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Lifelong Learning

Aired January 22 and 23, 2000

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This is Internet on the Air. I’m Joan Silvi. Lifelong learning on the Internet. Details in a moment.

Funding Credit: Internet On The Air is a production of the University of Michigan School of Information and Michigan radio, made possible by a grant from the W.K. Kellogg Foundation.

College graduates breath sighs of relief when classes are over, but we all need refresher courses throughout our lives. Many people keep their minds active and creativity alive by reading classical novels, taking pottery classes, or learning carpentry through adult education programs. Fitting these activities into busy schedules is difficult, but finding time to attend these classes has become easier as more classes are available on-line. Skills building for business needs are especially prominent on the Web, and the electronic hallways are open 24 hours a day.

UNext corporation of Chicago is one distance education company that aims to educate workers for the latter two-thirds of their lives. UNext instructors combine standard educational formats such as lectures and textbooks with current Internet resources. Students develop business plans using the latest stock quotes, giving their projects real world usability. Instructors use on-line resources such as discussion boards to coach students. These tools also allow students to learn as much from their peers as from their teachers.

“Ethics in America”, “Grant-writing”, and “Business Law” are all classes available over the Internet. If your goal is to learn how to paint like Rembrandt, your best bet might be to take a hands-on arts class. But if you need to brush up on accounting skills for your next work deadline, consider studying online from the comfort of your living room.

To find out more about online learning or to hear an interview with Don Norman, the CEO of UNext, visit our Web site at www.iota.org

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Related Links

For further information, try these Web sites:

• Visit the UNext Web site to learn more about their approach to learning through the Internet. Take a test drive of the UNext learning space.

  UNext is working with leading universities to make world-class education available anywhere, anytime. The original members of this consortium are:

  • Carnegie Mellon University
  • Columbia University
  • London School of Economics
  • Stanford University
  • University of Chicago

  UNext is not currently offering courses to individual, but is marketing accredited business degrees to private companies.
  

• Don Norman is the author of several books, including The Design of Everyday Things, Things That Make Us Smart, and The Invisible Computer. His goal is "to humanize technology, to make it disappear from sight, replaced by a human-centered, activity-based family of information appliances." Learn more about his role as a user advocate on his Web site.
  
  
• Other Online Education Companies
  • PBS Adult Learning Services The Public Broadcasting Service’s foray into providing courses online http://www.pbs.org/als/
  • University of Phoenix. Despite the name, U of Phoenix has virtual ‘classrooms’ all across the country. http://online.uophx.edu/
    
    
• Gateways
  • American learning exchange searchable clearinghouse for distance learning opportunities http://www.alx.org/
  • Hungry Minds Links to resources for curious adult learning http://www.hungryminds.com/
    
    
• Software
  • Blackboard www.blackboard.com
  • eCollege eCollege.com
  • WebCT http://www.webct.com/
  • Lotus LearningSpace http://www.lotus.com/home.nsf/welcome/learnspace
    
    
• For other online education resources, check out an IOTA show from Fall 1998: Virtual Universities.

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The Interview

IOTA interviewed Don Norman in January 2000.

What does UNext offer that is different than a traditional University?

So, you sign up for a UNext course, and what happens then?

What kinds of technologies does Unext use, and for what purposes?

I noticed that you don't mention much synchronous technology, like live chat, or video conferencing. Instead you rely on asynchronous technology, like discussion boards. Why is that?

Please direct questions or comments to iota.webmaster@umich.edu.

Last Updated January 21, 2000