There can be no doubt that computers and associated technologies have meant that huge quantities of data are available to students. Access to the world wide web (WEB), Internet, CD-ROM and other systems while students or other interested people are in a library or even at home means that there is enough reading material to last everyone several thousand lifetimes. Sophisticated mechanisms and systems are easily available to search all these sources of electronic data (e.g. NET SEARCH [HREF 3]).
However there is considerable doubt that this availability is necessarily always an advantage. Talbott (1995, p 195-212) warns that much of the data is dangerous and may lead to flame wars, weird impersonations, pornographic commerce, and Net psychoses.
Schrage (in Anon, 1993) argues that the computer and modern communication technology has caused a new form of paranoia. This paranoia stems from the belief that somewhere in the vast mountain of data available in private and commercial databases and other information sources is exactly the item of data needed - but this data will never be found.
T.S. Eliot even warns of the danger of too much information, decades before the computer made it all so easily available:
The endless cycle of ideas and action,
Endless invention, endless experiment,
Brings knowledge of motion, but not of stillness;
Knowledge of speech, but not of silence;
Knowledge of words, and ignorance of the Word.
Where is the Life we have lost in living?
Where is the wisdom we have lost in knowledge?
Where is the knowledge we have lost in information?
(Choruses from the Rock)
However simply acquiring or accessing data must be only a first step. If the process stops there, productivity will drop, communication costs will rise dramatically and other problems will quickly destroy any advantage the WEB may have provided as readers search for something useful.
Schrage (op cit) notes that you could only consider the computer a data accessing machine if you also consider the motor vehicle simply as a petrol using machine! While a motor vehicle does consume petrol, it is more important to realise that the motor vehicle was responsible for the creation of new communities and relationships like the suburbs and the shopping mall. Similarly, the computer, and its related technology, must find new relationships with data and users.
This paper will argue that the equivalent of the new community provided by the motor vehicle is the network of data and information linkages made possible by the WEB. The focus of the paper is a set of WEB-based course materials for an undergraduate university course. Particular emphasis is placed on the design of linkages and the creation of a "web" of concepts and information. Independent interviews and WEB-server statistics monitored student response to this approach.
Arthur (1990) and Green (1992) contend that organised data is information; meaningful information is knowledge; knowledge connected to other knowledge is intelligence and, with experience, intelligence leads to wisdom and ultimately action. Phillips (1990) divides information into words, numbers and raw data and claims that knowledge is an association between pieces of information, while intelligence operates on information and knowledge, and wisdom incorporates philosophical insight.
Data accessed by computers can be transformed into "information" (i.e. data organised in a useful form) by selecting, sorting and linking the relevant data to allow patterns to be found (Brack and Trevitt 1995). Simple programs are available to select and sort these data, however the linking of relevant data is particularly difficult yet important . Riddle et al (1995) note that authors of electronic educational material must take on the responsibility of not only providing references (selecting) but also presenting a structure, and developing appropriate links between the pieces of information. But they warn that considerable thinking and design must go into this activity.
When information is used for problem solving, data linkages must enhance the ability to concentrate on some aspects of the situation without isolation from the big picture. Wertheimer (1959) states that the essence of successful problem-solving behaviour is being able to see the overall structure of the problem:
"A certain region in the field becomes crucial, is focused; but it does not become isolated. A new, deeper structural view of the situation develops, involving changes in functional meaning, the grouping, etc. of the items. Directed by what is required by the structure of a situation for a crucial region, one is lead to a reasonable prediction, which like the other parts of the structure, calls for verification, direct or indirect. Two directions are involved: getting a whole consistent picture, and seeing what the structure of the whole requires for the parts." (p 212).Unfortunately most of the hype about WEB-based resources includes few comments on linking. Current literature concentrates on the quantity, speed and potential interactivity of WEB materials and contains little about the importance bringing ideas together in enhancing a learning experience. For example, three of the five papers presented to the AusWeb 95 conference in the conference track Education (with a Science flavour) do not mention links and only list the advantages of WEB materials as the ease of global distribution, potential for interactivity, and freedom from paper copies (Mak, 1995; Omari and Brogan, 1995; Palmer et al, 1995).
