Journal of Instructional Science and Technology ISSN: 1324-0781 Editors-in-Chief: Olugbemiro JEGEDE (jegede@ouhk.edu.hk) and Som NAIDU(s.naidu@meu.unimelb.edu.au)

---

Volume 1 No 3, May 1996
- - - Article 1 - - -

Some Outcomes of Learning Through Teleconferencing

by

Joan Robson
Australian Catholic University
Signadou Campus
PO Box 256
Dickson ACT 2602

Abstract | Introduction| Methodology, Method and Sampling | Literature Review | Findings | Discussion of Findings | Conclusion| Acknowledgments | References | Author |

Abstract

A recent study investigates the outcomes of learning when secondary students studymathematics using teleconferencing as a component of a distance education course. Resultsindicate that the attitudes towards the subject and towards the learning environmentprovided are positive and that the learning outcomes are comparable to those of studentsstudying in a traditional classroom.

Introduction

An overview of uses of electronic technology in the education of students at primary,secondary and tertiary levels, living in remote areas in Australia (Robson, Routcliffe andFitzgerald, 1991) highlighted two important facts. Firstly, electronic technologies arerapidly being introduced to make up for the perceived deficiencies of non-contiguousteaching and secondly, many teaching strategies associated with the new technology aretransported directly from the traditional classroom. It became apparent that there is anurgent need for research into the relationship between the 'virtual' classroom andfundamental educational principles and into the use of electronic technologies to maximizethe effectiveness of such an education (Robson, Routcliffe and Fitzgerald, 1991: 38).Subsequently extensive material was collected by the author during 1993 on one particularuse of technology, namely teleconferencing, for detailed analysis with the hope ofhighlighting appropriate teaching strategies for use in distance education at thesecondary school level (Robson, 1996). It is these data which form the basis for thematerial used in this study. They allow examination of, not only the teaching strategiesbut, the teaching and learning experience involved in the use of teleconferencing insecondary mathematics education.

Mathematics is a core subject in the Australian school curriculum and is taught at alllevels of school education in most states and territories. Modern mathematics has shiftedfrom computational skills towards an understanding of these skills and their applicationsand contains content considered essential to equip students to take their place in thecontemporary world.

If student numbers in small rural schools preclude the formation of regular mathematicsclasses then amalgamation into distance education classes is an alternative. The 'class'comprises the students in say Year 11 mathematics, in all the small schools and a teacher.All are physically located in their own schools. A group of such individual rural schoolsis called a 'cluster' and technology can be used to support such distance educationclasses. However, the worth of such education is often questioned by educators and thecommunity alike, and it is important to examine the impact and the effectiveness oftechnology in facilitating student learning in such a situation. The aim of this study isto demonstrate that using teleconferencing in teaching mathematics by distance educationgives the students access to an effective learning environment.

Results from this study should allow both students and parents to make informeddecisions regarding the educational options available to the student. Information on theeffectiveness of courses conducted using this technology will also be important forschools when planning to extend their curriculum offerings, not only in the core subjectsbut in specialist areas such as languages (Department of Education, 1989a: 7). Lessonslearned from the mathematics classes can be applied to other courses taught byteleconferencing. These models may refer to curriculum design, pedagogy, assessment orclientele. Such information may influence the format of the lessons, the physicalarrangements of equipment, rooms and buildings of the school or the choice of technology.Decisions made in small schools impact on, not only the students and teachers, but also onthe local community through common use of facilities, economic and social input fromstudents and staff and the traditional role of a school in a rural area. The sevenAustralian Departments of Education which offer courses by distance education (Robson,Routcliffe and Fitzgerald, 1991) will want to optimize the facilities they provide forisolated students with respect to balancing costs against access to a wider curriculum. Tothis end they share the goals of exchanging information and developing a national approachas emphasized in reports such as The Australian Education Council's Creating anational framework for educational delivery (1991: 14 & 35). It is anticipatedthat illuminative evaluation will facilitate theory-building and ultimately decisionmaking at this level.

Some insight is given into the effectiveness of the technology in mathematics educationby a detailed examination of a class using teleconferencing as one component of thestandard mathematics course. This study examines the students' attitudes towards thediscipline of mathematics itself and searches for ways in which the teleconferencecomponent aids or abets the formation of positive attitudes towards the subject. Linked tothis are the students' attitudes towards using the technology as a tool in learningmathematics. This leads to a comparison with the students' preferred learning styles toinvestigate whether the technology used is compatible with these learning styles. Thiswill be distinct from learning about technology through using technology. The in-depthexamination of their understanding will sample the knowledge skills that the students haveacquired through learning via this medium of teleconferencing.

Mathematics was chosen for scrutiny as it is a discipline which is heavily dependent onvisual communication. With such communication restricted to textbooks, facsimile machinesand oral descriptions of diagrams, the teacher is limited to regular audio and contrivedvisual and kinesthetic teaching strategies. This situation should emphasize anydeficiencies in teaching or learning through teleconferencing. For this same reason, thetrigonometry section of the course was selected to investigate learning outcomes, thisbeing an area in which visualization is vital.

It is important not to make comparisons with an imaginary stylized mathematics class.Squires and Sinclair (1993: 36) point out the pitfalls in using an 'urban school' as thebenchmark for measures of educational worth. Mathematics classes vary according to theage, socio-economic status, sex and background of the students as well as thecharacteristics of the teacher, the school support in terms of time allowance and theresources. Long (1992: 54) found that the number of uncontrolled variables, in thecomparative study of on-campus and off-campus students, make it difficult to generalizeabout the effects of different forms of study. In the Australian context, the geographicdistances, economic situation and isolation are other significant variables, whileGranholm (1973: 6) points to the myriad of personal, external and other elements whichaffect the comparison of results. He argues that a 'fuller investigation of thepossibilities within the various modes of instruction' is more valuable than comparisonsof efficiency. Consideration of the psychological and physical environment in which thestudents and teacher work is necessary for analyzing the interdependence of the learningand teaching and for relating the organization and practices of instruction with theimmediate and long-term responses of the students. In spite of the unique nature of eachof the small classes communicating through teleconferencing, one such New South Walesmathematics class was monitored in detail over eight months. The diverse nature of theschools concerned, each with its own school ethos and infrastructure, precludes simplifiedgeneralizations. However, analysis of the data collected in this case study shoulddetermine, whether or not, the use of teleconferencing results in desirable outcomes, inthis particular instance. A positive result will not enable a generalization to thiseffect, but will support the hypotheses of Granholm (1973) and Childs (1965) that learningthrough distance education is at least as good as that through conventional teaching. Anegative result would support the findings of Long (1992) that there is a differencebetween the results of on-campus and off-campus students.

Methodology, Method and Sampling

This study uses the interpretative methodology to investigate student outcomes as theyuse teleconferencing. This approach would seem to be appropriate to use in theinvestigation of a single class where technology is being used to make societal linkssimulating those usually found in a traditional classroom. Care is taken not to introducea value element in the interpretation of the findings. However, bearing in mind that theinterpretative approach should point to action or change, it is important to note that atthis point in time, in the development of the initiatives, there is opportunity for theinstitutions and schools involved to modify and change.

