Cutbacks in federal funding for research increase the financial pressure on research universities. They are coupled with legislative and trustee pressure to focus on educational programs. The result is that universities and corporations are being asked to make significant increases in the quality of the educational experience without additional resources. In many places this has led to re-engineered courses and new curricula, making use of new technology to break the constraints of place and time.
The increasing availability of network resources and collaborative software is eliminating the distinction between on-site and distant learners. We will examine the forces mandating change and the technologies facilitating change, and illuminate the choices and challenges we face in directing these changes toward a networked collaborative educational environment of "Continuous Education" in the "Virtual University." We will show how Rensselaer created the Studio Course model and the software tools that allow students to participate in a hands-on Studio classroom experience at a distance.
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Modified: Jun 24, 1997|
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