The remaining two papers, Martin (1995) and Riddle et al (1995), do mention the creation of links within WEB documents, but mainly to warn against poor development that will leave a reader "lost". Martin (1995) suggests that WEB documents should be designed so that they are still useful even when the linkages are "broken" during printing.
It is my belief that the ease and power of designing and using links between information is what makes the WEB unique and powerful. The WEB-based resources for the Forest Mensuration course were developed in context of this belief.
Forest Mensuration is a compulsory unit for B.Sc. (forestry) students. Forest Mensuration may be defined as
the art and science of measuring the number, size, shape, location and change or growth of populations in a forest (with particular attention to trees).
It is impossible to "accurately" measure anything in the natural world - the best possibility is to narrow down a range within which the "true" measurement will lie. For example, it would be impossible to measure the circumference of a tree at any given height because of the irregular shape of the tree [HREF 4] and the inherent fractal nature of many natural objects [HREF 5]. The usual approach therefore is to assume that the tree "approximates" a regular shape, eg a circle or ellipse, and make some measurement relative to this shape at a nominated scale. The accuracy of our result will depend on how closely the true shape approximates the assumed shape.
Although some time is devoted to technical training in the use of the instruments and technologies commonly used in measurement, the majority of the mensuration course is based on developing an understanding of the philosophy behind natural resource measurement. This philosophy is worked out in the development of a general methodology:
The same steps are followed during the course using different forest population parameters and different technologies for measurement. The reiteration of the process in different circumstances hopefully reinforces the learning of the students. Each iteration builds on what is known through what else needs to be known. I have tried to develop the course resources in the same fashion
Prior to 1994, the resources for the Forest Mensuration course included text, graphics and photographs. The text was written in Word 5.1 over a number of years. This text was traditonally updated, printed and sold at the beginning of each year to students as a "course reading brick" of four volumes - about 360 pages. Some figures were included in the reading brick, but the majority of the graphics and the photographs were usually only shown during lectures.
In 1994 the Word documents were broken down into approximately 100 small files that contained only one or two concepts. These files were converted into HTML format by either pasting into HTML Editor [Copyright Rick Giles, 1994] or using the HTML template available for Word-for-Windows [Copyright Microsoft Corporation, 1982-94]. Graphics and photographs were either redrawn or scanned and converted into GIF format using GraphicConverter [Copyright Thorsten Lemke, 92-94]
Animations of key concepts were also developed and added to take advantage of the opportunity to use movement and sound in information presentation.
All the data files were placed on a WEB-server which the students could access using Netscape [Copyright Netscape Communications Corporation, 1996] from any University computer.
The files were linked in two ways:
Structural linkages were defined as links which allow readers to quickly access the index, the author (via e-mail), help options, copyright information and other administrative information. These structural links also point to potential viewpoints of the information:
There are no "next page" or "next topic" structural links. The next link is determined by student interest from the opportunities provided by the knowledge-based links.
The knowledge-based links create a web of interaction between files. Each file is linked "backward" to the concepts that were required before this new concept could be understood, and "forward" to the new concepts that the reader could potentially understand once the current concept was mastered. The backward and forward links equate to:
Knowing this, I can understand the current information and therefore I can learn or apply the following.
Thus, the knowledge-based links allows a reader to enter any file and create his / her own path through the concepts and information. The path is not fixed, but changes as the reader's interest changes (e.g. wants to concentrate on one "learn the following") and as prior knowledge and assumptions are understood. The facility for links to change colour when read is important for readers to plan their new paths through the information. The benefits of the knowledge-based links are lost when the materials are printed.
The development of these knowledge-based links was the hardest part of the development process. I could not devolve this responsibility to my technical support staff because it was only my experience and training in the field that allowed me to make good and useful links. A mechanical approach (e.g. always link the first occurrence of the word "error" back to the ERROR.HTM tag) would not add much to the exploration process that I hoped to students would use. As far as possible, I tried to invoke the problem-solving approach of Wertheimer (1959) and design links to set the information in context while allowing the reader to choose what aspect to follow.
In 1995, students were given a single afternoon practical demonstration and exercise on the use of Netscape and the extent and range of resources available. No paper hand-outs or reading bricks were produced for this class, although access to the previous year's reading brick was provided through the library.
