OUTLINE OF ENTIRE TUTORIAL
INTRODUCTION TO THE INTERNET for new Congressmembers & Staff
1) Why is the Internet important/Why should I care?
2) What is the Internet and how does it work?
3) What can the Internet do for me?
INITIAL RESEARCH FOR PART 1 of the TUTORIAL
[Translate Research into slides--preliminary draft ]
Subj: Tech Tutorial Task Force Section 1--Draft outline
Date: 99-09-09 21:59:27 EDT
From: JEANNANDI
To: ted.karle@usic.org (Ted Karle)
[Note: Part 1 of this 10-minute section, covering item 1), above (Why is the Internet important/Why should I care?), is about the Economic Impact of the Internet. This was already covered by Roger Cochetti in a luncheon held for freshman congresspeople in May, 1999--JN]
Here is my draft outline on our topics (2-5). My intent is to provide a framework as a start. Since this whole thing must be covered, presumably by yourself, in only 10 minutes at the actual event, I hope I have included TOO much so you can trim it (always easier to do that than to fill out something that is too short!)
Yours,
Jean
TOPIC 2. EDUCATION--HOW HAS THE INTERNET REVOLUTIONIZED EDUCATION?
On a single search site, Yahoo, 53 Universities and other institutions are listed which provide online education. Some do EXTENSIVE education; some do SPECIALIZED education; some are restricted to LIMITED areas. A valuable 1999 Distance Education Task Force Report was prepared at San Francisco State University ( http://online.sfsu.edu/dereport.htm ), which provides information on trends, costs and details about developing online courses.
- INTERNET EDUCATION IS PARTICULARLY WELL-SUITED TO INSTRUCTING SELF-MOTIVATED ADULTS. A tutor must be available for younger students (K-12), and online instruction cannot replace quality classroom time with a live teacher. 53.29% of Web users reported that they used the internet for education (according to Gary E. Torello, http://www.qgm.com/articles/survey6.html)
- ONLINE EDUCATION IS INCREASINGLY USED FOR EMPLOYEE TRAINING PROGRAMS, particularly in small or medium sized enterprises (SMEs). Small businesses frequently find that pressure of work and the difficulty of releasing staff make consistent and regular attendance at college classes difficult to achieve. Through web-based learning, they can access the learning materials whenever they can find the time, and from whatever place suits them, college, learning centre, library, workplace or at home. (Contact for NCN: Gareth Davies, gareth.davies@newdur.ac.uk)
- ONLINE EDUCATION IS USED A GREAT DEAL FOR INFORMATION SYSTEMS/PROGRAMMING COURSES. It has been estimated that by the year 2005, at least 50 percent of IT training will happen online. (source http://www.tft.co.uk/updates_archive.html ,Update 26-July 1999, The Evolution of Online Learning)
- UNIVERSITY EXTENSION FACILITIES ARE INCREASINGLY UTILIZING THE INTERNET for part of their continuing education coursework. Most still use hard copy texts, but assignments can be done online, and interaction between students and faculty are promoted by chats, bulletin boards, and email.
- MOST UNIVERSITIES AND COLLEGES USE EMAIL AND WEBSITES AS ADJUNCTS TO CLASSWORK and counselling services. International Data says it expects overall enrolments in college-level distance learning courses to increase threefold, to 2.2 million, by 2002, generally supplementing the degree program. According to the Primary Research Group, Inc., an estimated 93 % of these distance learning (DL) programs use email as their DL medium, and by 1998 36.68 % of DL instructors in 1998 were adjunct faculty.
( http://www.primaryresearch.com/distanc2.htm )
- A SMALL NUMBER OF UNIVERSITIES DO PROVIDE DEGREE-LEVEL EDUCATION ONLINE. The cost to the student is comparable to enrollment on campus, but it permits off-campus living. The possibility of acquiring a college degree through distance learning is particularly appealing to students with various severe disabilities, or older returnees, who may need to remain at home or otherwise cannot attend classes on a regular basis.