The goals of this teleconferencing program are both general and specific.

General.

• to provide for the intellectual development of the students
• to equip students to take their place in society
• to form the basis of a future career

Specific.

• to increase access to an education for rural students
• to increase access to a wider range of electives
• to encourage increased retention rates in Years 11 and 12.

(NSW Teachers Federation, 1993)

The technology used was chosen in the design stage of the pilot program in 1989(Department of Education, 1989a). Currently it is being used to fulfil the planners' ideasso outcomes can be compared with the above general and specific goals.

The students in this study are in the penultimate year of their secondary schooling.Although they are not adults in the sense of tertiary students, it is worth consideringBurge's six components involved in implementation of a new program at tertiary level(1989: 49) and applying these components to the implementation of this project and theywould seem to apply to the mathematics teleconference course being considered. The firstcomponent involves the individual student's academic ability and motivation. Examinationof learning outcomes would elucidate the value of the project with respect to thestudent's capacity. Also weighing up family and community support in providing access toeducation for the students could expose barriers. The second component, choice, is theresponsibility of the Department of Education and the school with its curriculumofferings, and the teacher in its implementation. In this case the course is the same asthat taught face-to-face throughout the state, but the implementation of the course is therole of the teacher. Therefore, the learning environment that the course and teacher offeris a consideration - importantly, the structure of the lessons and the flexibility of theteaching medium. The third involves the relationship between teacher, associate teacherand the student and the role of the course in the student's world. In addressing thiscomponent, the power control and interaction within the lesson interaction can illuminatethis relationship. The fourth component, diversity of learning styles, implies diversityof teaching styles. This is a consideration in any classroom, but gains prominence indistance education because of the limitations geographic separation places on possibleteaching strategies. Smaller class sizes are usually a compromise made to address thissituation of dispersed students. Determination of the students' preferred learning stylesis a starting point in considering the diversity of learning styles of the students andthe range of teaching strategies which the teacher must use. The fifth component ofsupport mechanisms embraces textbooks, library, counselling and school support of thestudent's social and academic well-being. The support that all the participants see asessential for the success of the project can enlighten an evaluation of the course. Thesixth component is related to the first in that it involves the degree of academic andmotivational development of the student. This emphasizes the importance of determining thelearning outcomes in terms of the knowledge, processes and attitudes towards mathematics.

Burge points to fruitful areas of scrutiny. The relationship between the students'preferred learning styles, the learning environment which the technology supports and theresultant attitude of the students towards learning are part of the fourth point. Herfirst and sixth points are considered in learning outcomes. In this present study, the'outcomes' of the learning - both the attitude of the students towards the area ofknowledge and the learning environment together with their understanding of the topic areconsidered. Providing context for these is the nature of the course itself as part of theregular Higher School Certificate curriculum and the support mechanisms available. Thedata were collected over a period of eight months from February 1993 to October 1993. Askills survey is used to compile data on learning outcomes. Personal diaries, interviewsand questionnaires were used to collect data on attitudes. Thus the framework for thedetermination of the effectiveness of the use of teleconferencing in teaching and learningin this case is based on these components, but adjusted to be in harmony with thisparticular situation of upper secondary students studying mathematics using a majorteleconferencing component. Some of the goals of the National statement on mathematics inAustralian schools which are strategic in this situation of remote teaching are:

As a result of learning mathematics in school all students should:

• gain pleasure from mathematics and appreciate its fascination and power;
• acquire ... mathematical knowledge;
• develop skills in presenting and interpreting mathematical arguments;
• communicate mathematically to a range of audiences.

(Curriculum Corporation, 1991: 15)

The first three goals are concerned with the attitudes and outcomes of the learning.

Attitude Outcomes
The visits in February 1993 aimed to establish contact and to determine the initialstudent profiles in mathematics and the technology. The teacher and students wereinterviewed and diaries distributed. Throughout the research both students and the teacherwere asked to keep personal diaries for the recording of their perceptions andreflections. The diary is not used directly for research but is designed to focus theattention of the participants on aspects of the teleconferencing lessons and was used whencompleting the questionnaires. Putting distance education and teleconferencing inperspective for the students, hopefully aids in reflection on their practice. At eachstage both students and teachers completed questionnaires and participated in interviewsthat focused on their experiences of this style of teaching and learning, self-evaluationand support mechanisms. The associate teachers at each school also completedquestionnaires. School records were searched to give an overall view of the enrolmentpatterns in the course to highlight attendance and continuation as indicators of attitude.All this information has been used to investigate student attitudes towards mathematicsitself and towards learning mathematics by teleconferencing. Linked with this is the needfor students to feel that school work will help them achieve their life goals.

Attitudes Towards Learning Mathematics
The importance of student attitudes towards mathematics is highlighted in the Nationalstatement on mathematics in Australian schools where it is argued that given theimpossibility of identifying which knowledge and skills are necessary to prepare studentsto take their place in the world, a better approach is to develop in the students, apositive attitude towards their involvement in mathematics (Curriculum Corporation, 1991:12). In order to control variables and minimize the effect of negative attitudes towardsmathematics, such as disinterest or fear, the teacher should be an experienced andcompetent mathematics teacher. The teacher who conducts the class is such a teacher. Thisshould minimize the formation of negative attitudes towards mathematics due to dislike ofthe teacher or the teaching methods.

This study searches for changes resulting from participation in this distance educationprogram. It also searches for reasons behind the students' decision to continue the studyof mathematics at the Years 11 and 12 levels. Effective teaching would be expected toresult in a more mature attitude towards mathematics, so this is also investigated.

Attitudes Towards Learning Using Teleconferencing
Teaching and learning are also determined by the students' attitude to the learningenvironment (Barnes and Owens, 1992: 2). Students undertook an ACER standardized learningpreference scale test to provide evidence concerning the appropriateness or otherwise ofthe distance education learning environment provided. Examination of the class on threeoccasions at the beginning, middle and end of the academic year provided the opportunityto show developing confidence with the technology on the part of both the teacher and thestudents.

Learning Outcomes
Students' understanding in mathematics has been investigated using classroom testsand researcher designed tasks. These tasks gather data on students' recognition,application and synthesis of particular mathematics concepts in a variety of problemsolving situations pertaining to trigonometry. The learning that the students havedemonstrated has been categorized according to the outcome statements in A nationalstatement on mathematics for Australian schools (Curriculum Corporation, 1991). Alist of these outcome statements is in Table 1. For informal comparison, a traditionalcity class also undertook these tasks.

Table 1: Selected outcome statements from CurriculumCorporation, (1991),
A national statement on mathematics for Australian schools, Carlton, AustralianEducation Council.

