From listproc@pulsar.acast.nova.edu Mon Oct 13 18:31:32 1997 Date: Wed, 16 Jul 1997 08:13:20 -0400 From: listproc@pulsar.acast.nova.edu To: aedmod@fcae.acast.nova.edu Subject: GET HORIZONS VOL3N1 (1/1) Archive HORIZONS, file vol3n1. Part 1/1, total size 55018 bytes: ------------------------------ Cut here ------------------------------ *************************************************************************** *************************************************************************** **************************** **************************** ********************* ********************* *************** *************** ************ *********** ******** ******** ****** ****** **** NEW HORIZONS IN ADULT EDUCATION **** *** *** ** ** *************************************************************************** Volume 3 Number 1 Fall 1989 *************************************************************************** EDITORS Michael Erskine Ehringhaus. . . . . . . Syracuse University Jane M. Hugo. . . . . . . . . . . . . . Syracuse University Linda Newell. . . . . . . . . . . . . . Syracuse University EDITORIAL BOARD Judith Gwinn Adrian . . . . . . . . . . University of Wisconsin Sue Collard . . . . . . . . . . . . . . University of British Columbia Ted Finlayson-Schueler. . . . . . . . . Syracuse University Tim Murrell . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Pennsylvania State University Richard Novak . . . . . . . . . . . . . Rutgers University Judith Potter . . . . . . . . . . . . . Ontario Institute for Studies in Education David Price . . . . . . . . . . . . . . University of Missouri - Columbia Lowell Roberts. . . . . . . . . . . . . SUNY Empire State College Alice Schawo. . . . . . . . . . . . . . University of Missouri - Columbia Priscilla Spencer . . . . . . . . . . . Columbia University Joyce Stalker . . . . . . . . . . . . . University of British Columbia Tom Sudduth . . . . . . . . . . . . . . University of Wyoming Butch Wilson. . . . . . . . . . . . . . University of Georgia GUEST REVIEWERS John Burns. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Syracuse University John Fiset. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Syracuse University Laurel Mulvihill. . . . . . . . . . . . Syracuse University Mary Jane Nathan. . . . . . . . . . . . Syracuse University Gene Roche. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Syracuse University ___________________________________________________________________________ NEW HORIZONS IN ADULT EDUCATION is a refereed journal published by the Syracuse University Kellogg Project. The journal is managed by graduate students at Syracuse University in cooperation with graduate students throughout Canada and the United States and is electronically transmitted via the Adult Education Network (AEDNET), accessible through BITNET. There is no cost for NEW HORIZONS IN ADULT EDUCATION; it is sent to all subscribers of AEDNET. All correspondence concerning change of address or membership in AEDNET should be addressed to AEDNET, Syracuse University Kellogg Project, 113 Euclid Avenue, Syracuse, New York 13244-4160. Send all article submissions to the editor at the above address or in ASCII through BITNET (HORIZONS@SUVM). ___________________________________________________________________________ N E W H O R I Z O N S IN A D U L T E D U C A T I O N CONTENTS Volume 3, Number 12/89, Fall 1989 A R T I C L E Comparison Of Computer And Audio Teleconferencing: One Instructor's View Norman Coombs. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1 B O O K R E V I E W Intellectual Suppression: Australian Case Histories, Analysis and Responses Roger Boshier. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8 F R O M T H E E D I T O R S' D E S K NEW HORIZONS IN ADULT EDUCATION: A Readership Survey Report Michael Erskine Ehringhaus . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .12 F O R Y O U R I N F O R M A T I O N Syracuse University Adult and Continuing Education Research Collection: A Description . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .15 E D I T O R I A L P O L I C Y ___________________________________________________________________________ NEW HORIZONS IN ADULT EDUCATION Volume 3, Number 12/89, Fall 1989 ******* DR. NORMAN COOMBS is a professor of history at Rochester ******* ******* Institute of Technology, Rochester, NY (Email Address: ******* ******* NRCGSH@RITVAX) ******* *************** ********* COMPARISON OF COMPUTER AND AUDIO TELECONFERENCING: ONE INSTRUCTOR'S VIEW by Norman Coombs ABSTRACT: Telecommunications has opened up the possibility of personal and group communications for distance education. Both computer and audio conferencing permit the introduction of class discussions without the group needing to meet face to face. Phone calls and electronic mail can replace personal office visits. The distance learner can now have almost all the means of contact and interaction as the student on campus. Adult learners are often distant learners, and these enhancements have special meaning for adult education. The following discussion compares the use of computer and audio conferencing with distant adult students. There are a variety of systems for both computer and audio interaction. This article discusses a comparison of these two particular systems and also a comparison of the teaching styles, within these two instructional mediums, of a particular instructor. The comparison is limited by these particularities, but it does point in the direction of the usefulness of these systems for enriching present distance education. Introduction The Rochester Institute of Technology (RIT) has been experimenting with ways to bring a more interactive component into the delivery of its telecourses, courses which are primarily aimed at an adult learning audience. Broadcast video is a one-way presentation, and the US mail is less than ideal for facilitating fast and easy interaction between student and instructor. Unless one rushes to meet mail pick-up schedules, sending a letter and getting a reply may take five to seven days. The telephone, of course, is easily accessible, but using it can lead to the frustrating game of telephone tag. Even with the use of answering machines, a teacher can return a call only to find that the student has a machine too. However, even when they function well, mail and phone only provide one-to- one communication, still leaving out the benefits of group interaction. RIT has purchased both audio and computer teleconferencing systems and introduced