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Subject: Learning in Cyberspace
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This is a brief paper written for the _Proceedings_ of the annual
conference on technical writing sponsored by the Boston and
Northern New England chapters of the Society for Technical
Communication. The conference is held in March at the University 
of Massachusetts-Lowell.

LEARNING IN CYBERSPACE: ON-LINE EDUCATION AND THE TECHNICAL WRITER

INTRODUCTION

Distance learning (also known as distance education) has evolved
through the enabling technologies of computer and video
conferencing. This evolution has provided technical writers,
editors, and artists with the means to further their education
without the constraint of schedules or excess travel time to get
to class, with virtually nothing lost in the technological
transformation to the electronic classroom. 

This asynchronous method of attending graduate or undergraduate
school has long been popular among engineers and other
practitioners of technology; recently, however, other programs
have begun to attract professionals in other fields, and
technical communication is gradually gaining a foothold in this
mode of education. The Open University of the New York Institute
of Technology offers distance-learning courses in technical
documentation leading to an undergraduate degree. The on-line
program at the New School for Social Research regularly offers
both a software documentation course and an on-line writers'
workshop in its M.A. in Media Studies program. 

The director of the program, Paul Levinson, describes computer
conferencing and its potential: 

Electronic media quicken the flow of information, and therein
bring cyberspace into sharper dimension. Television distributes
the same images to an unlimited number of screens simultaneously,
but in a way that does not allow interaction or response from the
receivers (this is McLuhan's global village). Computer networks
add the crucial component of interactivity, and encourage
creation and transmission as well as reception of text from all
members of an on-line community.  McLuhan's notion of "acoustic
space" and Hiltz's "virtual classrooms" construct are early
theoretical attempts to describe and analyze cyberspace
environments which are still in their infancy, and have yet to
receive comprehensive study and full theoretical explanation.(1) 

The writers' workshop specifically addresses peer review and
commentary on students' work, whether fiction, poetry,
journalism, or technical documentation. 

MISCONCEPTIONS ABOUT DISTANCE LEARNING

In this context, distance learning is by no means "education by
matchbook." Locksmithing and gun repair do not figure heavily in
this realm; however, distance learning must overcome cultural
obstacles and obstinacies to achieve its potential. That this
paper is presented testifies to its burgeoning acceptance among
more traditional educational methods. The more successful
distance learning programs, such as those at Pennsylvania State
University, the New School, and Rochester Institute of
Technology, are funded and run by traditional universities and
colleges. 

Another apocryphal notion is that on-line students tend to lose
the camaraderie they feel in a "traditional, in-person class." In
reality, students tend to develop closer associations through
computer conferencing. Such a method allows all to have an equal
voice, especially in on-line "cafes," where political and
socioeconomic debates tend to run high. This also benefits the
student in an on-line class: To compete and, in some cases, to
receive a passing grade a student may be required to participate
in on-line conferences; this forces the normally reticent student
out from the back of the electronic classroom. 

The on-line environment seems the most nearly appropriate forum
for the technical communicator to learn; in fact, collaborative
learning, like workgroups at a distance, fortifies the
communicator for just such a professional environment. Harasim
writes, "The on-line environment is particularly appropriate for
collaborative learning approaches which emphasise group
interaction. Much more than a technical device for exchanging
information, computer conferencing facilitates the sharing of
knowledge and understanding among members of a group who are not
working together at the same time or place. Computer conferencing
was developed expressly to facilitate the interactivity of group
communication."(2) 

Computer conferencing, then, can ease students into a communal
atmosphere that allows them to enter a class or discussion
whenever they choose. They are not bound by the synchronous
aspects of time and place. To some, this may seem an awkward way
of interacting, but students who have full-time occupations and
expect a semblance of family life (as well as responsibilities)
can appreciate the asynchronous way to class. 