Sampling
The cluster of small rural schools chosen for consideration is one of a small, butgrowing, number in Australia using teleconferencing to supplement a distance educationcourse. It is the larger of two such clusters in New South Wales and so enables theexamination of a viable class studying one specific subject. In 1993 this cluster had beenestablished for three years and so the support structures were already in place and it wasmoving from the trial stage and becoming an established part of the educational program ofthe schools within the cluster. The cluster of seven schools caters for students fromproperties or small towns within a region of approximately 30,000 square kilometres. Theschools are connected via a teleconference link using the normal telephone lines and abridge. Students within each small school can hear and speak with the teacher and with therest of the class. Students in this program are in verbal contact daily with their peersin the other schools as part of the 'virtual' classroom as well as students within theirown school surroundings. From this cluster the Year 11, 2 unit Mathematics class, wasselected to be monitored. The teacher works from one school with some of the students -the other students are alone or in pairs at four other schools. These schools are betweentwo and three hundred kilometres from the teacher's school. Following Linke et al. (1984),cost and effort are not considered in this study nor is the intrinsic value of the NewSouth Wales Higher School Certificate 2 Unit Mathematics course appraised.

The structure of the course is determined by both the Higher School Certificateexamination and the need for internal assessment marks. The course content and textbookhave been determined by the Department of School Education and school respectively thusminimizing variability through teacher course design. However, in mathematics, as in allother areas of schooling, there has been a general move towards allowing and encouragingindividuals to take more control of their own learning (Mousley and Rice, 1990: 185). Itis important to determine whether introducing teleconferencing into mathematics educationalters this scenario and whether the changes which are made to mathematics education whentaught in the distance education mode affect the perceived worth of the subject.

Literature Review

Much of the research literature relevant to this study focuses on distance education,technology and mathematics at the tertiary level. However, as the students in the studyare of a similar age and at the post-compulsory stage of their studies, this research ispertinent to the question of the effectiveness or otherwise of teleconferencing inmathematics education at the upper secondary level. But the differences between uppersecondary and tertiary students must be acknowledged.

Distance education. Small schools in remote parts of the Australia often havedifficulty in servicing a specialist subject such as mathematics (Department of Education,1989a: 1). The Department of Employment, Education and Training (DEET) paper A fairchance for all suggests that lower school retention rates and restricted curriculumchoices are factors which disadvantage students in rural areas in participation andsuccess in higher education (DEET, 1990). One type of education proposed by Departments ofEducation to provide teachers for these remote students is distance education. Keeganamong others (1990: 32) regards distance education as one of several forms of education -each with their own characteristics and there is enough support for this view in theresearch literature that for the purposes of this study, distance education is consideredas a discipline in its own right. Educators speculate about the relationship betweentraditional and distance education at all levels of education and numerous studies havebeen carried out to compare the learning outcomes of students studying by each mode(Calvert, 1995: 1). The majority of these have been at tertiary level with most of thesestudies finding a greater drop-out rate for off-campus students and varying results ofcomparative learning outcomes for the two groups.

Most Australian federal, state and territory Departments of Education are experimentingwith various forms of technology to unite small groups of students with an expert teacher(Australian Education Council, 1991: 5; Snowdon, 1992: 11). In this study, the uniqueeducational situation and the addition of some technology to modify the situation byincreasing the potential for interaction, necessitates an examination of the effectivenessof this educational scenario. Jones supports critical evaluation of such new technologies:

Policy decisions are increasingly dominated by 'technological determinism'; we face the possibility of rule by technocrats. There is an increasingly fatalist conviction that the answer to every complex problem is to be found in a technological 'fix' - and the more complex the 'fix' the more likely it is to be accepted without debate. The range and scope of political argument in technically complex areas is diminished - indeed it verges on being irrelevant.
(Jones, 1983: 210)

Mathematics. One of the most highly regarded curriculum areas is mathematicswith its influential tradition as a fundamental subject, dependent on much rote learningand practise of socially-valued skills. Students learn basic mathematical facts andprocesses, and make correctly sequenced verbal and written statements. If mathematics istaught by distance education to give more students the opportunity to learn mathematicsthen this raises the question of how effective is teleconferencing in teaching this muchvenerated subject by distance education at this stage of development of the technology.'Part of the conventional wisdom of distance education in Australia is that it is aboutaccess and equity' (King et al., 1991: 3) and access and equity are issues in this case.It is important to establish the effectiveness of such a teaching scenario in relation tostudent learning if its provision is to achieve this equity (Rashid et al., 1992: 121).Fundamental to this is the notion of effectiveness in education generally. Effectivenessis a generic term which can be viewed from many angles. Linke et al. (1984: 19) relateeffectiveness to 'the levels of achievement of educational goals; it involves noconnotation of value and no consideration of cost in effort required for the achievement'.Effectiveness can be examined with regard to the pedagogical processes used and desirableoutcomes of learning associated with a particular course. Keegan (1990: 183) focuses onthe quantity, quality and status of the learning, highlighting the need for carefulthought being given to the meaning of effectiveness and its relationship to the notion ofquality.

Quality. The quality of education has long been a consideration. However, inrecent times there have been moves worldwide to measure this quality (Organization forEconomic Co-operation and Development, 1989; NBEET, 1989). This became more urgent inAustralia with the production of a national survey of Australia's schooling for use incomparisons within Australia and to allow Australia to take part in international surveys(Curriculum Corporation, 1992). Consequently there are moves to provide indicators whichcan be used for the international comparisons but which are relevant to the Australiansituation. Of the ten goals for Australian schooling, the first is to provide qualityeducation and student learning outcomes form one part out of the five that the nationalreport will monitor (Ainley and Fordham, 1991: 104). Consequently student learningoutcomes form part of the profile of an Australian education course and are used in thisstudy in that context.

Outcomes. The National report on schooling in Australia (CurriculumCorporation, 1992) measures educational outcomes in terms of three indicators. The firstis student retention and completion. This statistical indicator enables targets to be setby government. The second indicator is continuation rates to tertiary study. This isalready an objective of most secondary curricula, and DEET reports use indicators such aseducational and labour market destinations (Ainley and Fordham, 1991: 107). The finalmeasure is satisfaction with school life. There is little evidence in the literature thatmost of this current focus on indicators looks at education globally and not justtraditional classroom education. It should be remembered that schooling in any form is notisolated and that its effectiveness is determined, in part, by many outside factors,making valid measures extremely difficult. Also, the specified student outcomes aregeneralizations, with the expectation that a high proportion of, but not necessarily all,students will achieve these on every occasion. Opposing all this Masters (1991: 6) assertsthat in Australia presently we have no reliable performance indicators for the studentoutcomes. He argues that the only valid assessments currently are 'those informal, global,qualitative evaluations that teachers make as part of their day-to-day work' and that alltoo often comparisons are made based on criteria which are a small sub-set of theseunpretentious teacher evaluations. Ainley and Fordham support this stating that 'theeffectiveness of schooling cannot be explained by a small set of interrelated factors'(1991: 105). These perspectives imply that global quantitative measures of educationaloutcomes can provide only limited indicators of effectiveness. Keegan devises criteria,which include the quantity and quality of learning, as measures of suitability and gradesa variety of distance education institutions against these. Kemmis adds our 'choices seemnot to be about the usefulness of the technology (for better or worse it was designed tobe useful), they are about its wise use' (1980a: 205). Part of this wise use willbe its effectiveness. Holmberg (1989: 204) extends the notion of effectiveness. Althoughhe is loathe to compare distance education with conventional education or describe itgenerally as effective, ineffective, good or bad, he does support the notion of applyingevaluation criteria to a particular distance education situation. He considers variousforms of distance education course evaluation, such as comparison with course objectives,and supports the use of a variety of these according to the particular circumstances. Insearching the literature there is a plethora of perspectives on measures of effectiveness,so any attempt to evaluate effectiveness must be multi-dimensional. Therefore, in thisstudy, student attitudes towards the teaching and learning situation is one aspectconsidered. The second is the learning outcomes in mathematics, but comparison of thelearning outcomes of the distance education students with the learning outcomes oftraditional education students is not a major area for consideration. The third aspect isthe comparison of the outcomes with the goals of the program.