them into some of its telecourses in order to augment the courses with more group interaction. - 1 - page 2 / COOMBS Since 1986 I have been using a computer teleconference to conduct class discussions in a telecourse on Modern American History. This is a lower division course that fulfills the Institute's liberal arts history requirement. While it is part of the degree requirement, most of the students are enrolled in the College of Continuing Education (CCE) and are older and more mature than the typical undergraduate. In the fall of 1988 I conducted the class discussion for an upper division Black History class using a telephone conference. The course was provided for a satellite campus whose students were working adults returning for further education financed by their employers. There are variety of computer and audio conference systems, and each can be configured in many different ways. This means that making any kind of comparison between the two is, in fact, only a comparison of the particular configuration in which they were used. Therefore, a comparison has limited value because there are so many possible variables to consider. For this reason, the following is part discussion and part study based on (a) a personal reflection of my experiences with these two instructional systems and (b) a questionnaire given to students in two different classes. First, I describe the use of computer conferencing in teaching Modern American History. Second, I outline how audio conferencing facilitated class discussion in a course on Black History. Finally, from the professor's point of view, I compare these two experiences and attempt to draw some larger, more general, conclusions. Functioning Of Computer Conferencing At RIT Modern American History is a 4-credit course taught in the framework of a 10-week quarter. It is taught both in day school and through the College of Continuing Education. Most of the CCE students work in the greater Rochester area and take courses in the evening. Many have come to like telecourses as they reduce the time lost in commuting from home to work, to RIT, and back home again. However, many of the students miss the regular contact with their teacher as well as being able to learn from their peers through interaction. Computer conferencing can provide some of what is missing. The content of the course is delivered through text readings and watching broadcast video. Even when broadcast times are inconvenient, almost all students have access to a VCR. Not only can they work from home, but they can determine their own study schedule. Computer conferencing and electronic mail have been integrated into the delivery of the course and provide the missing interactivity. Because both are essentially asynchronous, they continue to leave the student in charge of setting his or her own work times. RIT has purchased Notes, a computer conference system produced by the Digital Equipment Corporation (DEC) and runs it on a DEC VAX mainframe computer. All RIT students have the right to obtain a free computer account on the RIT VAX system. Those students in the Modern America History course who have access to a personal computer (PC) at home or work can use a modem and phone line to connect to the RIT VAX and to use Notes to correspond with the teacher and fellow students. Those without the use of a PC have to commute to RIT to access the VAX, but they only need to do that once a week and can still select the time most convenient for them. page 3 / COOMBS Fortunately, I have easy access to the system both from a PC at work and from another at home. I look in on the conference many times every day. Usually, this only takes a minute or two at a time, but it means that I can respond to electronic mail (email) almost immediately and add my own contributions to the conference discussion quite easily. Even with a class of 40 students, I find I get to know people's names and something about their personalities better than those students I might have in a classroom. Interactivity Via Computer Conferencing In a computer conference everyone is perceived on a similar basis. The conference provides an unusually democratic setting, which is very interesting from the teacher's viewpoint. The relative anonymity of the conference also creates a surprising openness and frankness; students seem to share more freely and personally. In addition, the computer conference system provides a way to check on the students' understanding of the material and becomes an easy and natural means to relate that material to life and to share personal views and experiences. In this way, the material is less dry and academic. In order to check the quality of the learning experience in the course on modern history, I deliberately used many of the identical materials in a day class and administered to both groups--day course students and computer conference students--the identical multiple choice exams. Student grades in both sections were very similar. In fact, there was some evidence that the CCE teleconferencing students scored better. This may be explained by other factors than the delivery system alone. These CCE students, for instance, tended to be older and more mature. I do believe, however, that the computer component may frighten away students who are insecure and below average in certain basic skills. In any case, I am convinced that the technology functions well as an educational delivery system. Many of the students expressed their satisfaction with the course. One said he would never take another telecourse without the computer component. He valued the opportunity of comparing his progress with that of his peers. Others shared how much they valued being able to work at their own pace. Another man specifically noted that he liked a computer discussion because he could speak his mind more openly; apparently his friends had become tired of his reactionary views and stopped discussing issues with him. One of the few complaints, however, was from a young man who said the system would be good for someone with more self discipline than he had. In a questionnaire given to the first pilot group of students, the students said that they found the teacher very accessible. They rated teacher accessibility 4.8 on a 5-point scale. This contrasted to trying to locate teachers in their offices either with personal visits or by phoning. These students said they found sharing in a computer conference very easy and often less intimidating than sharing in a traditional classroom setting. In