Well designed Computer Aided Learning (CAL) and CD Rom packages are powerful tools which allow students to learn by doing. To their disadvantage, however, CAL packages lack tools which facilitate the communicative functions of learning (i.e where the learner can interact with another learner or the teacher or another group of learners). Use of such computer based learning in on-campus situations is generally restricted to single user or small group applications whereas students studying at a distance do not have these opportunities. In the words of Fleming (in Educational Technology and Training International) "Group work, problem based learning and self assessment are all key features of 'deep' learning but have not received sufficient attention from the designers of computer based independent learning systems." With the development of current Internet and WWW technologies it is now possible to design networked, interactive courseware which integrates some of the interactive functionalities of a CAL package as well as the electronic communication tools that are available for Internet users.
This paper describes the design and development of a prototype version of an interactive, on-line WWW package suitable for students of The School of Engineering and Technology at Deakin University [HREF 2] . The package is intended to allow learners to follow a self paced learning program in conjunction with other (traditional and non-traditional resources) distributed by the University. The package provides curriculum information, a list of and access to learning resources, a set of personal and group communication tools as well as an on-line multi-choice testing facility.
Students generally use the 'dial in' computer access facilities provided by Deakin University at Melbourne, Geelong and Warrnambool. These facilities allow students to communicate with teaching staff and other students using electronic mail and bulletin boards. Until recently students have used a VT100 or Terminal Emulation mode to connect to the system.
Recent technological developments now allow remote users to become part of the Internet itself. To take advantage of this new technology Deakin University is in the process of developing a common interface for all users (students and staff). This facility will incorporate GUI software for Apple Macintosh, IBM compatible and Unix computers. The facilities and technical support will be available to both on-campus and 'dial up' users. The interface will also allow users to send electronic mail as well as access all the functionality of the Internet. More specifically the interface will allow users to access the graphical environment of the WWW through 'browser' software such as Netscape.
The educational philosophy of the School of Engineering and Technology is to provide quality, flexible, and appropriate learning opportunities for students of engineering and technology wherever or whenever this study is undertaken. This may be on a university campus, at home or at the place of work. In light of the above, the development of this prototype package comes as a result of an investigation into the potentials and limitations of the WWW and the Internet to deliver on-line, interactive engineering education (Martin, 1995).
The School believes that modern computer and communications technologies can be used in conjunction with traditional print, video and audio based course materials to provide students with an innovative and integrated set of learning opportunities and as such the School has the objective to use these mediums wherever appropriate. Cambridge University [HREF 3] are also investigating an integrated approach to engineering education. Fundamental to this approach is the move to provide students with self paced learning opportunities. A self paced approach to study means that students who work full-time and study part time are able to fit their study patterns within and around their professional and private lives in a flexible manner. These students are then able to benefit from the timeliness and appropriateness of the courses the School offers.
Hypertext/Hypermedia is a cluster of interlinked nodes
Hypertext/hypermedia documents are a constructed using clusters of interlinked nodes (Nielsen, 1990) and this idea was applied during the design of this package. The layout and content of the node clusters was planned before the package was coded into HTML Learners enter the first node (the 'Home Page') and are then able to progressively jump to other nodes by virtue of the 'pathway' that has been created for them.
Use of navigational aids
In agreement with the principals outlined by (Martin, 1990) some simple navigational aids have been included into the package.
Every major node in less than 5 clicks
This scheme was intended to reduce the possibility of the learner becoming 'lost in space' and is based on the experiences of Butler (1995) who advises WWW developers to create courseware which is structured so that it is possible to reach every significant node in the package in no more than 5 mouse clicks.
Limited use of in-line graphics
Large graphics may be of nuisance value to a learner who is accessing the package by a modem link . The effectiveness of the graphic in terms of it's ability to enhance the understanding of the learner has to be weighed against the negative effect due to the time it takes for the image to download over the network.
Exclusion of large amounts of on-line text
It is not effective to have pages and pages of on-line text material for learners to read, unless of course the information is available for printing. In this package it was intended to have any large files containing text to be available for downloading by the ftp facility built in to the WWW browser, rather than for displaying on screen. For example, notes on the module are normally produced as an Microsoft Word document therefore it would seem more sensible to leave these files in an electronic archive and then link them into the package.
Creating Templates
Rather than creating a new HTML document at every node, a template was copied to each node before the node was given content. Using templates saves development time.
Making the documents valuable on-line as well as on paper
Based on the experiences of Butler (1995) HTML documents need to be structured so that the printed version is as useful as the on-line version when the user decides to get a hard copy.