Reflection. One of the national goals for schooling is to bring students tothe point where they become independent learners, so in considering the effectiveness of aprogram, it is of interest to investigate the steps taken to encourage responsibility fortheir own learning among the students (Burge, 1989: 48). This leads Nunan (1990) topropose that one of the first steps in independent learning is to advocate that learnersreflect on what they have learned. Candy, Harri-Augstein and Thomas (1985) refer tocommentary on the learning process, personal support of the student's reflection and benchmarks for students to evaluate their learning competence. This is reflection as part ofthe learning process of a student within a course. The provision of the opportunity forsuch reflection would normally be considered in the evaluation of a course.

On a more global scale is the opportunity to reflect on current classroom practicesenabling both students and teacher to examine the education and educational processesused. Kemmis (1980a) supports such a model of 'self-reflection in a critical community'.Kemmis (1980b) sees 'evaluation as the process of marshalling information and argumentswhich enables interested individuals and groups to participate in the critical debate (theprocess of self-direction) about a program.' The evaluator must make the community of theprogram, a community of inquirers. Such a self-reflective approach is usually going oninformally and can be disciplined, utilized and extended by evaluators easingcommunication between groups. Building self-reflection into an investigation then wouldhave the effect of enriching the students' learning experiences as well as using theirreflections in the evaluation of the effectiveness of the program.

Evidence of effectiveness. Most government documents view distance educationas an attempt to simulate a face-to-face teaching situation. Holmberg (1989: 93) arguesthat it is tradition and negative prejudices which place the worth of face-to-faceteaching above that of non-contiguous forms of study in achieving educational goals. Inthe cognitive and psychomotor domains he cites Granholm (1973: 6) as evidence thatstudents learn mathematics 'at least as well' by distance education as by conventionalmethods and Childs who notes that there are,

no studies of achievement which show that [they] do less well than do classroom students, a number which show that they do as well, and a number which show that they do better.
(Childs, 1965: 81)

In neither of these cases is strong evidence cited to support the claims. Kaeley (1988;1989), however, in a systematic survey, found that when entire populations of distanceeducation and traditional groups were matched, the traditional groups achieved better inpost-secondary mathematics. However, when students are paired by ability then suchdifferences disappeared. The implication of this then, is that while students studying bydistance education are weaker academically than on-campus students, the mode ofinstruction itself does not lead to a big difference in the learning of the students. Long(1992: 55) opposes this view in that he found that in the initial year at the tertiarylevel, even taking all variables into consideration, that 'there is still some evidence ofmarginally higher failure rates for off-campus students'. Some of the variables heconsiders are the nature of the courses, the different withdrawal rates for on-campus andoff-campus students, the different universities, inequities in the administrativeprocedures and the range of student backgrounds. Other variables which he discounts ashaving little effect are age, sex, non-English speaking background and employment.However, he also concludes that 'academic performance of off-campus students ... moreclosely approximates that of on-campus students when both groups are not in the initialyear of enrolment'. Thus any comparison between the learning outcomes of the two forms ofeducation should take place late in the program between groups of students with similarmathematical backgrounds, following similar courses and being taught by comparably capableteachers.

Evaluation of a program can take many forms. One of these is to consider the outcomesof a program to reveal the level of achievement of the goals of the program. Hewton (1991:1) in searching for indicators to measure performance in education, tells us that 'Thereare many indicators of the status and health of an educational enterprise, but the mostbasic and important indicators ... are ... student attitudes and competencies'.Consequently this study will focus on these outcomes as indicators of the effectiveness ofthe program.

Attitude Outcomes
McLeod (1994: 639) in an overview of mathematics education research this century,noted that many early studies considered the relationship between attitude and achievementbut without the development of a strong theoretical background rendering the resultsobtained questionable. He goes on to show that during the 1970s attitude was defined asenjoyment and worth and measures were developed, while in the 1980s the divisions wereextended to include perception of the mathematics teacher, anxiety, self-confidence inmathematics and motivation. More recent research on problem solving in mathematics, forexample Leder (1988), considers this problem of multiple perspectives on attitude andadopts an open approach to capture the complexity of the issues.

Attitudes are influenced by students' experiences, peers, home, school, community andthe media (Curriculum Corporation, 1991). A positive attitude is demonstrated by a senseof purpose, confidence in the ability to succeed, pride in achievement and pleasure in theuse of mathematics. However, results show (Middleton, 1995: 254) that generally teachersare not aware of what motivates students, but if they are, then their teaching is moreeffective and students learn better. Schiefele and Csikszentmihalyi (1995: 163) found thatinterest and achievement mutually influence one another so that individual differences instudent backgrounds and ability will result in differing needs for motivation andreactions to motivation. The fact that achievement, interest and positive attitude arerelated indicates that it is useful to examine both the students' attitudes towardslearning mathematics itself and towards learning using teleconferencing.

Attitudes Towards Learning Mathematics
Ainley and Fordham (1991: 114) discuss indicators of the quality of school life andcorrelations with other factors. In investigating teacher-student relationships, thestudents' sense of academic success and worth within the school and social identity, theyconclude that satisfaction with school life is not necessarily associated with academicsuccess. This is at variance with much current work being done on attitudes towardsmathematics and resultant mastery. Over the past decade many mathematics educators havestudied the connection between student attitudes towards mathematics and theirachievement, and participation. They conclude that 'positive attitudes assist the learningand teaching of mathematics' (Department of Education, 1989b: 16). Most mathematicscurriculum documents, therefore, stress the importance of a positive attitude.Consequently careful examination should be made of the satisfaction with school life andpositive attitudes towards mathematics.

One view of education is that it aims to empower students so that they can interpretthe world around them either globally, on the scale of Paul Davies or Stephen Hawking, orfrom a more defined perspective. The small section of that education being considered hereis that of mathematics. The national statement on mathematics for Australian schoolsoutlines the '... understandings, skills and processes and knowledge which should betypically be made available to students' (Curriculum Corporation, 1991: 2). That is, thestudents should have the opportunity to study the specified areas of mathematics butwithout the compulsion to do so. The British Cockcroft Report (1982) is more direct instating that confidence is an essential part of mathematics education. A test formathematics education is to develop in students both the attitudes and knowledge whichwill allow them to handle conventional tasks efficiently and also to manage novel orunfamiliar tasks. Having a positive attitude towards mathematics means generally enjoyingworking with mathematics and having confidence in one's own ability to do it but it doesnot mean that a student will display this positive attitude towards the whole area ofmathematics all the time. The public perception that students dislike mathematics,together with peer pressure which makes success in mathematics socially unacceptable, arepotential forces in the opposite direction (Booker et al., 1992: 16). Students see it asimportant to society but not to themselves (Schiefele and Csikszentmihalyi, 1995). Theemphasis should be on encouraging students to achieve, take risks, see its importance indaily life and in future careers (Mathematical Sciences Education Board and NationalResearch Council, 1989).

