Joongkak Kook

INTRODUCTION

The Internet has exploded into Korea faster than expected. Already many have realized how powerful a medium it is for the delivery of computer aided learning materials. College students are enthusiastic and savor the advantages of using the Internet. Students benefit from the availability of information at all times and from remote locations. Instructors benefit from a reduction in workload. And the educational process is enhanced by the diversity of media that can be used to convey information. We will illustrate a few instances of Internet-related services as they are used in teaching and learning at SahmYook University (SYU), Seoul, Korea. SYU is a fairly small private Christian university with a ninety-four year history. Together with its Junior College, it has around 5,000 students.

As is the case with many other academic institutions, the Internet and Web services have already made a big impact on the faculty and staff. All students have access to the Internet and the WWW through departmental computer labs, through the library, and the computer center. Students have easy access to services such as e-mail, library services, application packages, and the Internet. Additionally, students have access to campus services, such as the library and an information- search, at any time, from labs and classes or even from the dormitories. Students can reach the Internet directly without the need of dial-in services. Some classes often use Internet and Web services as part of the class itself. SYU has 700 personal Pentium computers for student use in seven computer labs, and 600 PC business computers, which are connected in a LAN network. Most of them are managed by university's Computer Information Center (http://www.syu.ac.kr).

The Internet's rapid development and the expanded use of the Web have increased the demand for services on campus. Some students off campus can access the Internet and Web in their residences via home TV cable or a dedicated line. For most apartment complexes in Seoul, Internet connections have become essential and popular facilities. The Internet can also be accessed through Internet facilities in public organizations, such as public libraries, government offices, or social organizations, etc. The entry of Korea into the Information-Age can be measured by the following statistics: Korea has 23 Internet users per hundred population, ranking 5th highest in the world; 18 Internet users in 100 own their own computers, ranking 15th in the world; 66 people in 100 have cellular phones, ranking top in the world. Koreans are ranked first in playing computer network games, second for being Web site owners, and ranked as high users in most other electronic media (Korea Electronic Times, October 18, 2000).

WEB-BASED SUPPORT FOR STUDENTS ON KOREAN UNIVERSITY CAMPUSES

Throughout most of Korean university campuses, Internet access is becoming more widely available and inexpensive. On campus, everyone can access Internet facilities. However, faculty members do not generally use the Internet as a tool for instructional or educational applications in classrooms. Faculty interest in the Internet is relatively low compared to the interest of students. A statistical indicator shows low faculty passion for Internet usage on many Korean college campuses (Korea Electronic Times, September 15, 2000).

In October 2000, a survey was conducted on the SYU campus using randomly-selected student populations. Sixty students and ten instructors were surveyed. Almost 75% of the students responded favorably to the Internet as their primary source of course materials. Almost 72% of the students responded as being either satisfied or very satisfied with the source of the materials. This high satisfaction level suggests that students welcome the accessibility and convenience of the Internet and will continue to utilize it in the future.

Current trends indicate that students will have more and better access to the Internet in the future. The survey suggested that Web homepages, as a communication medium, are likely to become an effective tool in the future. The use of Web homepages as a primary source of course information is viable. Students accept this with a high level of satisfaction. The availability of course materials through technological interaction can enhance student learning and increase student satisfaction in part due to the convenient access to information.

The interviews suggest that in educational settings, the Web is a powerful educational tool with great potential for college level teaching. Most students feel comfortable with their Internet usage and believe the Web is necessary in academia for the following reasons:

1. it is easy for students and colleagues to access,
2. it is an efficient way to collect and organize materials and course information,
3. it is easy to locate and update,
4. excessive photo-copying is not needed but resources can be by the student if desired,
5. material can be reprinted to remote information sources,
6. it can stay competitive with current educational practices,
7. tests can be delivered electronically,
8. students can submit reports or assignments electronically,
9. students can be flexible in time management rather than be locked into class schedules,
10. there are no location limitations,
11. cyber classes can be offered,
12. various multimedia resources can become available, and
13. Internet broadcasting can be offered, etc.

The survey respondents felt that the Internet and Web will become increasingly used in the educational process as a means of communicating information, for conducting discussions, for exchanging ideas, and for the delivery of various kinds of information.

Students felt the Web makes a contribution as an aid to learning, as something different from traditional classrooms, and as a new communication medium between faculty and students. Despite the increased uses of the Internet for wholesome academic purposes, there are some negative factors to combat. These include pornography, lewdness, and so on.

FACULTY PERSPECTIVES TOWARD THEIR FUTURE USE OF THE INTERNET

Questions to the faculty were based on samples from Ives (1997), and Wilson, Rider, McCahan, & Sherry (1996) and by the author of this paper. The intention was to assess faculty perspectives toward their future use of the Internet, as well as to determine the need for Internet training and support for the faculty. The questions were as follows:

(a) Do you feel certain that the Internet is profitable for both faculty and student?

(b) Are you certain that in the near future the Internet will be consistently used for communication in educational settings?

