Internet and Intranets

As we have seen in previous chapters, computers can be used for a variety of instructional activities. Until recently, educators have perceived the computer as a device that stands alone in the class room running selected software for students to use. With improvements in technology and telecommunication systems, however, it has become possible and viable to use computers to connect students to people and re sources outside of the classroom.

Once you connect computers in ways that enable people to communicate and share information, you have a network. Networks connect schools, homes, libraries, educational institutions, organizations, and businesses so that students, families, and professionals can access or share information instantly in the following ways:

• Exchange messages with one or more persons, nearly instantaneously, anywhere in the world that is linked to the network, using electronic mail (E-mail).

• Communicate with many people simultaneously (like a meeting), referred to as a listserv (note no "e").

• Get, or download, information (retrieving files, documents, data, computer programs, or images from other computer systems).

• Communicate one on one in real time in a written conversation, using specially designed text entry windows called chat rooms.

INTERNET

The Internet is a frequently changing collection of mil lions of computer networks serving tens of millions of people around the world. Any individual on the Internet can communicate with anyone else on the Internet. Users can access any information, regard less of the type of computer they have, because of stan dard protocols that allow all computers to communicate with each other. Most information is shared without charge except for whatever access fee is required to main tain an account with an Internet service provider (ISP) such as America Online (AOL), Prodigy, or any of the many local or community ISPs. Many businesses and most colleges and universities provide Internet accounts to their employees and faculty members at no charge.

The Internet forms the foundation of the information superhighway. This expanding network of cable, fibers, and telephone lines forms the physical structure of the electronic "universe" known as cyberspace, and delivers vast amounts of information directly to individuals at school, work, and home. Connecting with other computers requires a modem, a device that changes computer data into audio signals for transmission across telephone lines. Special communication software connects the com puter to a telecommunication service. When you make a connection to the Internet you enlist the help of four communication services: your computer, the ISP, the server (host computer), and the telecommunications net work (communication software and a modem and phone or cable modem). Your computer (the client) runs communications software. Your modem and communications software provide an open path between your computer and your ISP. The ISP provides you a link to the Internet.

Internet Services

The Internet connects thousands of computer networks worldwide. It provides users with several basic types of connection services:

• Electronic mail (e-mail) for person-to-person communication.

• A type of electronic, public bulletin board enabling a person to connect with a group interested in the same topic 

• Information search capabilities for accessing libraries and databases of information throughout the world

• Access to highly specialized computer programs not readily available to individuals 

• "Live" communication, allowing individuals on the Internet at the same time to "chat" or "talk" in real time, as quickly as they can type their messages

• Audio communication, allowing individuals with appropriate software to literally talk with each other as they would do over the telephone 

• Video-based communication, through software such as CU-SeeMe and NetMeeting, letting individ uals or small groups see and hear each other and show objects in real time

Internet Addresses

Each individual Internet user has a unique address. Ant Internet address contains three parts: the person's name or username (pseudonym), the computer network where they can be reached, and the type of organization they are a part of. For example the following are the address usually used :

Organization Abbreviations. 

commercial > com

educational > edu

government (U.S.) > gov

military (U.S.) > mil

service networks > net

nonprofit organization > org

International Abbreviations. Each country outside the United States has its own two-letter abbre viation that appears in place of the organization, as in the following examples:

Australia > au

Canada > ca 

Italy > it

Mexico > mx

Netherlands > nl

Internet Usage

Internet users can communicate with one another by participating in discussion groups, of which there are two types: newsgroups (sometimes called chat groups or conferences) and mailing lists (also called listservs). Both newsgroups and mailing lists are typically dedicated to a single subject, and allow you to read comments, ques tions, and answers of others on the same subject and to post comments, questions, and answers of your own.

The potential for educational applications of the In ternet is growing. Students no longer only have access to textbooks, but to content materials located far be yond the walls of the school building. You and your stu dents can obtain information housed in multiple, distant, and inaccessible libraries around the world! Re sources once beyond the dreams of all but the most af fluent are potentially available to everyone. Thus, increasing numbers of schools are getting "wired" with networking services such as AOL and EdtrCom.

Students and teachers can enhance classroom learning by accessing information from an array of sources (data bases, libraries, special interest groups), communicating via computer with other students or with experts in a particu lar field of study, and exchanging data. Activities such as those conducted by National Geographic make it possible for students and teachers alike to reap the benefits of con necting into a national network of students, teachers, and scientists to investigate a variety of topics (Figure 11.3).

Students can engage in whole-course instruction on the Web. Virtual high schools and colleges are appearing, making programs of study available to students in remote locations. Students can take advance placement classes from other high schools or from colleges and universities anywhere in the world. Undergraduate and graduate collegiate study available on the Web makes it possible for students in any location the chance to seek their preferred field of study without leaving home or employment obligations. There are many software ap plications (e.g., WebCT) that provide both ease of access to the instruction and resources for the instructor and students for successful study online. The opportunities for online study expand daily.

Internet Language

The Internet has acquired its own vocabulary of hun dreds of terms. Don't attempt to memorize them! Your will learn them as you use and discuss them. In addition, they are constantly changing, with new terms added. since this text was published! To introduce yourself to some of the terms, see "Close-Up: Network Terms," or look on the Internet at http://www.whatis.com.

For additional information on this topic, go to the Web Links module in Chapter 11 of the Companion Website (http://www.prenhall.com/heinich).