This highlights the view that there is more to education than the acquisition ofknowledge. Motivation, attitudes, beliefs, behaviours and the desire to continue learningare also important outcomes. Holmberg (1989: 26) holds that distance education can beeffective in bringing about such an attitude change. This is important in that the neteffect of mathematics instruction is usually to convince school leavers that they cannotdo mathematics at all.

Attitudes Towards Learning Using Teleconferencing
It is one of the roles of a teacher to provide a favourable learning environment leadingto student learning and achievement of course and school objectives (Medley, Coker andSoar, 1984: 61). If the use of the technology is in the interests of the students(Department of Education, 1989a) it is important to determine the attitudes of thestudents and their teachers (who have the potential to influence the students) towards it.The teachers of the students fall into two categories as Campion (1991: 12) says technophilesand technophobes. The one group is anxious to support teaching with the technology,the other resents the efforts that have to be made to master it or alternatively ignoresit. The attitudes of other groups may also influence the students - parents,administrators and the local community. The attitude of the education theorists can alsoaffect the participants. Some theorists view the use of technologies such asteleconferencing in education with some scepticism - people such as Peters (1989) who seestechnology as an element in the industrialization of education or Harris (1991: 58) whocautions that technologies are being introduced for political rather than educationalreasons. Burt (1991: 100) considers the social aspects - the situation in which studentsfind themselves, which necessitates the use of the technology, stressing that this cultureunderpins the technology and fashions the student attitudes towards the use of thetechnology. There is a need to determine how students and teachers actually feel about thetechnologies which form a part of the education and to determine their preferred learningstyles in order to make some comparison (Barnes and Owens, 1992) between the two.Consequently this study investigates the educational environment which the technologysupports, the preferred learning styles of the students and the attitudes of theparticipants towards the use of teleconferencing in teaching mathematics.

Learning Outcomes
Generally in judging the standard of a mathematics course, tests of various types are usedto evaluate student progress. This is based on the premise that 'not only shouldcurriculum and assessment content be aligned, but also the goals, objectives andinstructional approaches should be aligned with the assessment tasks' (Chandler andBrosnan, 1995: 122).

In evaluating mathematics courses Ellerton and Clements (1990: 209) state that 'thereare certain basic mathematical understandings, knowledge and skills that all studentsshould acquire, and certain opportunities and learning experiences that they should have'.A command of mathematical terminology and verbal, symbolic, diagrammatic and graphicalrepresentations are essential aspects of numeracy. Students need to learn not only aboutmathematics but the techniques through which it is produced and applied. Holmberg (1989:12) supports this broadened notion of mathematics adding that distance education withpenetrating assessment procedures will ensure depth of learning with students directedaway from texts towards the actual subject matter.

Gagné notes that in mathematics, rules are built up in a hierarchy, being generatedfrom pre-requisite rules which in turn are based on previously learned discriminations.Being able to use these basic mathematical procedures automatically enables more globalperspectives of a problem to be formed. These basic mathematical procedures are the toolsfor problem solving. From there 'once concepts have been mastered, the individual is readyto learn an amount of knowledge that is virtually without limit' (Gagné, 1970: 188).'Students need to recognize when mathematics might be useful, choose the mathematics, dothe mathematics, and evaluate its effectiveness in the circumstances' (CurriculumCorporation, 1991: 13). Therefore, in order for students to continue learning inmathematics, they must be encouraged to learn skills and then use those skillsappropriately. Consequently the learning outcomes investigated comprise knowledge ofmathematics, understanding of the history and derivation of that knowledge and applicationof that knowledge and, together with the attitudes fostered in the course, are used in theevaluation of the effectiveness of the teleconferencing in mathematics education.

Findings

The school visits clarified the context in which the particular mathematics coursechosen is taught. The study focuses on a cluster of schools in which the students followthe standard New South Wales Department of School Education course and undertake thenormal assessments. Teleconferencing is just one component of a course - the rest of thecourse (curriculum, textbook, lessons with tutors, examinations, etc.) is similar to thatin classes throughout the state. Student numbers changed during the time of observationbut stabilised to a core at five of the seven schools. In some schools the Diverse Use ofCommunication Technology (DUCT) microphone/speaker system is used in conjunction with thetelephone system, in other schools integrated headphone/microphone sets are used.Facsimile contact is also available between the schools and is a significant part of theteaching equipment. All schools have a separate block for the senior students withdistinct Year 11 and Year 12 rooms in which the students work at their individual studycarrels. When it is time for a teleconference lesson, students go to either a special roomor a separate region of the study room where the equipment is housed and operate it bythemselves. To assist the students, the schools also appoint an associate teacher fromamong the school staff in each subject. The associate teacher, who is not necessarily aspecialist in the subject, is given a time allowance for the position. In some cases theassociate teacher sits with the student or students during the lesson, in other cases thestudents are alone with the equipment. Students meet each other once a year and themathematics teacher visits the schools at least three times a year. Students typicallyeach week have three 20 minute teleconferencing lessons with the teacher, four 40 minuteface-to-face lessons with the associate teacher and one timetabled unsupervised lesson.However, there is variation between schools.

The course in this study is the centrally developed 2 Unit Mathematics course of theNew South Wales Board of Secondary School Studies. Content is presented in the usualorder, consistent with the accepted textbook being used. Students have tests at the end ofeach major topic, mandatory assessment tasks and prepare for the Higher School Certificateexamination at the end of Year 12. There is regular feedback on progress to studentsorally, through worksheets and tests, and to parents through regular school reports andinterviews.

Attitudes

- Attendance
Attendance has been used as one of the indicators of student attitudes towards thelearning environment. The class commenced with fifteen students. One student joined thegroup in June and seven had moved to a lower level of mathematics by September leaving abase number of nine students. The average attendance is shown in Table 2.

Table 2: Attendance at Lessons Examined

The teacher was asked the approximate percentage attendance in February and September.The estimate is above that achieved during the sessions examined. Absences were due toillness, school visits, sporting events, line failure and external deterrents such asfloods.

- Retention
Retention rate of the teleconferencing project can also be used as an indicator ofthe students' attitudes towards study. Tables 3 and 4 show the student enrolment at of thefive schools. A more detailed summary for 1990 is given by Squires and Sinclair (1993:70).

Table 3: School Enrolment in 1993

* includes 2 part-time students

 

Table 4: School Enrolment Since Program Commencement

* includes 2 part-time students

- Attitude Towards Mathematics
The students have a wide range of backgrounds and attitudes in mathematics. Theseattitudes are mostly positive with some students liking mathematics for the sheer joy andchallenge of engaging with the discipline, however, there is a big range from 1 to 10 on a10 point scale with 10 indicating liking mathematics very much. The overall average is7.4. Students like mathematics generally for its logic, accuracy and especially thepractical nature of the subject. They like using formulae and the fact that the validityor otherwise of their answers can be easily determined. They enjoy building up theirmathematical knowledge and using mathematics that they have learned previously. They likeit best when they understand where they are going and appreciate the teacher explaininghow to do a problem, talking with them, then guiding them through similar problems. Theylike being able to ask for help as they work problems through.

