Virtual university

Citation

Andrew, A.M. (1999), "Virtual university", Kybernetes, Vol. 28 No. 1. https://doi.org/10.1108/k.1999.06728aaa.008

Virtual university

Keywords Cybernetics, Education, Internet, Universities, VR

Abstract Comments on the Internet, giving details of new facilities and provisions that are of specific interest to systemists and cyberneticians. They include: Virtual university, Internet university.

Virtual university

The Internet obviously lends itself to something in the nature of a virtual university, or Internet university. In fact, both appellations are used in different quarters. The former is used in the context of a "Virtual university press" and an associated online "Virtual university journal". The journal is described as: "Unique refereed international journal focussing on lifelong learning" and at the time of writing, three issues have appeared. Lists of contents can be found at the site: http://www.openhouse.org.uk/virtual-university-press/vuj/archive.htm

For a few of the papers in the journal (to date, one paper in each of the first two issues), the full texts can be downloaded freely. The others are not available without charge, and can only be downloaded by subscribers who can insert a valid username and password. Details of how to subscribe are of course available from the site. The editorial of the latest issue has the interesting title: "The campus without walls", and two of the papers, although represented only by title at the website, have quite lengthy summaries in a contribution to the cyberspace-and-society discussion list associated with the UK Mailbase. The contribution, dated 18 August 98, is from Eric Sandeland and is entitled: "New virtual university articles".

Both of the articles are concerned with educational technology, one with "Teaching thinking" and the other with "The virtual class".

Teaching thinking

The full title of the paper is: "Teaching thinking is possible through information and communications technology", by J.M. Ewing, J.D. Dowling and N. Coutts. It is based on a project which was part of the UK Government Education Department's Superhighways Initiative (EDSI), and identifies some of the main areas for pupil learning, and teacher professional development, in the use of Information and Communications technologies (ICT).

The results are based on a sample of pupils and teachers in small rural schools in Scotland, at primary and secondary levels. The focus is on the "teaching thinking" aspect, and underlying issues are examined, bearing on theuse of ICT to provide a viable learning environment.

The virtual class ­ hyperreality

The full title of the second paper is: "The epistemology and heuristics of learning in a high technology environment: the virtual class", by Jim Sinclair. The concern here is with very advanced techniques for interactive learning. Attention is given to "hyperreality" as the next development beyond virtual reality.

Virtual reality depends on such devices as headmasks and datagloves to let the subject become immersed in a three-dimensional world simulation. Hyperreality is said to allow the mingling of virtual and real worlds, so that real and virtual objects co-exist in the perceived environment. It is claimed that software is becoming available that can be said to fulfil this aim. Needless to say, a high level of processing power is needed, even more than for VR.

Acknowledgement is made of ground-breaking work by Professor Terashima at Wasada University in Japan and Carnegie Mellon University. It is suggested that hyperreality will in time be accepted as the normal educational medium. Its status is likened to that of radio, which was seen as a startling innovation 100 years ago, but is now accepted as commonplace.

Internet research and development

The virtual university journal is maintained by an organisation called the Internet Research and Development Centre, of which details can be found at http://www.irdc.com/. It is a commercial setup which claims to "provide the complete Internet solution to organisations looking to establish a 'community of interest' presence on the World Wide Web." It can be commissioned to create a website specifically designed to meet the needs of the client's "virtual customers", whether the client is a commercial enterprise or an educational institution.

The IRDC offers much else besides designing the website, including staff training and the linking of the site to search engines, listservers, and other related sites. It is clearly a sizable organisation, since a listing of its team members is given, with no fewer than 33 entries.