AJET 2(2) (1986) - Editorial

Editorial

This year has seen a number of new developments in the field. Of note is the development of Australia's first videodisc designed for schools Ask the Workers . . . produced for the Western Australian Branch of the Australian Deafness Council by the Australian Caption Centre. A main player in this feat was the AJET business manager James Steele with a little design help from the editor! The common use of this type of technology in the form of CD-ROM will also prove interesting for education in that it can provide cheap and efficient storage of large amounts of printed material. We are fast approaching the time when each child can have access to an encyclopedia for the cost of a compact disc, and, as I have been advocating for a long time, the videodisc can be used to provide for all the slide needs of classroom teachers. In fact, it would be reasonably economical to provide every teacher with a personal 108,000 item slide collection on videodisc. This new technology integrates the aural, visual and data formats to produce the truly integrated package. However, in a society with this technology, the skills required to find and retrieve all the available information become critical for survival.

In this excitement of the new and novel, it is tempting to overlook the existing technologies which have served the educational establishment for many years. This issue of AJET has as a special focus the role of educational radio today. In putting this issue together, we have tried to provide a variety of perspectives. To do so, we have twisted a few arms of busy people and asked them to reflect upon what they are doing and where you might expect the new developments to occur. In addition, we have included a number of related project reports which provide a coalface perspective on the use of telecommunications for reaching out to specific audiences.

We have been delighted to receive the support for the journal as it makes its way through a second volume and fourth issue, the advent of new technology is making the task easier and the editors look forward to articles which focus upon innovations in thought, educational design, and equipment.

In the next issue we hope to bring you some of the highlights of the 1986 ASET conference in Perth, and for the following issue, we would like contributors to focus upon "Technology and the selling of education". If you are interested in contributing please send materials to us before the deadlines (May 25th, and October 26th, 1987) and preferably a hard copy with a disc (IBM or Macintosh format).

John G Hedberg

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