comparing computer conferencing to a face-to-face situation, they rated the teleconference class 4.2 on a 5-point scale. To my surprise, one student even commended me on my upbeat personality. Aside from the personal flattery, it is important to note that personality can be conveyed by text displayed on a computer monitor. The questionnaire asked which item contributed most to a sense of personal rapport, and electronic mail rated the highest. I found it easy--and not time consuming--to send very short, but frequent, mail to individuals. I tried to send a two- or three-line electronic mail message weekly to each member of the class. page 4 / COOMBS Another surprise benefit of the computer conferencing system was its ability to transcend the barriers of physical disabilities. One female student, for example, was deaf. Our instructional videos were captioned. In addition, because the classroom conversation is viewed on a computer screen, the discussion did not necessitate any interpreting. One complication, however, is the fact that I, the teacher, am totally blind. I use a PC and speech synthesizer. This system, though, provided perfect mainstreaming; our handicaps became invisible. This is not the place to discuss the barriers of physical disabilities in relation to computer conferences and distance education, but it is important to note certain technological adaptations and possibilities. Functioning Of Audio Conferencing The use of a telephone conference in teaching Black History was within a very different environment. RIT had a satellite campus 150 miles away. Students who were working for several companies near Jamestown, NY were also working for an engineering degree during the evenings. Some courses were taught by adjunct professors living in and near Jamestown, some classes were taught by RIT professors who commuted, and other classes were taught through various distance education technologies. The students did not have as much voice in selecting their courses as they would have liked; the course selection was often determined by which professor was willing to teach a course. Black History was not, however, a top selection for most of the class, a fact that created an extra challenge over and above that of teaching at a distance. The content of the course, like that of the telecourse, was acquired by the students through reading texts and watching videos. This time, however, the video was shown in class, which meant the students not only had to come to the Jamestown campus, they also lost any scheduling flexibility. The audio conference was designed so that the students were in one room in Jamestown while I was at the other end of the phone line in Rochester. This meant, therefore, that there was a fixed time for the class discussion. Both the students and I felt the discussion component was important. Because the course dealt with the Civil Rights Movement since World War II and contained considerable amounts of controversial material, it was natural to want to discuss the material, share opinions, and ask for further clarification on many of the issues. The videos and texts, by themselves, would have been inadequate to provide a meaningful learning experience. Using an audio conference system to lead a class discussion turned out to be one of the toughest teaching assignments I have undertaken. Leading a discussion always requires the ability to hold several strands of thought in one's mind simultaneously. The teacher has to remember the question asked and, at the same time, try to listen to the answer and see how well it relates to the question. Where an answer falls short, the teacher must quickly phrase another question to elicit additional information, remember where he or she wants to lead the general discussion, and, at the same time, plot how to get there. I found that, adding to this necessary complexity, the problems inherent in the technology pushed me to the limit. Physically, I had to handle the phone equipment, shuffle notes on my desk, and, at the same time, engage in the previously described mental balancing act. In a classroom, a period of silence while waiting for a student's response or while phrasing a question of my own is not distracting. However, I found silences on the phone upsetting. There had been occasions page 5 / COOMBS when we lost the telephone connection, so any period of silence made me fear that we had been disconnected again. This put pressure on me to respond quickly, and I found I became rattled when there were silences from the other end. The system we were using worked through a phone bridge that could handle several lines simultaneously. On occasion, a student would call our bridge from home instead of attending the class in Jamestown. Our system is half duplex, meaning that when one person speaks, the input from other phones is cut off. In other words, when I am speaking, I hear nothing from the classroom. On one hand, this reduced distractions. On the other hand, however, it left me with a feeling of powerlessness: I would wonder what the students were doing while I was talking. I had no way of knowing if they were quietly and attentively listening or if they were ignoring me and chatting with each other. Interactivity Via Audio Conferencing In terms of student responses to questions, the audio conference seemed stilted. When I asked a general question, there was no way for a student to indicate that he or she wanted to respond. Since raising a hand would serve little purpose, given the medium, I had to wait for someone to speak up. Students tended to be shy of responding in such an assertive way. In addition, I could not single out students for reactions by noting their alertness, so I had to randomly call on them by name. This approach meant that I often called on students who were not prepared or had nothing to say at that point. While this might serve to wake them up, it did nothing to facilitate vital group discussions. However, as far as I could tell, these things bothered me far more than they did the class members. The Black History class involved almost 40 students. I split them into two discussion groups, fearing that 40 would be difficult to handle by phone. I hoped that I would develop more personal contact with individuals in smaller groups. However, because I was relating to them as a group, I still found it difficult to create personal rapport. There was no way to have office meetings with individual students. Obviously, students could call me by phone and chat one-to-one, but