Using the Internet as a Supplemental Instructional Tool for Biology Teachers

Abstract

PAUL Baran conceived of the Internet, a communications network that is organized in a ‘‘net,’’ rather than in a straight line, point-to-point chain. In 1969, the first site, or ‘‘host,’’ was established for the first computer network at UCLA, followed by hosts at Stanford, the University of California at Santa Barbara, and the University of Utah. By 1971, this ‘‘net’’ had grown to 15 sites, and by 1973, the ‘‘net’’ was connected internationally. The word ‘‘Internet’’ was finally used for the first time in 1982 (1). By 1984, the number of hosts exceeded 1000; by 1987, the number exceeded 10,000; and by 1989, it surpassed 100,000 (2). The World Wide Web (WWW), which uses text, graphics and audio to present information, was conceived by Tim Berners-Lee in 1989 (3). In 1992, the WWW was released to the public (4), and the number of hosts exceeded 1,000,000 (2). Use of the Internet and World Wide Web (WWW) has increased dramatically in the recent past. The explosive growth of the Internet has created a large array of information on myriad subjects. This offers a unique opportunity for teachers to increase their effectiveness of instruction. A recent Nielsen survey determined that 47% of people use their computers for business purposes (5). Of this 47%, education is the most prevalent primary business activity cited, accounting for 16.7% of respondents. Health/medical/dental business activity accounts for 4.2% and research/development/laboratory activity accounts for only 1.3% of respondents. Another recent survey indicates that the number of Americans using the Internet is nearly 10 million, with almost 8 million of these users accessing the WWW. Over half of these Internet users began using the Internet as recently as 1995 (5). One other survey found that corporate users make up almost half (46.0%) of all Internet users, whereas academic users (15%) lag behind even recreational consumers (27.0%) (6). Thus, although the Internet is especially useful for scientists, its use is still limited for scientific endeavors. That is unfortunate,