- AN ENDLESS ARRAY OF MATERIAL TO SUPPLEMENT CLASSWORK OR FOR RESEARCH IS AVAILABLE on the internet for all students (and their teachers!), including the youngest. For example, almost all University libraries and the library of Congress, as well as city and regional libraries, have catalogues online. There are other resources (e.g. http://www.facstaff.bucknell.edu/rbeard/diction.html , linked to more than 1,000 dictionaries in 200 different languages, and http://stommel.tamu.edu/~baum/hyperref.html , an annotated listing of 74 dictionaries, 121 glossaries and 21 encyclopedias). Maps, statistical sites, government documents, and webpages for cities and other locales around the world provide rich internet fare to supplement the standard geography and social studies classes in the lower schools.
- DEVELOPING AND MAINTAINING ONLINE EDUCATION PROGRAMS IS COSTLY, tending to limit them to subject areas undergoing rapid change (such as IT, where it may be difficult to have a sufficiently knowlegable staff), or to business areas (i.e. accounting) where technical certification can be accomplished through examination.
- A TECHNICAL DIVIDE EXISTS: ONLY 20 % OF LOW-INCOME HOUSEHOLDS OWN A COMPUTER. It is imperative that educational institutions not put underprivileged students at a disadvantage. The Institute for Higher Education Policy reported that Internet-based education is too new and untested to justify its rapid growth in colleges. For example, there is a higher dropout rate (32 % for online classes, just 4 % for "real-world" classes. ( http://www.tft.co.uk/updates_archive.html , Division Over Internet Learning, Update 26-July 1999). Important, too, is the provision of assistive technology for those students who may need it owing to a variety of disabilities.
- THE USE OF COMPUTERS AND THE INTERNET IS VITAL TO THE PREPARATION OF STUDENTS FOR JOBS, in spite of these growing pains. According to the Information Technology Association of America, computer-related jobs are among the fastest growing occupations in the world, with more than 345,000 computer programmer and systems analyst jobs vacant in U.S. companies with more than 100 employees. ITA estimates that demand is expected to grow from 874,00 jobs in 1996 to 1.8 million by 2006. (Quote from John Lancaster, Executive Director of the President's Committee on Employment of People with Disabilities, Businessweek Online: Daily Briefing, Assistive Technology by John Williams May 5, 1999, http://www.businessweek.com/bwdaily/dnflash/astecharc99.htm )
TOPIC 3. POLITICS--THE INTERNET HAS TRANSFORMED GRASSROOTS ORGANIZING AND EMPOWERED THE ELDERLY AND DISABLED.
- 92% OF INTERNET USERS ARE REGISTERED VOTERS (60% VOTED IN THE LAST ELECTION)
Internet users (there are more than 45 million of them worldwide, with 73.36% of located in the US-- http://www.online-magazine.com/survey.htm), are educated (75 percent have attended college), technologically savvy, and upscale (65 percent have household incomes greater than $50,000 per year), according to the IAB ( http://www.ozweb.com.au/advert2.htm). About 42 percent are female, and the median age of the net user has consistently edged upwards. It is now38 years old (May 25, 1999, http://www.e-land.com/estats/demo_age.html).