this required their paying for a long distance phone call. While long distance telephone calls happened occasionally, it was quite rare. The students found the video and readings far more challenging and interesting than they had expected. I worked hard to make the discussion relevant and interesting. They said they liked the course more than they had expected. I felt that the discussions functioned rather well in spite of the difficulties. However, as I indicated, I had to prepare for them more carefully and thoroughly than for a normal class. While the audio conference functioned as a classroom substitute, I found it took more work and preparation on my part. Certainly, the class discussion added important ingredients for a distance telecourse: It allowed for much more interaction between professor and students than did paper mail, and it let the class members share ideas and learn from one another. In my case, it was really the professor who was functioning at a distance while the class functioned more as a live, face-to-face entity. Comparison Of Computer And Audio Conferencing The two most obvious points of contrast between audio and computer conferencing are synchronicity and hardware. The audio conference is constrained by time, but it also provides immediate, real-time responses page 6 / COOMBS between instructor and student. In a live audio interaction, for example, it is easier to know a communication has been understood, and, if it requires clarification, it is more simple to do it and be sure the clarification has been conveyed accurately. The computer conference, in contrast, demands that each person be more careful to express him- or herself as clearly as possible in order to minimize confusion. Unlike the audio conference, though, it allows for maximum scheduling flexibility. Each student, as well as the professor, can adopt an individual schedule for work and, at the same time, have easy and fast responses. Unless phone connect expenses are high, electronic mail is one of the most convenient and efficient means of personal interaction at a distance. The hardware required for audio conferencing is relatively inexpensive and readily accessible. An educational institution, for example, can purchase an audio bridge and, if necessary, speaker-phone systems. Students, though, need to have access to a phone at home and/or at work. Computer conferencing, on the other hand, requires more expensive and less accessible equipment: Schools would have to have a mainframe computer that could run conferencing software. The technology required to operate this kind of system is costly. While more and more people own microcomputers, computers, still, are not as common as telephones. In addition, connections--or the interface--between a PC and a mainframe computer can be complex and confusing. Nevertheless, these problems are becoming less and less an issue. The PC is becoming more common in both the home and school, and some industry standards seem to be emerging. Personal Conclusions and Reflections In my use of these two systems, the computer conference created an atmosphere that encouraged more personal and intimate sharing than did the audio conference. If, however, each student in the audio conference was phoning in from home or from work rather than being together in a classroom, then perhaps the audio conference would simulate a similar anonymous and unthreatening climate. Also, in my experience, electronic mail was convenient and encouraged a substantial amount of one-to-one contact between teacher and students. The phone, because it entailed long- distance charges, did not do so. If, however, the two classes had been structured so that the audio group had a local call to the professor while the computer group incurred long-distance expenses to access electronic mail, the results might have been partially reversed. Electronic mail still has the advantage of instantaneous delivery without the recipient having to be home to receive it as is the case with a phone message. In this respect, it still has an advantage over phone communication. While the audio conference was difficult for me, I would be willing to teach with it again. Obviously, I enjoy the computer conference a great deal more. The choice of systems, however, will ordinarily be made on other grounds than personal preference. Distance, budgets, and hardware availability will usually dictate which technology is more suitable to a particular situation. In either case, audio and computer conferencing do add an important enhancement to distance teaching: Instead of it being primarily a one-way delivery methodology, distance education can be genuinely interactive. Sometimes the interaction may even exceed that of the classroom. Besides the communication between teacher and learner, page 7 / COOMBS the students can, in fact, engage in meaningful peer learning. Many educators believe that learning from one another is the most valuable aspect of a college education. The interaction among students and between the teacher and class can be effectively achieved through telecommunication and teleconferencing. This added component to distance learning-- interaction--is a significant enhancement and should be utilized whenever and wherever possible. For further Information Coombs, N. (1989). Using CMC to overcome physical disabilities. In R. Mason & A. Kaye (Eds.), Mindwave: Communication, computers and distance education (pp. 180-185). Oxford: Pergamon. Mason, R., & Kaye, A. (Eds.). (1989). Mindwave: Communication, computers and distance education. Oxford: Pergamon. ___________________________________________________________________________ NEW HORIZONS IN ADULT EDUCATION Volume 3, Number 12/89, Fall 1989 B O O K R E V I E W ******* ROGER BOSHIER is a professor of adult education at the ******* ******* University of British Columbia, Canada. This review was ******* ******* formerly published in the ICAE newsletter/forum, ******* ******* Participatory Formation (Email Address: USERBOSH@UBCMTSG). ******* *************** ********* INTELLECTUAL SUPPRESSION: AUSTRALIAN CASE HISTORIES, ANALYSIS AND RESPONSES Martin, B. et al. (Eds.). (1986). North Ryde: Angus & Robertson Publishers. Reviewed by Roger Boshier The notion that universities and research institutes are congenial institutions where teams of colleagues diligently create knowledge, overwhelm stupidity, and roll back the frontiers of ignorance had great appeal to the founders of the medieval universities. But contemporary scholars know that the