Morten Flate Paulsen explains further: "In asynchronous
communication, the message is stored in the communication medium
until the receivers find it convenient to retrieve it.
Synchronous communication, on the other hand, is inflexible, but
allows people to communicate in real time, as they do face to
face or on the telephone. Scheduling of synchronous communication
varies in flexibility. A telephone conversation can be initiated
without any prior schedule, but a videoconference must usually be
scheduled months in advance."(3) 

EDUCATIONAL REQUIREMENTS

The requirements for on-line degree programs are essentially the
same for traditional programs: a high-school diploma for an
undergraduate program, and an undergraduate degree from an
accredited college or university for a graduate degree. Most
legitimate distance-learning programs have been accredited by one
of the six regional accrediting agencies. The prospective student
should be wary of a school that boasts of its "nontraditional"
method of instruction without proper accreditation (or candidacy
for accreditation). 

HARDWARE AND SOFTWARE REQUIREMENTS

For the most part, programs using computer-mediated conferencing
require at minimum a home personal computer with a modem and
communications software. Several schools can provide the
necessary hardware and software on loan or even for purchase. 

Programs may also require specific software packages to be used,
especially in the study of the course (spreadsheets or desktop
publishing, for example). Also, an institution may recommend a
specific communications package to ease the difficulty beginners
face in computer conferencing. RIT recommends PacerLink, a VT100
terminal-emulation program; however, an off-the-shelf package
like Procomm works adequately. The Electronic University has
specific hardware and software requirements. 

THE DISCIPLINE REQUIRED OF THE CYBERSTUDENT

Temptations abound in on-line academia; the simplicity of
"getting to" class can subvert the seriousness of this medium.
The asynchronous way of attending lectures and participating in
discourses can deceive the student that the electronic classroom
is somehow easier (i.e., less rigorous) than traditional methods.
The opposite is true. As every writer knows, self-discipline must
drive the student to achieve, even when work bears heavily on the
part-time student's shoulders. As with any worthwhile project,
the rewards befit the effort. 

ON-LINE EDUCATION AS A SUPPLEMENT TO DEGREE PROGRAMS

Many students enroll in distance-learning courses to fulfill
elective requirements, or to take courses not usually offered in
their own programs at other schools. Here accreditation proves
most valuable. Singular courses can help fill gaps in students
academic records, rounding out their educational vitae. The
courses, as might be expected, should be approved by the
students' advisors before enrollment. 

Technologies have enabled the student to transcend traditional
ways of attending class. Technical communicators, as conduits for
these technologies, become most appropriate candidates for
learning on-line, whether in the humanities or technical fields. 

REFERENCES

(1) Levinson, Paul, Ph.D., from an abstract on "Cyberspace and
the Globalization of Intellectual Circles," a talk presented at
the Boston Computer Society, December 6, 1989. 

(2) Harasim, Linda. "On-Line Education: A New Domain," from
Mindweave: Communication, Computers, and Distance Education,
Robin Mason and Anthony Kay, Eds. Oxford: Pergamon Press, 1989,
p.52. 

(3) Paulsen, Morten, Flate.  "The Hexagon Of Cooperative Freedom:
A Distance Education Theory Attuned to Computer Conferencing,"
from the monograph "From Bulletin Boards to Electronic
Universities: Distance Education, Computer-Mediated
Communication, and Online Education" (Paulsen 1992), and
excerpted in DEOSNEWS, The Distance Education Online
Symposium,Vol. 3, No. 2. ISSN 1062-9416. 1993. 

William Dubie, Technical Editor
Digital Equipment Corporation
Littleton, Massachusetts 01460

William Dubie will receive an M.A. in Media Studies in May from
the New School for Social Research on-line degree program. He is
also a student in the distance-learning program at the Rochester
Institute of Technology and a Lecturer in Technical
Communications at Northeastern University. 

William Dubie
dubie@tnpubs.enet.dec.com
Digital Equipment Corporation,
Littleton, Mass.

Standard disclaimer: These views don't necessarily
reflect those of Digital Equipment Corporation.
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