VIRTUAL LEARNING AND THE NETWORK SOCIETY

A wide variety of organizational structures and technologies are associated with the 'virtual campus'. This paper compares the UK's two largest distance learning initiatives: the Open University (OU) and the University for Industry (UfI). The comparison suggests four alternative approaches to 'virtualization' and shows that debate has often under-estimated the variety of possible approaches. The relationship between ICTs, knowledge and organizational structure is complex, reflecting a diversity of values and rationalities embodied by learning institutions.     

Bridging Temporal and Spatial "Gaps": The role of information and communication technologies in defining communities

The diffusion and use of digitally based information and communication technologies (ICTs) offers the opportunity to redefine and reconceptualize 'community' both in terms of delineating the boundaries of community, as well as the modes of communication used between members. The creation of an electronic infrastructure, the Internet, permits the possibility of widespread public communication that is inexpensive and relatively easy to access. A second consequence builds on the first; the emergence of (virtual) communities based on geographically distributed sources of information production and exchange rather than the geographic proximity of community members to one another. An assessment of three cases of ICT-linked communities suggests that one component of sustainability of these virtual communities of interest may be a geographic linkage. While interests not based on geography are, at least at present, more transitory and less important than those created by the use of the Internet and similar kinds of ICTs. While we may join a virtual community because of an interest we have, unless that interest affects us in our daily lives, in our lives as physically-instantiated and geographically-centred individuals and citizens, there is no good reason to believe that we will long continue an active membership in the virtual community. Indeed, this is precisely what the three case studies presented in this paper suggest.     

PARTY DEMOCRACY ON-LINE: UK PARTIES AND NEW ICTS

This paper examines the impact of new information and communications technologies (ICTs) on levels of intra-party democracy in the UK in light of recent claims of increasing centralization of power and marginalization of members within West European political parties. Specifically, it examines whether parties adoption of the internet, in the shape of an internal computer communication system (ICCS) and internal party groups' use of the World Wide Web (WWW), is promoting intra-party democracy in two areas: (1) the vertical distribution of power between members and elites; (2) the spatial concentration of power between intra-party groupings and central party elites. The findings show that while many parties have made use of the internet for internal communication there is no concerted effort being made by parties to harness its potential to promote members input into decision-making and elite accountability.     

THE ROLE OF TEMPORALITY IN MEDIATED COMMUNICATION AND TECHNOLOGY CONVERGENCE

This article examines two components of temporality that have implications for electronically mediated communication. One is the dichotomy of simultaneous/non-simultaneous communication and then the varying degrees of non-simultaneity that are possible. The other is the fundamental difference between timed and untimed communication. Timed communication is temporally based and sequential, while untimed communication, such as print and still image content, is spatially based. The article argues that there are two fundamental types of mediated communication: communication mediated across time and communication mediated across space. The implications of temporality for both forms of mediated communication are examined in detail. The implications of temporality and mediated communication for multimedia, technology convergence, and research are discussed.     

THE CONSTITUTIONAL CONTEXT: UNIVERSITIES, NEW INFORMATION TECHNOLOGIES AND THE US SUPREME COURT

The legal context in which universities operate is among the forces shaping the ways in which new information technologies are taken up and used. In the USA, constitutional law - that law which addresses how society is to be structured and what types of processes should be permitted within it - is particularly important in determining what institutions can do. The ultimate arbiter of constitutional law is the US Supreme Court, the decisions of which establish basic principles for the US legal system. This article reviews the entire body of US Supreme Court decisions that deal with higher education and mines them for their implications for the use of new information technologies by universities.     

Building Social Inclusion for Rural Older People Using Information and Communication Technologies: Perspectives of Rural Practitioners

Abstract

The literature identifies rural, older people as at risk of social exclusion, as a result of rural disadvantage. In this context, improved access to information and communication technologies (ICTs) has potential to build social inclusion, yet current evidence shows that rural, older people are the lowest current users of technology. This paper draws on the practice and local knowledge of rural practitioners from one Victorian region in order to explore: (a) the practice issues associated with ICT use among rural, older people; and (b) the characteristics of effective practice models in the rural, social work context. An analysis of findings highlights the need to respond to the diverse skills, needs, and learning styles of older people, to demonstrate the benefits of ICTs, involve users, and build confidence. Major barriers include poor ICT usage by many rural agencies and low practitioner capacity, as well as access and resources.