modern equivalents can be something else. These days, education is in crisis, and, as the university develops cosy relationships with the corporate sector and other distributors of beneficence and cold cash, there are increased incentives to stifle those whose work or manners do not fit the dominant ideology of the day. As well, scientists in government departments routinely see findings suppressed by superiors who find their political implications embarrassing. When these facts are set down in Australia, where a good punch-up is as deeply rooted in the culture as flamboyant entrepreneurs, bruising politics, and bouncing kangaroos, it creates a backdrop for a sensational assault on intellectual freedom. In Canada, dissenters and troublemakers in the academy are clobbered behind the scenes within a framework of politeness and decency. There is no such caveat in Australia where the rough-and-tumble traditions of a convict colony remain in force. When dirty linen is washed, it is usually hung out with considerable fanfare and an almost complete disregard for modesty or decorum. The clobbering machine is a prominent part of popular culture down- under. This book is about the intellectual clobbering machine, how repressive interests deal with academic irritants--people whose ideas and research threaten the vested interests of elites in corporations, government, professions, or some other area. It is also about petty jealously, power struggles in the academy, prima donnas that adorn universities and research institutes, and powerful interests who want to silence those who threaten profits, bureaucratic power, prestige, or public image by espousing alternative views. - 8 - page 9 / BOSHIER The bulk of this 300-page book is an analysis of incidents that involved successful and unsuccessful attempts to silence Australian academics and scientists. The editors distinguish between direct suppression (denying funds, blocking tenure, dismissal, harassment, blacklisting, and smearing) and indirect suppression (implied or overt threat of sanctions, the creation of a general climate of fear, or pressures for conformity). The authors were primarily interested in intellectual suppression--the stifling of ideas--while at the same time admitting that suppression sometimes arises because of a person's political affiliation, ethnic origin, sexual preference, religion, personality, or superior competence. The big problem is that people are often clobbered with mendacious charges to disguise the fact that tenure, promotion, or research grants are being denied because the research threatens someone (government, business, politicians). Suppression is often hard to prove and, in some countries, so widely accepted as a necessary corollary of social stability that it hardly warrants public discussion. Part One contains chapters on Australian scientists and the cold war, the political economy and pressures for conformity in the University of Sydney Economics Department, the clobbering of Professor Orr at the University of Tasmania, prejudice in the granting of research funds, how promotion and politics are used to silence trouble-makers (or stirrers in New Zealand), and the perversion or censorship of science. Part Two consists of four essays on the social politics of intellectual suppression. Part Three contains four essays that present options (e.g., publicity) for dissidents who suspect the clobbering machine is lumbering down the hall toward their office. Although not specifically directed at adult educators, the book canvasses issues that press for attention in our field. This reviewer read the book in one sitting during a long airline flight and was deeply disturbed by its contents because, at that time, an adult educator in Vancouver had been accused of using intemperate and illegitimate language and concepts in a memo that accused a university committee of having unwittingly (or perhaps deliberately) accepted the assumptions and exhortations of new rightist ideology. When adult education was simply a technical matter involving rational processes of planning and teaching, we were reasonably safe, provided we hovered at the edge of the academy and didn't criticize school teachers, the government, and others with a vested interest in the status quo. In recent years, however, adult education has grown in importance, and there have been many critical examinations of the socio-philosophical assumptions of adult education that challenge the dominant ideology of structural functionalism and its close relatives in human capital theory. Those who pay attention know that, although it takes different forms, intellectual suppression of adult educators is commonplace and exists in North America: Gifted intellects (like Henry Giroux and John Ohliger) continue to pay a heavy price for espousing unconventional views. Of course, this is not novel news for popular educators in Latin America, especially those who unmask and oppose the dictator at great peril, or for Freire, who was driven into exile because of his populist views about literacy and development, or colleagues in Asia who bend to immense social discipline or answer an early morning knock on the door. Some popular educators in Latin America maintain autonomy through solidarity with colleagues in other countries but still disappear. In parts of Southeast Asia and elsewhere, for example, mildly reformist community workers have been labelled new-Marxist and imprisoned without trial. Even in Hong Kong, conventional wisdom asserts that leaders of the democracy movement, who speak of praxis and conscientization, will cripple their life-chances and end up on a blacklist. page 10 / BOSHIER This reviewer had a nodding acquaintance with some of the more outrageous examples of suppression cited in the book but was exhausted by the prolonged and detailed disemboweling of, for example, the Sydney University Economics Department where conservative economists castrated political economists who repudiated the notion that economic inquiry is value free. This dispute, like others reported in the book, involved extreme bitterness and wasted immense amounts of energy. It is all important stuff but there is a sense in which the reader wants these prima donnas to set their egos aside so the academy can get away from accusation and counter accusation and back to research. It is hard to read this stuff because it is all a tragic reminder of ways in which institutions destroy themselves and their personnel. This is a particular problem here; after