Student use of the electronic resources and library paper resources were monitored throughout the semester by an automatic WEB statistics program, records of library loans and focus group interviews. An independent questionnaire was completed by students at the end of semester.
Students used the main entry points to the WEB resources frequently and regularly. Figure 1 shows spikes of usage occurred immediately before mid-semester and final examinations (during the 33rd and 45th week of 1995) but also that use continued even throughout the two week semester lecture break. In contrast, the paper copies of the reading brick were only borrowed on 14 occasions (of two hours each) over the semester period.
Figure 1: Access statistics for the main entry pages to the WEB resources.
The results from the end of year questionnaire indicated that the students were very happy with the resources and form of presentation (Table 1).
| Rating | Organisation and structure of course and material | Teaching and Learning methods | Stimulation of interest in subject matter | Quality of support materials |
| Very Poor | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Unsatisfactory | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Borderline | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Satisfactory | 0 | 0 | 13.6 | 0 |
| Good | 4.5 | 4.5 | 45.4 | 18.1 |
| Very Good | 31.8 | 45.4 | 31.8 | 31.8 |
| Outstanding | 63.6 | 50 | 9.09 | 50 |
Table 1: Percentage of class (25 students, 92% response rate) ranking the various course components.
Selected comments from the focus group interviews (Table 2) also suggest that the students were very happy with the linked arrangement of the electronic resources. They used the links in a variety of ways depending on their interest and prior knowledge.
| Students traced a unique path through the material, [in effect creating] a customised version of their text. |
| There is an 'ease' in reading the electronic resources because of the small 'chunks'. Students reported navigating to a topic "and it is maybe two pages, so you just read it - easy". This contrasted with a traditional printed text which "was daunting, there's just too many pages!" |
| When students wanted information about a topic, they would do a search in the electronic resources and usually gain access to a "couple of pages" of information, background etc. |
| Students reported using the range of navigation structures available to them. Some reported "browsing" the material in a kind of personal "familiarisation" exercise using the links, concept map and table of contents. |
| You can jump around the links if you are interested. "Depends on the subject ... if it something like methods you click to explore more ... or ignore it if you already know enough about that." "Always some [links] that you haven't used by the end." |
| Students reported no navigation problems within the Forest Mensuration pages. They felt they controlled their movement. Browsing outside the Mensuration pages often lead to a "loss of concentration" - information might take too long to download and probably wasn't very relevant anyway. |
| One student commented that "its alright if you do get lost, you just wander around and bump into interesting things.", [the links are set up so that] "...there is always something relevant to what you are doing anyhow." |
| Students had a perception of greater control and focus as they used the electronic resources (as compared to traditional printed material). They could follow what they were interested. |
| Students "are in charge of own learning. WEB [links] give control over what you learn. it is concentrated with blue bits (link identifiers). You can chose them if you want to." A printed book however is all at the same level of detail and you don't know what to focus on. |
Table 2: Selected student comment summaries on their use of the WEB resources (with special emphasis on the structure and linking). Unless noted, these comments are not quotes, but summaries by the independent interviewer.
The above results indicate that students were engaged in deep learning:
Deep learning is motivated by a desire to understand whatever is being studied, and is characterised by a tendency to penetrate the subject matter, explore and integrate the knowledge gained into one's larger field of knowledge.
Students were accessing the material even when they were not attempting to meet exam or other tests (Figure 1), as well as expressing a desire to follow their own interests (Table 2). Students also commented on the value of the WEB for many of the other benefits perceived by Mak, 1995; Omari and Brogan, 1995; and Palmer et al, 1995.
Many benefits have been postulated for WEB-based educational resources. However, it is my belief that the most significant aspect of the WEB-based materials has received relatively little attention. Well-designed links enable readers to explore the information in a manner which is relevant and useful to them at the time of their reading. Well designed links based on the author's knowledge of what is important to know and why - not just structural links - will provide an opportunity for deep learning.
I will conclude this paper with a quotation from one student interview. She stated that the WEB-based resources in Forest Mensuration were a great success for her because there was:
"...always more happening, more to learn, so many avenues and new discoveries."
Authors of WEB-based resources must ensure that these avenues are provided in the links and that learning remains a happening discovery!
