Connexions should be considered an experimental site although it is already highly developed. All of the courses and learning objects currently available are restricted to the field of Electrical and Computer Engineering (nine courses, plus a tutorial on the custumized XML language, CNXML, used in the Connexions project). However anyone interested in online learning resources should spend time carefully examining the approach taken by the Connexions developers; it is significantly different than the approaches taken by MERLOT and by the MIT OpenCourseWare developers, but equally ambitious. (Connexions does deliberately relate their work to both MERLOT and OCW.) The larger goal of Connexions is to develop open source materials in Science, Engineering and the Humanities: "Connexions is a collaborative, community-driven approach to authoring, teaching, and learning that conveys the dynmamic continuum of knowlege."
The best viewing of the course contents requires downloading Connexions Roadmap software that is compatible with the latest Netscape and Mozilla browsers. As viewers will discover, the use of specialized instructional software allows the courses to be richly developed, especially in the use of mathematical expresssions and the display of engineering diagrams. Connexions sets a high standard for science and technical courses, a standard that is likely to be emulated.
Connexions aims to provide open access to both course contents and to course development tools. Using the instructional tools requires getting a login and downloading additional software. "Connexions is an experimental, open-source/open-content project that offers an alternative to both current modes of teaching and learning as well as to how knowledge is developed and shared. In combination with powerful software tools, Connexions gives a learner (kindergartener to adult, worldwide) free access to educational materials that can be readily manipulated to suit her individual learning style as she explores links among concepts. The free software tools also foster the development, manipulation, and continuous refinement of educational material by diverse communities of authors and teachers."
Begin using Connexions by Going to Quick Start (http://cnx.rice.edu/help/qstart) to get the directions for downloading Connexions viewer software and then Explore the Repository (http://cnx.rice.edu/browse/). Getting acquainted with the Connexions approach is facilitated by reading the Connexions Whitepaper (pdf) and taking the Guided Tour found in the About (http://cnx.rice.edu/about/about.html) section of the web site.
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