dispensing with one case, the authors move on to another, and another, and another, . . . . The Orr case was particularly troubling. Professor Orr had accused the University of Tasmania of apathy, neglect, and maladministration. A Royal Commission was appointed to inquire into these and related charges. But Orr was soon nailed by the university that leveled four charges at him, including the allegation that he had sexual relations with a Miss Suzanne Kemp, daughter of a Hobart businessman. Orr denied the charges, but his case was particularly tragic because he died before the truth emerged. It is all dreary stuff yet relevant to us because adult education often challenges the status quo. As academics working in adult education embrace mainstream conflict perspectives, there will be increasing attacks from other parts of the academy. Perhaps the most useful part of this book are the analytic essays in Part Two. The first has a typology of elites and a conceptual framework for a populist challenge. The next outlines the struggle for feminist critique in universities, and the third, which was of greatest interest to this reviewer, was on the psychology of bureaucratic conformity. In this third essay, the author claims there is an ideology of bureaucracy, and this leads to suppression of alternative views through systems of control or, in Noam Chomsky's words, the manufacture of consent. In the last essay, there is an analysis of the twilight zone world of human and academic rights. The most pernicious thing about all this is the apparent willingness of colleagues to stand by while others are clobbered and, even more serious, the proclivity of some to incorporate or adopt the ethos of the oppressor or suppressor by dutifully conforming to the rules of the game. In this regard, there are echoes of Germany where people claimed they didn't know what the Nazis were doing or reports of brainwashing where the persecuted take on, identify with, or develop affection for their tormentors or oppressors. Although this is an Australian book written by Australians about a clobbering machine that has a distinctive Australian flavor, its themes and exhortations are universal and make readers think about the historic vulnerability of adult educators. It is depressing to forage in this quagmire and witness the persecution of academics, the destruction of careers, the outrageous violations of natural justice. At one level, the unhappy victims of suppression whose personal and academic lives are dissected here are all foreigners and yet, at another, we know them intimately because they are us and we are them. Set aside the particularities and they become universal people. Suppression merely differs by degree. This recognition of ourselves is unsettling as is the inexorable nature of the bureaucracy involved in each case that functions in the name of efficiency. page 11 / BOSHIER We in adult education should note all this because, as some of our most important scholars have discovered, life doesn't look good from inside a jail cell. It does not matter whether one is inside a psychological jail--convicted, clobbered, denied tenure, or given the boot for espousing uncomfortable ideas--or inside the more conventional jail, with iron bars, guards, and steel gates. The Australians who produced this book are to be commended. Hopefully, their work will cause us to be more observant of our own backyard, which, one suspects, looks much like theirs. Or worse. ___________________________________________________________________________ NEW HORIZONS IN ADULT EDUCATION Volume 3, Number 12/89, Fall 1989 F R O M T H E E D I T O R S' D E S K The following article is based on a research report, The Electronic Journal: Promises and Predicaments by MICHAEL EHRINGHAUS, in the Syracuse University Kellogg Project Technical Report Series (Technical Report No. 3, November 1989). NEW HORIZONS IN ADULT EDUCATION: A READERSHIP SURVEY REPORT by Michael Ehringhaus Introduction The first issue of NEW HORIZONS IN ADULT EDUCATION was published in Fall, 1987. In an effort to take a step back and look at electronic media applications as an emerging technology for publication and scholarship, the editorial staff of NEW HORIZONS IN ADULT EDUCATION surveyed the members of AEDNET--the readers and users of NEW HORIZONS. The results of this survey say a great deal about creating, reading, and writing for an electronic journal. In addition, they point to some of the promises and the predicaments of electronic publication. Results and Discussion Surveys were sent electronically to all subscribers of AEDNET (N=155), and, of those, 27 people responded. While the response rate was low, the results do provide us with some useful information for the future development of NEW HORIZONS and for understanding our interaction with its medium of transmission. The people who responded to the survey consisted of professors, students, and practitioners in the field of adult education: approximately 53% professors, 41% students, and 6% practitioners. In addition, 74% were male and 26% were female. Overall, people rated the journal good to very good in terms of the variety of articles, quality of the journal, ease of reading, and relevance. Students, however, tended to rate NEW HORIZONS slightly higher on these items than professors, with the one exception of quality. Aside from people's opinions of the journal, we wanted to find out if people cite the journal, whether or not NEW HORIZONS has generated conversation among colleagues, and whether or not people pass the journal to others. Twenty-six percent reported that they have cited the journal. When we asked where they had made reference to it, five places were mentioned: in university classes, in a forthcoming book, in various newsletters, in an article, and in a class paper. In terms of generating conversation and passing the journal on to others, 66% said that the journal had, indeed, sparked conversation, while 29% pass electronic copies and 54% pass paper copies to others. - 12 - page 13 / EHRINGHAUS It was very clear from the survey results that a substantial portion of the readers of NEW HORIZONS experience technical problems as a result of receiving the lengthy journal electronically. Thirty-six percent reported having problems, including receiving truncated versions of the journal and having technical difficulty receiving, manipulating, and printing lengthy electronic mail. Yet, in spite of the technical difficulties many reported experiencing, 37% of the respondents said