I would like to acknowledge the Developers in Residence at the A.N.U. - Matthew Barrett and Craig Ashurst - for their roles in the student interviews. I would also like to thank the students in the 1995 Forest Mensuration course for their participation and willingness to contribute to the developments outlined in this paper.
Annon (1993) Information Paranoia. Your Computer. April 1993: 16-18.
Arthur, J.L. (1990) UNIX (tm) Shell Programming. 2nd Edition. John Wiley and Sons.
Brack, C.L. and A.C.F. Trevitt (1995) Accessing the data to create the knowledge: a case study from forestry. IPCT 3(1):1-9. [http://www.helsinki.fi/science/optek/BRACK.3N1]
Green, D. (1992) Database: from data to information to knowledge to wisdom to action. In Learning with computers: Issues and applications in New Zealand. Lai and McMillan.
Mak, S (1995) Developing a self-access and self-paced learning aid for teaching Statistics. Procedings of AusWeb conference 30 April to 2 May Ballina, New South Wales, Australia. Paper number: AW01-01 [http://www.scu.edu.au/ausweb95/papers/education1/mak/]
Martin, T. (1995) The Development of interactive WWW courseware for students of Engineering and Technology at Deakin University. Paper number: Procedings of AusWeb conference 30 April to 2 May Ballina, New South Wales, Australia. AW01-05 [http://www.scu.edu.au/ausweb95/papers/education1/martin/]
Omari, A and M. Brogan. (1995) New Directions in courseware delivery - Multimedia, CDROM and the Internet. Procedings of AusWeb conference 30 April to 2 May Ballina, New South Wales, Australia. Paper number: AW01-02 [http://www.scu.edu.au/ausweb95/papers/education1/omari/]
Palmer, T.E.A., P.H.V. Cumpston and R.D.M. Jones (1995) Care and feeding of an Anaesthetic URL. Procedings of AusWeb conference 30 April to 2 May Ballina, New South Wales, Australia. Paper number: AW01-04 [http://www.scu.edu.au/ausweb95/papers/education1/palmer/]
Phillips, D.E. (1990) Human communications behaviour and information processing technology. In Information literacies for the twenty-first century. V.P. Blake and R. Tjoumas (eds). Boston M.A. pp 25-46.
Riddle, M., D. Pearce, Jon M., Nott, Michael W. (1995) The WWW - Opportunities for an Integrated Approach to Teaching and Research in Science Procedings of AusWeb conference 30 April to 2 May Ballina, New South Wales, Australia. Paper number: AW01-03. [http://www.scu.edu.au/ausweb95/papers/education1/riddle/]
Talbott, S.L. (1995) The Future Does Not Compute. 1st Edition May 1995. ISBN: 1-56592-085-6, 502 pages [http://www.ora.com/gnn/bus/ora/item/future.html]
Wertheimer, M. (1959). Productive Thinking (Enlarged Ed.). New York:Harper & Row
[HREF 1] http://online.anu.edu.au/Forestry/mensuration/AUTHOR.HTM Personal page for C.L. Brack
[HREF 2] http://online.anu.edu.au/Forestry/home.html Home Page for Forestry Department, A.N.U.
[HREF 3] http://home.mcom.com/home/internet-search.html An example search system for the WEB.
[HREF 4] http://online.anu.edu.au/Forestry/mensuration/DBHOB.HTM Course resource page describing the problems with measuring tree dimensions.
[HREF 5] http://online.anu.edu.au/Forestry/mensuration/FRACTAL1.HTM Course resource page outlining the idea of fractals.
[HREF 6] http://online.anu.edu.au/Forestry/mensuration/INDEX.HTM Subject index for the Forest Mensuration resources
[HREF 7] http://online.anu.edu.au/Forestry/mensuration/OVERVIEW.HTM Concept map for the Forest Mensuration resources
[HREF 8] http://online.anu.edu.au/Forestry/mensuration/MENSHOME.HTM Book like view for the Forest Mensuration resources
| Pointers to Abstract and Conference Presentation | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Abstract | Conference Presentation | Interactive Version | Papers & posters in this theme | All Papers & posters | AusWeb96 Home Page |
AusWeb96 The Second Australian WorldWideWeb Conference ausweb96@scu.edu.au