(c) What are your expectations of educational use of the Internet and Web?

(d) Do you have access to the appropriate technology for the Internet and Web?

(e) How and why do individuals move toward the Internet culture?

(f) If you are an Internet and Web user, what are your objectives in using e-mail, the Internet and Web

(g) What obstacles do you face in using the Internet, Web and e-mail?

(h) What performance and training supports do you feel would be helpful?

(i) What factors are at play and what can be done to facilitate change?

As expressed by Wilson (1996) there are two community groups on campus--the pre-existing local community (PLC--typically an academic unit) and the virtual Internet community (VIC). The gap between the former and the latter is addressed in this study.

>>From responses to the survey from professors with expertise in the
>virtual

Internet community (VIC) the following summarizes suggestions made about how the Web can be used by the faculty. First, faculty use the WWW to supplement rather than replace existing teaching methods. Second, they create materials that complement existing course material rather than simply duplicate them. There is some benefit in allowing students to go over material again after a lecture, although there may be more benefit from a module that makes them put information they have learned into practice. Third, faculty use various media where appropriate to enhance learning of the information being conveyed. This may include pictures, animation, video and sound. Finally, faculty provide interaction with question and answer sections and menu driven routes through the module.

Many feel that the Web is now causing educators to re-think the very nature of teaching, learning, and schooling from pre-school to graduate school (Owston, 1997). In the near future, Korean universities will undergo a transformation. The Web-based lectures can be unrestricted from the physical boundaries of classrooms and from the time restraints of class schedules. Professors know that some cyber universities have already been in operation for life-long learning. Professors recognize that students will have opportunities to take many cyber classes through the Internet. Student use of the Internet is becoming a routine on campus. In the future, traditional lectures will become multimedia learning experiences. Learning resources of the world via the Web can augment the campus. Moreover, the Web can help refocus our institutions from teaching to learning and from professors to students.

BARRIERS TO THE INTERNET AND WWW

The survey results indicate that the Internet presents opportunities to the academy on campus, but it also brings some obstacles. Ives (1996) discusses barriers to Web use in his paper "The Internet, the Web, and the Academic: Why some do not participate in the Internet and WWW (subtitled "Barriers to the Bandwagon"). Within the pre-existing local community (PLC), Web use results in a range of emotions and behaviors, including anxiety, frustration, and resistance to utilitarian accommodation, excitement and immersion. In Korea, faculty participation and enthusiasm for integrating educational and instructional applications electronically are relatively low. This is true despite our being in "The Information Era".

In spite of the potential of Internet resources, there are sensitive issues and very real obstacles facing the faculty. Among these are various university mandated policies and enforced changes in the culture without careful consideration and assessment of faculty perceptions and needs. Hopefully, the local academic community can overcome initial fears and frustrations and move toward mature utilization of Internet resources.

Within the virtual Internet community (VIC) there are also some complaints from professors who have developed Web materials. They expressed their experiences as follows: In the hands of diligent professors, the Web can play a prominent role in fostering development of skills for students. However, developing Web sites and improving their design and function requires much effort and time from the faculty. Web homepages are developed and offered by faculty members at their own initiative. They spend great amounts of time above and beyond what they would spend on courses offered by traditional means.

In addition, extra time is needed for routine jobs. For example, on-going maintenance is required, which includes posting new materials and removing "out-of- date" materials, verifying links to other Web sites that are still valid, improving the layout and design, and adding functionality. These tasks are considered essential for any good Web site and must be done every week, or even on a daily basis. Thus, it is the faculty that must take part in such matters. Beginners require help and training which incorporates both actual technologies and programs that best facilitate successful implementation.

Many agree that if Web use on our campuses is to move beyond the domain of the motivated early adopters of the technology, there must be a provision for faculty training, technical support, honoraria, incentives, and professional recognition. All of these support systems have associated costs. Institutions will have to consider establishing instructional support centers to assist faculty with Web site development. However, inter-institutional collaboration and sharing of Web resources may be a way of reducing workloads on individual faculty while at the same time constraining expenses.

CONCLUSION

Overall, for the faculty both the pre-existing local community (PLC) and the virtual Internet community (VIC) show diverse responses to use of the Internet and Web. Our observations have heightened our awareness of the difficulty in bringing the two cultures together. Users, especially beginners, must overcome a number of barriers as they are initiated into the Internet culture. In addition to technical or institutional barriers, there are constraining factors to surmount. These include costs, time, and resources.

On campus, initial uses of a new technology tend to mirror existing educational forms and practices, such as traditional classrooms, lectures, and controlled structures. Eventually we expect to see greater departure from traditional educational forms, with the Internet and Web enabling new paradigms and approaches to learning (Wilson, Ryder, McCahan, & Sherry, 1996; Blurton, 1994). For the Web to be a significant tool that combines the delivery medium with instructional content, course management, and effective use careful planning and consideration is required. Understanding the factors affecting Web uses should help faculties integrate technology into their classrooms. In that light, we suggest the following recommendations to instructional support teams or to university administrators:

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