- SENIOR CITIZENS, THE STRONGEST VOTING BLOC, ARE THE FASTEST-GROWING GROUP ON THE INTERNET, according to the AARP. A survey of online purchasers shows the highest concentration (27 %) in the 50 to 64 segment, with the fastest-growing segment being 65 and over (just 4% last year, but up to 16% this year), shown by a survey released last month by Ernst & Young and the National Retail Federation. (Old-timers are taking over the Web by Allan E. Alter, 99-04-05
http://cnn.com:80/TECH/computing/9903/03/oldweb.idg/oldweb.html )
- THE INTERNET HAS ENABLED ALMOST ANYONE TO BE AN ADVOCATE. Web sites, chain emails, and online petitions addressing a range of hot issues are proliferating on the Internet. Some groups have been successful in utilizing technology for campaigning. For example, the Libertarian Party's Web site prompted 171,000 people to send emails to the FDIC, effectively blocking an effort to allow/require non-FDIC banks to report on certain personal account information. (Date: Thu, 3 Jun 1999 11:56:49 -0700 What's Working in Online Advocacy http://www.benton.org/Practice/Best/advoc.html [SOURCE: CyberTimes, AUTHOR: Rebecca Fairley Raney] http://www.nytimes.com/library/tech/99/06/cyber/articles/03campaign.html)
- THE FEDERAL ELECTION COMMISSION GAVE A MAJOR BOOST TO FUND RAISING IN CYBERSPACE, agreeing to make credit card donations eligible for the federal matching funds presidential candidates receive. "We recognize the reality that the Internet is here and a big part of our life," said FEC Chairman Scott Thomas after the 6-0 vote. "We need to let it be used freely." (Oakland, CA Tribune Friday June 11, 1999, Campaign contributions via Internet qualify for matching funds, (c) 1999 by MediaNews Group, Inc. and ANG Newspapers)
- LISTSERVS AND OTHER FORMS OF NEWSGROUPS HAVE CREATED ONLINE NETWORKS for every conceivable voter or political advocacy group. According to a survey on AltaVista, as of June 1996 (more than 4 years ago) there were about 14,000 news groups ( http://www.ross.net/webhints/internet_growth.html), and the number continues to grow. Not all of these are political, of course, but even the social chats may become political when members begin discussing the impacts of legislation on their personal lives. For many, such as the group forming the San Francisco Bay Area Network on Disability, the online connection is the only one possible.
- AT 20% OF THE POPULATION, PEOPLE WITH DISABILITIES COMPRISE THE NATION'S LARGEST MINORITY group, and access to the Internet presents significant opportunities to many within this community. Beginning to join the job market in the high tech area, people with disabilities are becoming more active politically as well, as they become both voters and taxpayers. Statistics gathered by the PCEPD show that disabled people have $175 billion in discretionary income, and more than 20.3 million people in the country have at least one family member with a disability, making family members and their disabled relatives a potentially powerful political force as a result of the growth of internet-based opportunities. (See John Lancaster, Executive Director of the President's Committee on Employment of People with Disabilities, PCEPD, Businessweek Online: Daily Briefing Assistive Technology by John Williams May 5, 1999, http://www.businessweek.com/bwdaily/dnflash/astecharc99.htm )
- WEBUSERS ARE GETTING AN EDUCATION, AND THEY ARE ALSO BECOMING INCREASINGLY SAVVY VOTERS. One of the most popular Web-based directories, Yahoo, lists 6,266 pages on its http://dir.yahoo.com/Government/Politics/ location. 3,937 of these reflect regional sites, but other areas covered include Activism Resources, Chats and Forums (on politics alone), Civic Participation, Elections, News and Media, Organizations, Political Parties, Political Issues, Political Opinion, and Women. Clear "losers" in the new cyber-society ( http://www.activmedia.com/f_complete.html) are Newspapers, Radio and Television as sources of news, while our educated, upscale, and intensely curious web surfer seeks in-depth news and analyses from sites such as Yahoo, among many others.
TOPIC 4. ENTERTAINMENT & CULTURE--HAS ENTERTAINMENT REALLY CHANGED? INTERNET SERVICES SHOW THAT ENTERTAINMENT SITES HAVE THE GREATEST NUMBER OF "HITS."
- 51% OF SURVEYED INTERNET USERS SAY THEIR TOP USE FOR THE INTERNET IS ENTERTAINMENT, and 30% said travel
Another survey found that people use their Web browsers for "Simply browsing" (77.08%, presumably a form of entertainment), Entertainment (63.79%), Education (53.29%), Work (50.9%), and Shopping (18.83%) (multiple answers were allowed here: http://www.qgm.com/articles/survey6.html ).
