
education at MIT. Officials from OpenCourseWare agreed that the experience of
learning at MIT is not replicated by the program, but they hope that it will serve as
a model for other institutions to disseminate their own resources. The full article is at: http://www.wired.com/news/school/0,1383,55507,00.html (Wired News, 4 Oct 02)

DOCTORAL PROGRAMS ADDED AT U OF PHOENIX ONLINE - The University
of Phoenix Online has received approval from its accreditor, the Higher Learning
Commission of the North Central Association of Colleges and Schools, to add three
doctoral programs. The university already offers one Ph.D. in management in
organizational leadership. The new programs are in business administration, education,
and health-care administration. The university will also establish a School of Advanced
Studies to support the new programs. The dean of the school said the new programs are
in line with the university's mission to provide working adults with educational alternatives.
Some observers said the university's move reflected its desire to "move up the educational
hierarchy." The university said it hopes to enroll 300 to 500 Ph.D. students over the next
three years. Much of the coursework will be done online, though students will be required
to spend two weeks per year on the university's campus in Phoenix to meet with faculty
advisors and mentors. The complete article is at:
http://chronicle.com/daily/2002/09/2002093008n.htm (Chronicle of Higher Education,
30 Sept 02)