Some students do not like mathematics at all. They find it hard and dislike makingmistakes, especially publicly. They do not like having to remember formulae, and feelembarrassed that the teacher has to spend so much time from the lesson with them to ensuretheir understanding. They feel that the teacher does not have that time available in atwenty minute lesson.

- Attitude Towards Learning Using Teleconferencing
Students generally appreciate that without the teleconferencing they would not be able toremain at their own school or in some cases continue their education. All studentsinterviewed have a positive attitude towards studying with teleconferencing and at thetime planned to continue in Year 12 and the majority of students planned to continue studyafter Year 12.

Some typical responses of the teacher and students regarding the use of the technologyare given in Table 5.

Table 5: Some Attitudes Expressed by the Teacher and Students.

The concentrated effort needed by students during the teleconference and the accent onverbal skills and de-emphasis on blackboard work is seen by the students as both positiveand negative aspects of teleconferencing.

Most students appreciate having a bigger class with the flexibility of not joining in,if it is not necessary. They appreciate the opportunity to talk and ask questions of theteacher as well as the associate teacher. One student noted that it is not necessary tolook at the teacher during the lesson enabling concentration to write down notes duringthe lesson. Surprisingly, a number are pleased that the teacher and class cannot see them,especially when they make mistakes.

Some students find the technology limits their preferred classroom behaviour. They arenot able to just butt in when they want to as has been the norm in their face-to-faceclasses. Generally students are happy with the teacher's approach but several remotestudents commented that it is more onerous, but not impossible, to contact the teacher ifthey are experiencing difficulties. Most students commented on the limitations of the lackof visual contact and the ensuing difficulty with diagrams and in developing proofsthrough the limited contact with the facsimile machine or verbal explanations. They yearnto see the faces of their peers but not necessarily for their peers to see them. They findit hard to get all their work done on time for the short structured lessons and when theclass was larger they found it hard to correct any misunderstandings. The students areunanimous in their condemnation of the quality of the technology and find the time lost insetting up and in resolving technical breakdowns very disturbing during their shortlessons. Other administrative breakdowns they find they can cope with, although some areannoyed by the lack of preparation on the part of their some of their peers.

The learning preference scales of the students determined by the standardized ACER test(Barnes and Owens, 1992) have been broken into three sub-categories as listed in Table 6.

Table 6: Learning preference scores. Jennifer Barnes, Lee Owens,ACER, 1992

Learning Outcomes
The class undertook a skills survey to assess their understanding of the Sine Rule,and a traditional 2 Unit Mathematics class in a city school undertook the same survey. Thegraph in Figure 1 illustrates the results of the two groups when classified according tothe outcome statements categorized in A national statement on mathematics forAustralian schools. The possible total score for each outcome is also shown.

Figure 1: Student Scores Achieved Grouped According to Outcome Statements

These data can alternatively be shown as a percentage of the possible total score. Itshould be noted that the small number of students involved makes in-depth statisticalanalysis unreliable.

Figure 2: Student Scores as a Percentage of Possible Scores According to Outcome Statements

Comparison with Program Goals
In the original project set up in 1989 and implemented in 1990 there was no attemptto incorporate a 'self-reflection in a critical community model' (Carr and Kemmis, 1986)into the program on a permanent basis. However, in this study, the ideas of Nunan (1990)and Candy, Harri-Augstein and Thomas (1985) on reflection on a educational program havebeen used. The use of diaries, interviews and discussion facilitated reflection on thecourse. Table 7 shows some student reflections on the learning process categorized in aformat which illustrates students' evaluation of the course and their own learningexperience and competence.

Table 7: Some reflections of the students.

Discussion of Findings

Results indicate that there is a network of support for both the students and theteachers within the teleconferencing project. Both Squires and Sinclair (1993) and Long(1994) stress the vital role of such support with special reference to the distant andoff-campus students. The students have access to, and use, help from their peers, theassociate teacher and the teacher. The associate teachers and teacher have access to peersupport, the school teleconferencing co-ordinator, technical assistant and the clusterDistance Education Co-ordinator. This study found that support has been evident at alllevels of the teleconferencing project.

Attitudes

- Attendance
Attendance records reveal the students who persisted with the course as well as thosewho dropped to a lower level. Further investigation of the reasons for students leavingthe class could reveal factors other than those of enjoyment and career prospects thatinfluenced the students who continued. Attendance at class is below the level that theteacher estimated but it is noted that the disturbances to a normal school schedule suchas sports days or excursions, are multiplied five fold when five schools are involved. Theactual organization of the timetable would seem to be indicative of the wisdom of tradingsome individual freedom for the schools, for the efficiency of the centralized system.This could also be considered in regard to individual school events which impact on thejoint lessons with other schools. The many reasons for absence from the mathematicslessons, illustrate the disruption caused to the lessons by such events. The centralizedtimetable eliminated many difficulties and a centralized calendar could do likewise.Attendance was also affected by technical difficulties on several occasions when thebridge malfunctioned. On the whole the students seem concerned not to miss classes thusindicating their positive attitude to schooling by teleconferencing.

- Retention Rate
The total retention rate between Years 10 and 11 is just under 50% and between Years11 and 12 just above 80%, but there is much variability between schools. Although theretention to Year 12 is well below the 70.6% for the state (Australian College ofEducation, 1994: 11) it should be noted that one of the goals in setting up thisteleconferencing program is to increase the low retention rate of students in rural areas.Although some students would have continued their senior secondary education without theteleconferencing program, others would not have done so. Table 4 demonstrates that thisenrolment pattern has been steady since the inception of the program in 1990. It would beexpected that entry into the program would rise in line with the Australia wide trend, butthere are other circumstances such as declining numbers in rural areas, which would put adownwards pressure on numbers. Therefore, continued monitoring of the enrolment patternsand demography of the catchment area has the potential to clarify further the ability ofthe program to increase retention rates.

- Attitude Towards Mathematics
Most students like their mathematics and enjoy their mathematics classes. The chanceto learn mathematics with the larger group is seen as a chance to work on mathematics as ateam and the teacher facilitates this view of mathematics education during lessons.Investigation of the attitudes of the students who left the course could give a differentperspective on this. It could be that only those students with a positive attitude towardsmathematics survive when it is taught in this mode. Alternatively a student's attitudetowards mathematics may have no bearing on the decision to drop to a lower level and outof the class.

