A congressional commission created to explore the potential of online education has called for the 107th Congress and the new administration to "embrace an 'e-learning' agenda as a centerpiece of the nation's federal education policy." The committee recommends lifting the rules that limit the number of classes students working toward degrees and receiving financial aid can take via distance education.

In a well-documented report, "The Power of the Internet for Learning: Moving from Promise to Practice," the Web-based Education Commission chronicles the surge of Internet activity in recent years and sketches out a framework for shaping the next decade. After a year of intensive study, the commission concluded that online education has the potential to address many of the reform challenges that vex students and educators at all levels--elementary through postsecondary. It recommends that government lift regulatory barriers that impede technology's expansion into the education world and further, set policies that promote the access and use of online education for all.

"Based on the findings of our report," says the executive summary, "the commission believes a national mobilization is necessary, one that evokes a response similar in scope to other great American opportunities--or crises: Sputnik and the race to the moon, bringing electricity and phone service to all corners of the nation, finding a cure for polio."

The bipartisan, 16-member commission came about as part of the 1998 reauthorization of the Higher Education Act. Its mission was to study how the World Wide Web is affecting learning and what potential it holds for the future. In particular, the commission looked at these policy areas:

• technology trends;
• pedagogy;
• access and equity;
• technology costs;
• teacher training and support;
• regulatory barriers;
• standards and assessment;
• accreditation and certification;
• intellectual property protection;
• online privacy and protection;
• new learning institutions;
• research and development; and
• marketplace stability.

The commission, made up of five members of Congress, six representatives from the education world and five from the business community, held five public hearings and heard from hundreds, who testified live or via mail and e-mail. The AFT was among the education organizations that weighed in, citing the results of its own studies on quality issues for online education. It shared the guidelines for good practice in distance education that were outlined in a resolution passed at the AFT biennial convention last summer.

In its report, the commission makes clear that information technology is radically transforming all aspects of society, the workplace and the national economy. Yet, despite extraordinary leaps in the use of technology in schools and colleges in the past five years, the education world is still coming slowly to the revolution. Schools are wired, but there is a serious need for greater access to broadband connectivity. Computers are in the classroom, but teachers are not being trained (through professional development) in how to incorporate them into their teaching. Even new teachers have only passing exposure to technology as a teaching tool, the commission found.

The report notes that while the U.S. Office of Technology Assessment urged districts in 1995 to allocate 30 percent of their technology budgets for teacher training and support, schools put in only 6 percent. In 1999-2000 the figure was up to 17 percent, but for the most part, teachers are expected to pursue training on their own time with their own money.

In higher education, the terrain is changing rapidly: Enrollment growth of 22 percent is expected during the next decade. There is an increasing need for workers to have some postsecondary education. Traditional students, ages 18 to 22 who attend full time and live on campus, make up less than 20 percent of the college population. Today's students are older and attend part time. Traditional institutions have a declining share of the postsecondary education market, with for-profit institutions rushing to cash in. Also, 40 percent of Fortune 500 companies have established corporate universities; by 2010, the number of these universities is expected to exceed the number of traditional universities.

The online education business may be booming, but sticky questions remain. Is online education as effective as face-to-face instruction? The commission calls for more research into this. What can be done to bring schools of education up to speed with the needs of the next generation of teachers and their students? Can states be persuaded to allocate resources for staff development for teachers that are on a par with what businesses routinely put into staff development for their employees? How can privacy and security online be ensured? Who will guarantee quality? Will accreditation for online courses, programs and institutions need to be revamped? What about intellectual property rights and copyright concerns, which are unresolved despite much discussion?

The commission issues a call for action to:

• make the extension of broadband access for all learners the central goal of telecommunications policy;
• provide for the continual growth of educators and administrators in the use of Web-based technology;
• reconfigure educational research to better understand how people learn and the tools that support learning gains;
• revise outdated regulations that impede anytime/anywhere learning;
• protect learners in the online environment;
• provide adequate funding.

The call for these measures "is right on target," said AFT president Sandra Feldman when the report was released. She lent a note of caution, however, noting that AFT members who teach distance education courses have stated their conviction that students need a balance of online and face-to-face learning. Also, "while unfair barriers should be removed," she agreed, "Congress is obligated to ensure that aid is given only to students with demonstrable financial need who are taking high-quality, demanding coursework at responsible institutions."