ABSTRACT

Online education continues to be a growth area in education but many of the frustrations in universities seem to stem from the expense of new equipment, the speed of change and the need for continual updating. Universities have tight budgets, and securing funds for new systems to support online learning seems to be a constant battleground. There continue to be debates too, about the form and content of online education, and this has been captured by Mason who has argued that: ‘Many computer-based teaching programs whether stand alone, or on an Intranet or the Web, fall into one of two categories: all glitz and no substance, or content that reflects a rote-learning, right/wrong approach to learning’ (Mason, 1998: 4).