- Attitude Towards Learning Using Teleconferencing
Teleconferencing in itself does not appear to affect students' attitudes towardsmathematics, but is seen by the students rather as a tool to give them access tomathematics education. To this end it is worth noting the concern of weaker students thatthey take up a disproportionate amount of time during the lessons and ensuring that theyhave easy access to help through learning materials, the associate teacher or the subjectteacher. The dispersed nature of the preferred learning environment of the students isnoteworthy. Although they are small in number, scattered singly or in pairs over more than30,000 square kilometres, their preferences covered the whole range of co-operative,competitive and independent learning styles. This highlights the fact that even a smallclass is made up of students each with their own preferred learning style. To fully caterfor this situation, just as in a traditional class, teachers will need to use amultiplicity of teaching strategies if education is to be geared to the needs of theindividual student. The teleconferencing situation would seem to facilitate independentlearning although this is not the most favoured style. A conscious effort has to be madein this situation by the teacher, to encourage co-operative and competitive learning bythe students.

The students stress that learning by teleconferencing means that they have to prepareand pay attention more than they do in a traditional classroom. This they accept as partof the different teaching methods involved with teleconferencing. However, they do notaccept the technical breakdowns and become very annoyed when they happen. Most studentsare even less accepting of breakdowns as the year progresses. Technical difficulties dueto equipment and administrative difficulties still account for 20% of the short lessons.This would seem to be a prime area to address in improving the efficiency of the system.

Learning Outcomes
Desirable learning outcomes in this case, will be those associated with the Year 11,2 Unit Mathematics course. Although the number of students involved in the skills surveyis too small for detailed statistical analysis, and factors such as teacher competence orthe mathematical background of the students are not strictly controlled, the similarity ofthe results of the skills test is notable. The students from the city school showmarginally more familiarity with spatial concepts while the rural students' number skillsare marginally better. However, the most noticeable result is the evenness of the twogroups. Even considering the rural school results alone, it can be seen that they haveachieved the majority of the learning outcomes specified in A national statement onmathematics for Australian schools for the Sine Rule in trigonometry. It isinteresting that of the five major areas considered - working mathematically, space,number, measurement and algebra, that space is the weakest area of knowledge of thestudents. Although the trigonometry skills test is deliberately focused on this section,it may have been more appropriate to use a test that looks at more general learning areasof mathematics. Results such as those obtained, support the hypothesis of Granholm (1973)and Childs (1965) that the quality of learning is not diminished when students study bydistance education, but the small number of students involved in this case, prevents theseresults being used as evidence in their own right.

Comparison with Program Goals
In comparing the outcomes of the teleconferencing program with the original goals ofthe program, the results of the skills survey indicate that intellectual development isbeing achieved. The students themselves almost universally see their growing familiaritywith technology helping them in the technological world they are entering, although notall the students plan careers in technology or in areas that require higher education. Atthe present time a basic set of subjects is available but now that the system is in place,extension of the choices is a matter for negotiation between the schools, the Departmentof School Education and the cluster Distance Education Co-ordinator. Students universallystated that the opportunity to study locally beyond Year 10 is worthwhile. Although justunder 50% of the students are continuing on from Year 10 to Year 11 at the schools, themajority of the students stated that they would not have continued their school educationexcept for the availability of this program. As such, the program is fulfilling itsobjectives of increasing access to education for rural students and encouraging increasedretention rates in Years 11 and 12.

Conclusion

In determining the effectiveness of teleconferencing in mathematics education at theupper secondary level, this study has focused on the form of the learning environment andthe outcomes of its use. The education system, schools and individuals involved inteaching mathematics using teleconferencing in this case generally go to great lengths to'make the system work' by providing the equipment, personnel and support. Students aregenerally appreciative of the opportunity afforded to them by the project and areco-operative in their attitude.

The positive attitude of students, staff and administration towards the use ofteleconferencing is to be applauded and may be the key to the success of theteleconferencing project in retaining students at school. If this is the case then it isimportant to monitor these attitudes as the project continues and to determine whichaspects contribute to the high morale of the participants. The wide range of preferredlearning styles among the students reflect the traditional teaching situation.Consequently, teaching strategies that cater for varied learning styles should behighlighted in any professional development course. The data indicate that the audio linksprovide a vehicle for student learning and confidence building of both the students andthe teacher, however, the quality of the sound and the number of breaks in the line causefrustration among the students. In spite of this, most students prefer the substandardaudio communication to no communication at all. Teachers and students see the advantage ofan audio-graphic link in adding an extra dimension to the learning in mathematics andother subjects and this perceived need for visual contact was addressed concurrently withthis study. Again as circumstances change there is value in determining which aspects ofteaching with teleconferencing are transferable to the visual or other modes ofinstruction. It is important that the technology does not interfere with the learning, soto this end, while it is to be expected that pilot programs will have some technicaldifficulties, it is vital that the technology used is reliable, robust, maintained andadequate for the task,. This is even more important as the schools serviced by thistechnology are distant from technical assistance. The majority of students see theirfuture in rural New South Wales. With access to continuing education in rural areas beingmainly through distance education or open learning, this experience, of supportedindependent learning and access to assistance through technology, has the potential to bethe foundation for lifetime learning.

The similarity of the learning outcomes of this small number of rural students and theresults of the city school, raises many questions. These, together with previous likefindings of Granholm (1973), Childs (1965) and Kaeley (1988), should lead us to determinewhich aspects of the teaching process, common to distance education and conventionaleducation, are the important ones in learning - to resolve which aspects are needed tocater for the variety of students in a class, and ascertain those that have just lingeredon from Seventeenth Century classrooms seemingly without value. Is the use of technologyto mimic a traditional classroom exposing the strengths and weaknesses of our currentmodel of education? Is the traditional classroom the appropriate one to model? Answers tothese questions should underpin the implementation of all new distance education programs,and in fact, education programs generally.

It has been demonstrated that it is essential that the learning outcomes of thedifferent forms of education be constantly monitored to ensure appropriate parity ofresults in line with principles of equity. This research could form the basis forsubsequent longitudinal studies in addition to providing both formative and summativeevaluation data for the development of future courses and technologies. Future projectsshould capitalize on the strengths of both traditional and innovative projects in theteaching of mathematics. It is also worthwhile to consider how the technology might beused to provide new opportunities for teaching and learning mathematics with the potentialto improve not only distance education but education in its widest possible sense.

In this particular study it has been demonstrated that the teleconferencing environmentis supportive and can cater for a variety of learning styles. The results from the studyindicate that the attitudes towards the subject and towards the learning environmentprovided are positive and that the learning outcomes are comparable to those of studentsstudying in a traditional classroom. They support the hypothesis that usingteleconferencing in teaching mathematics by distance education gives the students accessto education that, although different from that available in a traditional classroom,forms an effective learning environment.

Acknowledgments

This study was undertaken as one section of a Masters thesis for Deakin University. Iwish to acknowledge the support I have received from two distinct groups in undertakingthis research. Firstly the students, staff and administrators of the schools from whichthe information is drawn. Their helpfulness and tolerance is much appreciated. Secondly,the staff of Deakin University, for enabling me to view this investigation critically andPeter Routcliffe and Robert Fitzgerald of Australian Catholic University in the initialstages of the investigation.

References

Ainley, J. and Fordham, A. (1991) The development and application of national indicators of educational effectiveness. In Hewton, J. (ed) Performance indicators in education: what can they tell us? Brisbane: Department of Education, Queensland.

Australian College of Education (March 1994) 1993 school statistics. ACE News, 13, 1,11.

