When placed in this context, one can better understand why CAL has not made its mark on distance delivery systems and why, where it has surfaced, it has not been particularly well received.

Not surprisingly, it is a different kind of computerized application, one which does not replace existing instructional processes, which has attracted considerable attention from those involved in distance teaching: computer conferencing.

Computer Conferencing

Computer conferencing is the name given to an electronic network which enables individuals to communicate via computers in delayed asynchronic time either as a group, or between two individuals, or with a database. (For a detailed analysis of educational applications of computer conferencing, consult Kaye, 1987; and McCreary & Van Duren, 1987.)

In its simplest form, electronic mail (e-mail) has been used by distance educators to allow for speedy and effective two-way communication between an instructor and a student or between two students (Scriven, 1988), thereby facilitating the clarification of course-related problems, discussion between students, and communication in general. Kaye (1987) also reports on the use of e-mail between course manager and course tutors in order to permit rapid communication concerning difficulties encountered when offering a new BOU course.

Other academics (Harasim, 1986; Paulsen & Rekkedal, 1988) have reported on the use of computer conferencing as an integral teaching component of a distance education course. In these instances, the course tutors conduct electronic tutorials for students who have been assigned to them. At the British Open University, Kaye is experimenting with this model in the BOU's Introduction to Technology course. Bates (1986) finds this kind of communication most profitable, since it reassigns the primary importance of two-way communication to the teaching process. Gledhill and Dudley (1988) found that students who had difficulty participating in a real-time seminar felt more at ease in the electronic computer conference mode. Of equal significance are the many references in the literature to the fact that computer conferencing allows students to feel part of a group, the absence of which is considered by many educators to be a significant shortcoming of individualized home-study learning.

Since computer conferencing is considered a means to an end, a tool for communication rather than a piece of courseware, it suffers little from the problems associated with CAL. Costs are incurred, both in establishing the network and in supporting communication charges, but these need not, and indeed must not, be significant add-ons. One means of preventing additional operating costs may be for computer conferencing to be used as a replacement for other support systems such as telephone or in-person tutorials. The minimal requirements for hardware have led many institutions either to expect students to equip themselves or to arrange for inexpensive leasing. Insofar as communication charges are concerned, these are far from prohibitive and should be covered, according to institutional policy, either by the student or the teaching establishment.