These limitations imposed are somewhat compensated for by the availability of asynchronous electronic communications tools such as electronic mail, newsgroups and bulletin boards. Another compensating factor is that the WWW is a vast, seemingly alive and constantly evolving source of information which reaches to many corners of the globe. The WWW can also be accessed simultaneously by a large number of users by variety of connection methods (including remote computer/modem connection) and interfaces.
In order to design WWW courseware that is interactive the following tools from WWW developers 'toolkit' must be used:
Person to person and group communications tools such as electronic mail, news groups and bulletin boards
These provide electronic forums and communication channels by which the user (learner) can communicate with lecturers , other students, experienced engineers and researchers thus fulfilling some of the communicative functions of the learning process. WWW browsers now have built in facilities to access these Internet communication tools.
Common Gateway Interface (CGI) programs
CGI programming can be used in combination with fill out forms to implement interactive interfaces within the WWW browser. Users can input and submit data for processing by a WWW server or other Internet computer. This technique has been used in the package developed at the School of Engineering to implement a multi-choice testing and marking facility which allows students complete a multi choice test and have it marked immediately by the Deakin WWW. Carleton University [HREF 4] has also developed a CGI gateway which can be used to provide multi-choice testing on the WWW, however it does not use forms.
Fill-out Forms
As well as using forms in conjunction with CGI programs 'mailto:' forms can be used to implement on-line user feedback facilities within courseware. In the Deakin package users can at any time send feedback electronically to the designer or unit lecturer. User feedback is a vital ingredient in the evaluation, modification and refinement processes which occur during the development of educational materials.
Interactive images (or 'imagemaps')
Interactive images within WWW documents allow users to click on areas (or hot-spots) within an image. These hot-spots are linked to other WWW documents or images which are used to provide more information or clarification of the original image. Interactive maps are resource intensive both from the users perspective as well as the developers perspective. Imagemaps can take a long time to create download as well as download from Internet.
Within the Deakin package an interactive map has been used as a tool to provide a visual representation of the School of Engineering and Technology. The user is able to navigate through a virtual building to arrive at the virtual materials laboratory. Within the laboratory are the pieces of machinery (drills, presses, lathes etc) that the student would find if they were to physically attend the campus.
Viewer software
The URL (Universal Resource Locator) addressing system allows the designer to integrate many types of multimedia into on-line WWW courseware. WWW browsers are not yet capable of displaying the whole range of these data types thus viewer software such as movie players, - clients and audio file players need to be configured into the WWW browser. In the Deakin package a telnet viewer is used to provide an interface to the Tutorial and Electronic Access System (TEAS) at Deakin. TEAS is a menu driven system with functions such as electronic mail, library catalogue and bulletin boards.
More information on the above WWW technologies can be found at the WWW Developers Virtual Library [ HREF 5] .
The authentication (or password protection) is achieved by creating an access file in the same directory as the WWW documents that need to be restricted. Another file, the password file, contains the usernames and passwords of the people to which access is allowed.
In terms of educational development, publishing and distribution of course materials the advantages of using the electronic medium include the following:
The learners themselves will need to know how to install, connect and use a variety of hardware and software. They will be able to access on-line courseware at any time of the day or night, from a variety of locations (from home, from work, from another country or on a boat, train or bus). The learners too will need to be skilled at using electronic communications tools to keep in touch with teaching staff and other students.
The interactive, on-line package discussed in this paper uses the WWW and Internet technologies that were available at the time. In the mean time WWW technologies and HTML are being rapidly developed to provide faster, friendlier, more interactive, more powerful means of developing and distributing multimedia over the Internet to the campus, the home and the workplace. Every step of the way, however, model T Ford applications need to be developed, tested and refined in order for educational developers, teachers and students to understand what the consequences and implications of this technology really are.
Butler, B., "Using Mosaic to Support Classroom Based Education: An Experience Report" in IPCT (Interpersonal Computing and Technology): An Electronic Journal for the 21st Century, Vol.3, No.1, January 1995, pp 17-52.
Fleming, 1993, "Opinion: Paradigm Lost?", in Educational Technology and Training International, Vol.29, No. 4, p321.
Martin, T., 1995, "Using the Internet and the World Wide Web to Deliver Engineering Education", a paper to be presented at the International Congress of Engineering Deans and Industry Leaders, Monash University, Melbourne, Australia, June 1995.
Martin, J., 1990, "Hyperdocuments and How to Create Them", Prentice Hall, New Jersey, pp 81-83.
Minoli, D. and Keinath, R., 1994, "Distributed Multimedia Through Broadband Services", Artech House, Norwood, MA 02062, pp 52 - 53.
AusWeb95 The First Australian WorldWideWeb Conference