WORLD WIDE WEB: ACCESS TO THE INTERNET

The World Wide Web (the Web) is not separate from the Internet. Instead it rides on top of it, in the same way that an application such as PowerPoint runs on top of an operating system such as Windows, The Web is a series of communications protocols between client and server. These protocols present information in documents that can be linked to other documents and stored on computers throughout the Internet. The Web protocol, called hypertext transfer protocol (HTTP), ensures compatibility before transferring information. The Web is comprised of documents called Web pages. Each individual collection of pages is called a website. Users access a website by en tering its address or uniform resource locator (URL) into their browser.

The Web is basically a file formatting standard and a set of programs (browsers and helpers) that can read Hypertext Markup Language (HTML), a set of for marting commands, and other similar formatting languages. You can think of the Web as a global system that allows you to access files stored on all the machines con nected via the Internet.

The Web represents a major advance in information retrieval by making the process quick, cheap, efficient, and graphical. Its connections to data sources allow you to easily find related information. The Web leads you to information from around the world stored on countless different computers and multiple databases without your being aware that you are moving from one to an other. Your browser automatically contacts the appropriate computer to get the information you need.

INTRANET

Intranets are internal networks for companies or schools. Intranets are a way of increasing communication, collaboration, and information dissemination within com panies or schools where divisions, departments, and workgroups each use a different computer platform (hardware and/or operating system), or where users work in geographically distant locations. Users access the intranet either directly or by dialing into the network. Even though an intranet may be connected to a larger network (the Internet, for example) a software package called a firewall prevents external users from accessing the internal network, while allowing internal users to access external networks. 

When using an intranet, it is important that it tie in with the structure, high-level business needs, and infor mation technology of the organization. Using good in structional design principles is important. Developing an intranet is not a one-person project. An instructional designer will likely work in conjunction with managers, subject matter experts, and computer systems special ists, among others. Establishing guidelines for designing, implementing, and modifying materials on the intranet should be a team effort.

WIDE AREA NETWORK (WAND

Computer networks that extend beyond the walls of a room or building are called wide area networks (WANs). A WAN connects a number of computers within a single institution and beyond with one another bulletin board systems, and information resources, such as databases and libraries. A bulletin board posts a common pool of information and messages for a partic ular interest group. Users dial in to review messages and to leave messages for others. The location of the com puter is not an issue because telephone lines can link any computer to the central computer system that houses the teleconferencing service. Barring technical malfunctions, the service is available 24 hours a day, every day of the year, at home or at work, thus making it possible for users to access information at their convenience.

LOCAL AREA NETWORK (LAN) 

A local area network (LAN) connects computers within a limited area, normally a building, office, or laboratory. 

A LAN relies on a centralized computer called a file server that "serves" all other computers connected to it via special wiring. A computer lab is often a LAN be cause all the computers in the lab are connected to a sin gle file server, which is usually tucked away in a closet or other out-of-the-way space. Whole buildings can also be connected to a local area network. A single computer, generally located in the office or media center, can serve as an entire school's file server. Through a LAN, all of the classrooms in a school can have access to the school's collection of software.

USING THE ASSURE MODEL WITH NETWORK RESOURCES

As with other media and technology, the ASSURE model introduced in Chapter 3 is helpful in preparing lessons incorporating the use of computer networks, especially the Internet.

Analyze Learners

Lesson development begins by identifying the audience. In most cases the audience will be the students class(es).

State Objectives

Before stating specific objectives, you may wish to ex plore how you want students to use the network (to ac cess information? to communicate with other students, professionals, or content experts?). You will also want to consider the content available on the network your students will be using. Sometimes it is more appropriate to state specific objectives after you have identified poten tial materials and resources.

Select Methods, Media, and Materials

Selecting materials often begins by "surfing" the Web. You can locate websites on a specific subject matter by using a search engine such as Google, Alta Vista, Web Crawler, or Yahoo! You should use more than one search engine because different engines will locate different in formation and sources; no one engine looks at every thing. You should not base your lesson on data obtained from a single source-even a source as rich as the Inter net. Don't forget to explore books, magazine articles, and other media (slides, videotapes, etc.). You can, iron ically enough, identify many of these materials through online searches.

Utilize Media and Materials

When you assign students to use computer networks, you may wish to provide them the e-mail addresses of individuals they may want to contact, a list of selected websites, and a brief guide to using their browser (such as the Quick Reference Guide for Netscape Navigator).

You may want to expand learning opportunities outside formal classroom time. The length of the lesson will depend on the scope of materials available, manner of presentation, and available time. When using the Internet, provide time for students to search for relevant materials. If the computers are not in your classroom, allocate additional time for students to get to the computers housed in the computer lab, media center, or multimedia classroom, and to return to the classroom.

Require Learner Participation

Get the students involved in finding the necessary infor mation and materials and/or making contact with individuals. Don't tell them exactly where to find the resources or individuals. The procen of searching may be one of their most important outcomes, especially for early lessons us ing computer networks. Ask students to document (log) their search strategies, progress, and outcomes and either present their results to the class or turn in a report to you.

Evaluate and Revise

If you require students to log their search strategies, progress, and outcomes, you may use this documentation for evaluation along with presentations, reports, and other assessment procedures. As with all media-and technology-based lessons, you may choose to revise your lesson plan after you have used it once. In addition, computer networks and sites change frequently, so you may be forced to change your lesson before offering it again. Be sure to check the most important sites and access procedures just prior to presenting your lesson.