His point being that there are many voices and readings present in any single text, both those of the author, those of the reader and those unconsciously informing the production and reception of the text. While the texts are linear and prescriptive, the hypertexts are multidimensional and participatory. The very nature of narrative, of critical investigation of texts and of textual educational practice is set to change fundamentally under the impact of the Internet. So will the practices used to assess what has been learned. For example, university level education is being transformed by the hypertextual skills that students are bringing with them.
Essays arrive word processed, occasionally in electronic form.
There are spell checkers, syntax checkers and automated footnoting systems. CD-ROM searches can mean that lecturers find references unknown to them but clearly relevant to the title set. The problem of plagiarism will be amplified by cut and paste compilations from Internet sources and affordable document readers. One solution is not to worry about whose voice is heard in the essay. Instead, students could offer their own writing along with other sources composed with images, sounds and annotated links into an interactive hypertextual web.