that they had learned more about the use of computers for communication as the result of receiving and reading the journal. NEW HORIZONS has changed with the publication of each issue. This on- going process of change reflects the journal's youth and, at the same time, its attempts to adapt to both the medium and to emerging reader expectations and author submissions. In an effort to collect ideas for future issues and for the overall development of the journal within the field of adult education, we asked readers to tell us ways to improve the journal. Several suggestions were made: Make the journal interactive, increase variety of features, make the journal accessible to non-mainframe users, publish more often, pass the editorship to other universities, help the end-user with technical problems. Another purpose of the survey was to ask readers (a) who the journal should publish and (b) how to increase a feeling of ownership of the journal within the field. An overwhelming majority felt that NEW HORIZONS should not limit its publication to that of student writing; 88% felt that the journal should include articles by professors and practitioners, as well as students. Several means of increasing a sense of ownership within the field were mentioned: Include the journal in ERIC, make hard copies available, increase publicity, provide free copies to libraries, pass the editorship to other universities, do workshops at conferences, archive the journal. At this point, NEW HORIZONS is a refereed journal, and 71% of those responding to the survey think it should remain so. A refereed journal appears to have more status within the field, so acceptance of a new journal like NEW HORIZONS might depend, to some degree, on whether or not it maintains some form of quality control--usually a peer review process for articles. The fact that NEW HORIZONS is run by graduate students and is electronic in nature are other issues associated with acceptance. Does publication in a student-run journal carry the weight of publishing in a journal run by an established group of recognized people in a particular field? Within any field the status of graduate students is somewhat marginal, so a student-run venture has to overcome certain built-in biases associated with that status. In addition, does publication in an electronic journal have the status of publication in an paper journal? These two factors--student-run journal vs one managed by recognized leaders and electronic journal vs paper journal--compound the task NEW HORIZONS faces in establishing itself within the field of adult education. Perhaps the most pervasive aspect of acceptance is accessibility: Who is able to receive and read an electronic journal? The respondents to the readership survey suggested ways to make the journal more accessible to page 14 / EHRINGHAUS both mainframe users and nonusers. Underlying these suggestions is the assumption that the journal doesn't exist solely for the electronic medium: Knowledge is communal, so distribution can and should happen in a variety of ways. Acceptance, then, depends, to some degree, on the ability of people to reach the contents of the journal. Access--both the limited number of people who actually have access to a mainframe and the technical skills necessary to manage lengthy electronic files--is a problem and concern for readers of NEW HORIZONS. Network access is not pervasive throughout the world or within those areas of institutions in which adult education departments are housed. Some readers of NEW HORIZONS, for example, have to share computer accounts with colleagues while other readers find it next to impossible to gain the necessary institutional support (both technical and training) to engage in the level of mainframe communications necessary to interact with AEDNET, in general, or with NEW HORIZONS, in particular. Any publication distributed via an electronic network is, therefore, limited in its readership to those who have the means and institutional support necessary to log on and use the system. Although NEW HORIZONS is transmitted via mainframe communications technology, access to the journal does not have to be limited to electronic networks. As the respondents to the survey indicated, the journal could be placed in ERIC and other nonelectronic databases. In addition, the journal could be stored on a variety of computer disk formats as an ASCII file and distributed at a nominal cost to interested individuals, libraries, and universities. Paper copies could also be distributed at a charge to cover basic costs. Conclusion Computer and communications technology have some clear benefits. While democratization of knowledge and increased collegiality have been suggested outcomes of electronic communications, the financial reality, alone, poses substantial problems of access. At this point, it is simply not financially possible for many people to gain access to electronic networks or to the hardware necessary for electronic publishing. Two questions, then, seem to stand out, stark in their implications: What are the social consequences of this restriction of access? What affect will the use or the lack of use of mainframe communications technology have on the knowledge base of an academic field? The electronic journal is a technological neonate full of the possibilities and promises of youth. Yet, with those promises come predicaments. Just as the electronic journal may be the solution to one set of problems, it might, too, be part of the genesis of other quandaries. What is most important, then, is that we don't fail--in our acceptance or rejection of this emerging communications technology--to grapple with those two questions. ___________________________________________________________________________ NEW HORIZONS IN ADULT EDUCATION Volume 3, Number 12/89, Fall 1989 F O R Y O U R I N F O R M A T I O N SYRACUSE UNIVERSITY ADULT AND CONTINUING EDUCATION RESEARCH COLLECTION Historians, adult educators, and other researchers will find a wealth of materials in the manuscripts and special collections that comprise Syracuse University's Adult and Continuing Education Research Collection. Generally regarded as the largest English-language adult and continuing education archives in the world, the collection covers almost 900 linear feet of shelf space and contains papers from about 20 organizations and 35 individuals. The George Arents Research Library, where the materials are housed, has identified collection strengths in the history of adult education as a