Networked learning on the WWW and Distance Education _计算机网络论文.docVIP

Networked learning on the WWW and Distance Education _计算机网络论文 Networked learning on the WWW and Distance Education _计算机网络论文 Abstract: Living in this technologically information age, it is hard not to be lured by the dazzle of on line technologies. The use of these online technologies like WWW has particular significance in distance education. The WWW has an outstanding communication capability for delivering study materials and information in different forms to the distance learners. This capability greatly extends the educational opportunities of the WWW available to instructional designers and provides a wealth of possible activities for teaching and learning. The communications capabilities of the WWW are usefully divided into two main categories, synchronous and asynchronous. Synchronous communications are those that occur in real-time while asynchronous communications involve some form of delay. This paper describes instructional applications for each of these modes on the WWW. This paper also provides information about realities of networked learning environments and insights into their potentials for supporting flexible teaching and learning in the Open University. 1. Introduction: Towards the end of the 20th century and into the 21st century, the world has undergone and will continue to undergo significant educational changes as a consequence of the uptake and the application of information and communication technologies specifically the communication capability of WWW. There are some areas like flexible delivery amp networked learning where the WWW provide advantage to distance education and educators. Nunn [1] describes flexible delivery as term which signifies the desirable social goals of increasing access to education and democratizingn teaching and learning process by giving greater control to students. The WWW supports many different forms of communication, which can be used in myriad of ways in student centered learning environment to support coop