- WEB SURFERS SAID THEIR TV TIME (32% OF ANSWERS), LONG-DISTANCE CALLING (25%), and time spent with videos other print media (13% of respondents) all declined as a result of the Internet. (Statistics from Minds Eye Media, Netscape, and Internet World Magazine)
- THE NUMBER OF HOURS PEOPLE USE THE WEB HAS INCREASED, REFLECTING MORE USES AND MORE LEISURE TIME SPENT ON THE WEB. One in five users (20.05%) report using their browsers over 20 hours per week, one third (30.01%) spend 10 to 20 hours a week on the Web, with 17% spending 7 to 9 hrs/wk and 17.76% spending 4 to 6 hrs/wk. Casual use of under 5 hours per week is down, further emphasizing the trend towards increased usage. For comparison, in April of 1995, only 28.46% of the users spent more than 10 hrs/wk on the Web. Eighteen months later, nearly twice as many users (50.06%) spend more than 10 hrs/wk! ( http://www.qgm.com/articles/survey6.html )
- THE LEISURE ACTIVITIES AVAILABLE ON OR THROUGH THE WEB ARE BURGEONING. Many more radio stations can be heard via webcasting than are available locally through the old technology. Some TV and multimedia broadcasts are beginning to be available, but this area is just at its beginning. A large number of games, including interactive ones and games involving multiple players, can be accessed on the internet. And just "web-surfing" itself can be highly entertaining as well as educational, given the many websites designed with interesting graphics and sound clips to be attractive and fun to visit.
- ON THE WHOLE, INTERNET ENTERTAINMENT IS HEALTHY AND LESS PASSIVE THAN TV OR RADIO. Although much is made about the "dangers" of allowing unsupervised children to surf the web (at least analagous to " dangers" encountered on TV or in some print materials), or of people who spend excessive amounts of time closeted with their computers, internet surfing tends to be more interactive than many other indoor passtimes. As you may observe, also, the "entertainment" aspects of the internet cross the boundaries on one side to become "education" and on another, to become "social interactions."
TOPIC 5. SOCIAL RELATIONSHIPS--THE INTERNET IS CREATING NEW SOCIAL AND SUPPORT GROUPS, AVAILABLE TO ALL HOME SUBSCRIBERS TO EMAIL SERVICES.
- INTERNET USE ACTUALLY STRENGTHENS FAMILY VALUES. Though long associated with asocial "techies" and easy access to pornography, the Internet actually strengthens family values and social life, according to ActivMedia, Inc. Internet users polled in ActivMedia's FutureScapes study ( http://www.activmedia.com/f_complete.html ) report fewer bar visits (20% said this decreased a lot, only 4% said it increased), better family relationships and improved ability to find and communicate with friends because of the Internet.
- INSTEAD, THESE LEADING EDGE CONSUMERS SPEND MORE TIME COMMUNICATING. A dramatic 57% say the 'Net has had a "very positive" effect on relationships with distant family and friends. Over half find communicating personal feelings easier online. Most report the 'Net has helped them meet people with similar interests. One in five use the 'Net to seek potential partners. Single adults, in particular, find it effective for meeting dates. ( http://www.activmedia.com/f_complete.html )
- LISTSERVS AND OTHER FORMS OF NEWSGROUPS HAVE CREATED ONLINE NETWORKS for every conceivable social group. The AltaVista survey which showed over 14,000 news groups in 1996 ( http://www.ross.net/webhints/internet_growth.html), reveals the need people have for finding and communicating with likeminded others. There are a large number of disability-related and/or health-related groups, for example, and its members agree that they would rarely have the opportunity to discuss their personal lives, needs, hopes and aspirations with each other except online.
- ONLINE LISTS AND USER GROUPS CAN BE LIFELINES FOR PEOPLE with severe emotional or physical problems. Email is a relatively neutral medium, although some email discussions can heat up to the point where fellow listers just delete letters from certain members. But on the whole, it allows people to talk fairly freely about problems, and to discover that others on the list have confronted, solved, or are still struggling with the same issues. Close friendships may develop over long distances, and people have opportunity, unusual in our urban environments, to support and care for each other and receive care from the group.
- UNLIKE THE TELEPHONE OR IN-PERSON ENCOUNTERS, THE INTERNET IS ALWAYS AVAILABLE AT A CONVENIENT TIME. The 24-hour, 7-day-a-week availability of the internet allows each member of a social group to contribute to the general conversation at times or speeds convenient to himself. This again allows the blossoming of social relationships for which many would have little time in other situations. The internet is even bringing back the old-fashioned skill and desire for letter-writing, as carefully thought-out epistles, articles, poems, and objects d'art are all lovingly shared among friends. At least some of the over 20 hours per week spent by 1/5 of all net users is spent on email correspondence of this sort.
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