Australian Education Council (1991) Creating a national framework for educational delivery. Report to the Australian Education Council by the Working Party on Collaboration of states in the use of satellite facilities for distance education Canberra: AGPS.

Barnes, J. and Owens, L. (1992) Learning preference scales. Hawthorn: ACER.

Booker, G., Briggs, J., Davey, G. and Nisbett, S. (1992) Teaching primary mathematics. Melbourne: Longman Cheshire.

Burge, E. (1989) Learner-centredness: some additional points. Journal of DistanceEducation, 4, 1, 47-50.

Burt, G. (1991) Beyond educational technology. In Technology in distance education.Geelong: Deakin University.

Calvert, J. (1995) A study of the academic results of on-campus and off-campusstudents. Report to NCODE. Toowoomba.

Campion, M. (1991) Critical essay on educational technology in distance education. InTechnology in distance education. Geelong: Deakin University.

Candy, P., Harri-Augstein, S. and Thomas, L. (1985) Reflection and the self organizedlearner: a model of learning conversations. In Boud, D., Keogh, R. and Walker, D. (eds)Reflection: turning experience into learning. London: Kogan Page.

Carr, W. and Kemmis, S. (1986) Becoming critical: education, knowledge and actionresearch. Geelong: Deakin University.

Chandler, D. and Brosnan, P. (May 1995) A comparison between mathematics textbookcontent and a statewide mathematics proficiency test. School science and mathematics,95, 3, 118-123.

Childs, G. B. (1965) Research in the correspondence instruction field. In 7th ICCEProceedings. Stockholm: ICCE.

Cockcroft, W. (1982) Mathematics counts. London: HMSO.

Curriculum Corporation (1991) A national statement on mathematics for Australianschools. Carlton: Australian Education Council.

Curriculum Corporation (1992) A national report on schooling in Australia. Carlton:Australian Education Council.

Department of Education, New South Wales (1989a) Proposals to decentralise distanceeducation provisions in NSW. Sydney: Department of Education.

Department of Education, New South Wales (1989b) Mathematics K-6. Sydney: Department ofEducation.

Department of Employment, Education and Training (1990) A fair chance for all.Canberra: AGPS.

Ellerton, N. and Clements, K. (1990) Culture, curriculum and mathematics distanceeducation. In Evans, T. (ed) Research in distance education 1. Geelong: Deakin University.

Gagné, R. (1970) The conditions of learning. 2nd edition. Bristol: Holt.

Granholm, G. (1973) Classroom teaching or home study - a summary of research onrelative efficiency. Epistolodidaktika, 2, 6-10.

Harris, D. (1991) Towards a critical educational technology in distance education. InEvans, T. and King, B. (eds) Technology in distance education. Geelong: Deakin University.

Hewton, J. (1991) Performance indicators in education: what can they tell us? Brisbane:Department of Education, Queensland.

Holmberg, B. (1989) Theory and practice of distance education. London: Routledge.

Jones, B. (1983) Sleepers, wake! Technology and the future of work. Melbourne: OxfordUniversity Press.

Kaeley, G. S. (January 1988) Distance versus face-to-face learning: a mathematics testcase. ICDE Bulletin, 16, 54-64.

Kaeley, G. S. (January 1989) Instructional variables and mathematics achievement inface-to-face and distance teaching modes. ICDE Bulletin, 19, 15-30.

Keegan, D. (1990) Foundations of distance education. New York: Routledge.

Kemmis, S. (1980a). Program evaluation in distance education: against thetechnologisation of reason. Keynote address, National Workshop on Distance Teaching,Townsville College of Advanced Education and Australian and South Pacific External StudiesAssociation. In Distance teaching and learning 1: Study guide. Geelong: Deakin University.

Kemmis, S. (1980b) Seven principles for program evaluation in curriculum developmentand innovation. Geelong: Deakin University.

King, B., Newell, C., Walker, J. and Grace, M. (1991) Access and equity in distanceeducation. Geelong: Deakin University.

Leder, G. (May 1988) Teacher-student interaction: the mathematics classroom. Unicorn,14, 2, 107-111.

Linke, R., et al. (1984) Report of a study group on the measurement of quality andefficiency in Australian higher education. Canberra: CTEC.

Long, M. (1992) A study of the academic results of on-campus and off-campus students.Hawthorn: Australian Council for Educational Research.

Long, M. (1994) A study of the academic results of on-campus and off-campus students:comparative performance within four Australian tertiary institutions. Commissioned ReportNumber 34, NBEET. Canberra: Australian Government Publishing Service.

McLeod, D. (1994) Research on affect and mathematics learning in the Journal forresearch in mathematics education: 1970 to the present. Journal for research inmathematics education, 25, 6, 637-647.

Masters, G. (1991) Improving assessment of student outcomes. In Hewton, J. (ed)Performance indicators in education: what can they tell us? Brisbane: Department ofEducation, Queensland.

Mathematical Sciences Education Board and National Research Council (1989) Everybodycounts: a report to the nation on the future of mathematics education. Washington:National Academy Press.

Medley, D., Coker, H. and Soar, R. (1984) Measurement-based evaluation of teacherperformance. New York: Longman.

Middleton, J. (1995) A study of intrinsic motivation in the mathematics classroom: apersonal constructs approach. Journal for research in mathematics education, 26,3, 254-279.

Mousley, J. and Rice, M. (1990) Pedagogical evaluation and change: teaching andresearch in mathematics distance education. In Evans, T. (ed) Research in distanceeducation 1. Geelong: Deakin University.

National Board for Employment, Education and Training (1989) Teacher. Canberra: AGPS.

NSW Teachers Federation (1993) NSW Teachers Federation Central Schools Policy.

Nunan, T. (1990) Evaluation of distance teaching - a review of techniques andstandards. Paper presented to workshop Improved distance education in agriculture, 17-19September 1990. Glenormiston, Victoria: Victorian College of Agriculture and Horticulture.

Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (1989) Schools and quality; aninternational report. Paris.

Peters, O. (1989) The iceberg has melted: further reflections on the concept ofindustrialization and distance learning. Open Learning, 4, 3, 3-9.

Rashid, M., Majido, O., Ibrahim, A. and Nordin, M. (1992) Research in teleconferencing:proximics and student participation. In Evans, T. and Juler, P. (eds) Research in distanceeducation 2. Geelong: Deakin University.

Robson, J. (1996) The effectiveness of teleconferencing in fostering interaction ineducation. Submitted for publication in Distance Education.

Robson, J., Routcliffe, P. and Fitzgerald, R. (1991) Remote schooling and informationtechnology. Canberra: Australian Catholic University.

Schiefele, U. and Csikszentmihalyi, M. (March 1995) Motivation and ability as factorsin mathematics experience and achievement. Journal for research in mathematicseducation, 26, 2, 163-181.

Snowdon, W. (1992) Education, equity and the crisis in the rural economy. InProceedings of the Research in education in rural Australia conference. Alice Springs.

Squires, D. and Sinclair, R. (1993) 'I can be near my horses' Assessing senior secondary schooling through telematics in New South Wales rural schools. Bathurst: Charles Sturt University.

Author

Joan Robson is a former teacher and presently a lecturer in the Faculty of Education.