Science Technology

There can be no question that today's students need to learn computer skills to function in the modern workplace. But acquiring the computers, Internet connections, and teachers who can integrate them into their classrooms is a challenge that school districts are facing with mixed results. For those teachers who can use the computer in their lessons the Internet offers a plethora of creative teaching tools. And for the students who learn the skills, there are thousands of technical jobs around the country currently going unfilled.

The New Literacy: Computers in school
the courant. (Hartford, Conn.)

Teaching teachers to use the Net
Sacbee (Sacramento, Calif.)

Technology education resources on the Internet
Nando.net

Digital Joe shares his undersea explorations of the with students on the Net
ocregister.com (Orange County, Calif.)

A seller's market for technical jobs
washingtonpost.com

Back to school, at a distance

(Hank Morgan)

Demands for services from public colleges and universities are up, while funding and resources are already stretched to the limit. For years higher education officials have struggled with a way to reach the highest number of students at a minimum cost. Now the Internet is allowing new ways to meet those goals. Several schools have begun offering classes taught entirely online using email, real-time chat and interactive video to get the same work that used to require lecture halls and reams of paper. Some students are taking the classes without leaving their homes and in some cases, thousands of miles away from their professors. And while the technology is not always 100 percent reliable, the trend toward colleges offering virtual classes is growing, and it may change the way students get their college — and high school — diplomas in the near future.

From NewsWorks

To college by keyboard
Detroit Free Press

Classroomless classes debut on one Texas campus
Caller-Times Interactive (Corpus Christi, Texas)

Take college classes at midnight, in your pajamas
washintonpost.com

A virtual university at George Mason
Arizona Central (Phoenix)

Educators peer into a future built around technology
Virtually Northwest (Spokane, Wash.)

High school students getting a head start
Evansville Online (Ind.)

In Minnesota, online classes get off to a slow start
St. Paul Pioneer Press (Minn.)

A crash course in virtual classes
St. Paul Pioneer Press (Minn.)

A wired future for California schools
The Gate (San Francisco)

California Virtual gets a financial boost
The Gate (San Francisco)

Seattle efforts at online classes flounder
The Seattle Times Extra

Virtual campus serves 15 southern states
Lexington Herald-Leader (Ky.)

Oklahoma schools eliminate geographical concerns
Connect Oklahoma (Oklahoma City)

Companies save by training new workers over the Internet
Lexington Herald-Leader (Ky.)

Online classes let high school students learn from home
New Jersey Online

Third graders point and click their way around the world
Evansville Online (Ind.)

From the Web

History On-line: Teaching on the Internet
Prof. Jack Owens, Idaho State University

California Virtual University

Western Governors University