The scale of operation is impressive:
in 1996-99, some 115,000 (NTU) individuals participated in courses
and workshops and 4,400 students were registered on 13 master degrees.
The 1,000 or so reception sites for the NTU program are located in
high-tech companies, government agencies and other universities. At
each site a local coordinator is responsible for the delivery of programs
and helps to resolve any technical or communication problems. Each
student is assigned an academic advisor who assists the student in
planning the course work required for graduation and helps to resolve
any academic problems. Students can communicate with the instructors
through electronic mail, fax, telephone, or the regular mail services;
computer conferencing is also available and the Internet is seen as
a potential means of further enhancing interactivity.
The designation 'virtual' is increasingly used to describe a relatively
recent development in distance teaching, usually based on computer
groupware, or which operates over the Internet. While the details
vary from one program to another, in general the student uses a local
computer (usually from home or office) to access a range of services
and facilities analogous to those provided to regular on-campus students.
These facilities may include provision for enrollment; the dissemination
of prepared course materials, access to on-line bibliographic and
video materials, communication with tutors and with other students,
and assessment and examination (Elbaum, 2003). The pedagogical functions
of virtual communities are arguably closest to the spirit of traditional
teaching. The Virtual College at New York University provides a useful
illustration of the general approach. The College commenced operation
in the spring of 1992 by presenting university courses to off-campus
students through a program developed around Windows, NetWare and Lotus
Notes and delivered over Integrated Digital Service Network (ISDN).