profession, adult literacy, and civic education. While some documents date back to the 1920s and earlier, most fall between 1945 and 1970. Improvements in the accessibility of the documents are taking place under the auspices of the Syracuse University Kellogg Project, a five-year research project conducted in cooperation with the Adult Education Program of the School of Education. Following is a list of the organizations and individuals represented in the collection, along with the dates of the papers and the number of archival boxes they fill (each box occupies 6 inches of shelf space): * Adult Education Association of the United States (AEA), 1924-1968, 36 boxes. * Adult Education Research Conference (AERC), 1969-1971, 2 boxes. * American Foundation for Continuing Education (AFCE), 1947-1965, 38 boxes. * Association of University Evening Colleges (AUEC), 1927-1973, 34 boxes. * Lalage J. Bown, 1961-1980, 7 boxes. * Center for the Study of Liberal Education for Adults (CSLEA), 1951- 1969, 84 boxes, 2 packages. * Alexander N. Charters, 1948-1971, 2 boxes. (See also AEA, AFCE, AUEC, FAE, NUEA, and Galaxy Conference) * Coalition of Adult Education Organizations (CAEO), 1967-1968, 4 boxes. * Commission of Professors of Adult Education (CPAE), 1953-1984, 13 boxes, 120 tapes, 2 film reels, 4 slide carousels. * ERIC Clearinghouse on Adult Education (ERIC/AE), 1962-1973, 12 boxes. * Fund for Adult Education (FAE), 1950-1969, 97 boxes and 1 package. - 15 - page 16 * 1969 Galaxy Conference, 1964-1970, 3 boxes. * Eva Elise vom Baur Hansl, 1889-1978, 35 boxes. * Andrew Hendrickson, 1933-1971, 15 boxes. * International Congress of University Adult Education (ICUAE), 1959- 1968, 6 boxes. * Joseph W. Jacques, 1972, 21 reels of magnetic tape in 2 boxes. * Malcolm S. Knowles, 1930-1985, 66 boxes and 1 carton of cassette and video tapes, films, and graphics. * Laubach Literacy International and Dr. Frank C. Laubach, 1884-1970, 328 boxes, 10 cartons. * Alexander A. Liveright, 1934-1969, 7 boxes. * National Association of Public School Adult Educators (NAPSAE), 1934- 1964, 6 boxes. * National University Extension Association (NUEA), 1924-1968, 41 boxes. * George A. Parkinson Papers, 1937-1963, 1 box. * Bernard W. Reed, 1915-1962, 3 boxes. * Robert E. Sharer, 1943-1971, 2 boxes. * Paul Henry Sheats, 1958-1967, 103 boxes. * Syracuse University Publications in Continuing Education (SUPCE), 1966-1971, 5 boxes. * Willard Thompson (on the Wingspread and Galaxy Conferences), 1966- 1970, 4 boxes. * University Council on Education for Public Responsibility (UCEPR), 1961-1964, 1 box. * Coolie Verner, 1953-1972, 3 boxes. NOTE: There are 3 boxes and two packages of photographs collected from many individuals and organizations from 1932-1975. Best represented is the Fund for Adult Education. page 17 Related Collections * Edmund Chaffee, minister and founder of the Labor Temple * Martha F. Crow, writer/lecturer on women in education * H.L. Custard, author and educator * W.R. Davey, educator * W. Dean Mason, expert on gerontology and geriatrics * Osborne family (papers on correctional education) * James Pike, early 19th century teacher * D.C. Watson, art critic and lecturer * F.A. Weiss, educator and social researcher For further information about the Syracuse University Adult and Continuing Education Research Collection contact either of the following people: TERRY KEENAN, Adult Education Manuscripts Librarian, 315-443-9752 (Email address: TKEENAN@SUVM) or RAE ROHFELD, Associate Professor of Adult Education, 315-443-1095 (Email address: RROHFELD@SUVM). ___________________________________________________________________________ NEW HORIZONS IN ADULT EDUCATION Volume 3, Number 12/89, Fall 1989 E D I T O R I A L P O L I C Y NEW HORIZONS IN ADULT EDUCATION NEW HORIZONS IN ADULT EDUCATION is a refereed journal published by the Syracuse University Kellogg Project and is electronically transmitted to subscribers via the advanced communications technology of mainframe computers. The journal is managed by graduate student editors at Syracuse University in cooperation with an international editorial board comprised of graduate students. All article submissions are double-blind reviewed by two or more editorial board members. There is no cost for electronic copies of articles or back issues of NEW HORIZONS IN ADULT EDUCATION; they are sent, free of charge, to all subscribers to the Adult Education Network (AEDNET), an international electronic network of adult educators. Paper or disk copies of the journal may be purchased by contacting the journal staff at the address listed below. NEW HORIZONS IN ADULT EDUCATION is indexed and abstracted by the ERIC Clearinghouse on Adult, Career, and Vocational Education. PURPOSE: NEW HORIZONS IN ADULT EDUCATION was founded to enhance international dialogue within the field of Adult Education using advanced communications technology. NATURE OF PUBLICATIONS: NEW HORIZONS publishes research, thought pieces, book reviews, point counter-point articles, and invitational columns written by graduate students, professors, and practitioners involved in adult education. ARTICLE SUBMISSION: NEW HORIZONS IN ADULT EDUCATION accepts articles in a variety of formats: paper, email, fax, computer disk. If, however, articles are sent to the journal on computer disk, the journal editors request that it be stored in ASCII, the universal computer language. There are NO LENGTH REQUIREMENTS, but authors should recognize that reviewers will evaluate articles to see that the subject and substance of the piece warrants the length. Submitted articles should include the following: (a) the title of the manuscript, (b) full names, institutional affiliation, and positions of authors, and (c) statement of place and date of any previous oral or written presentation of the paper. While the electronic medium will not accommodate strict adherence to the rules governing manuscript style and references outlined in the Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association (APA), APA is the preferred style of NEW HORIZONS and should be used as guidance for the preparation of the manuscript for submission. Send all article submissions to the electronic address, HORIZONS@SUVM, or to NEW HORIZONS IN ADULT EDUCATION, Syracuse University Kellogg Project, 113 Euclid Avenue, Syracuse, New York 13244-4160. All other correspondence concerning change of address or membership in AEDNET can be sent to either of these addresses. ------------------------------ Cut here ------------------------------