Book Reviews / Comptes Rendus 137 the institution decidedly (moving) from individual and community betterment to economic ends," essentially "development sites for work-force preparation" (p. 170). The "light and dark side" to the "implications of the learning college" are scrutinized against the backdrop of data and discussion about the globalizing community college. There is a particular charm and promise to this book. Levin captures so many of the current debates and discussions ebbing and flowing from an emerging literature about the community colleges, that it becomes increasingly obvious that this book is going to find its way to the A lists of required reading on higher education syllabi. Levin makes it clear that the "trajectory of change for the community college" (p. 180) is away from its roots in the local community, and toward his concept of a globalized institution. He laments that the "one needful thing" (citing Carlise, p. 181) which is "neglected or absent" in this globalizing community college is "attention to student and community needs for a more diverse form of education, a form that is not a mere consequence of economic priorities" (p. 181). It has not escaped Dr. Levin that the community college may end by wishing, despite the vicissitudes, promise and power of globalization, to find its way back to those roots which made it such a successful and powerful higher education invention in the first place. ^ ^ ^ Hanna, D.E., Glowacki-Dudka, M., & Coneiçâo-Runlee, S. (2000). 147 Practical Tips for Teaching Online Groups: Essentials of Webbased Education. Madison, Wl: Atwood Publishing. Pages: 94. Price: $12.50 USD. Reviewed By Denise Stockley, Queen's University. Teaching in online environments involves more than just putting up lecture notes, as the environment lends itself to a rich and varied educational experience for the learners. For example, instructors may want to include discussions groups, interactive activities, multi-media, and online assessments. Getting a sense of the possibilities can be difficult, The Canadian Journal of Higher Education Volume XXXII, No. 1, 2002 138 Book Reviews / Comptes Rendus as there are a wide variety of handbooks, manuals, and courses that offer help to instructors to develop courses, however, what if you want just a snippet of information, just-in-time and just enough. The book, 147 Practical Tips for Teaching Online Groups: Essentials of Web-Based Education, is a perfect example of this genre, as it provides a wealth of information about teaching online and in bite-sized chunks. These tips are based on literature in this area, the authors' own experiences teaching online, and their feedback from online learners Most tips are only a paragraph in length and provide a snapshot of what or how the tip can be implemented. Having said that, some tips, like Tip 2 on designing your philosophy of teaching and learning are several pages or Tip 109, design strategies for assessing learners' characteristics and building learners' self-knowledge, fill an entire page. Therein may lie the problem for some readers, the tips, although easily digestible, provide only limited information and anyone wanting to find out more information would have to use additional sources (a number of which are offered in the online resource and bibliography sections). However, some readers may also view these small chunks as an advantage for those individuals who want to get just a flavour about the opportunities and challenges faced in online teaching. The authors focus on teaching to groups rather than focusing on individual learning. Specifically, they emphasize, "creative and interactive learning that involves significant and continuous participation and interaction among learners and teachers." Further, they recommend that these tips could be used in multiple online settings, including K-12, postsecondary, and workplace settings. Having been involved in each of these settings, I think that many of the tips have applicability to all three environments, but are worded in a way that lends their immediate adoption to the postsecondary environment. The book is organized around four themes: pre-instruction tips for teaching online; dispelling myths and constraints; organizing your course; and tips on implementation. Within each of these themes are sub-themes. The tips range from theoretical issues to direct practical implications for the online classroom. The Canadian Journal of Higher Education Volume XXXII, No. 1, 2002 Book Reviews / Comptes Rendus 139 The first chapter of the book, "Before You Begin," provides 42 tips on what a course developer needs to think about before making the decision to teach online. Tips in this section include: determining your philosophy of teaching and learning; being a team player, learning new skills for teaching online; and what to expect online from the technology, yourself, and the learners. This chapter provides a fairly good overview of the issues involved in making the decision to teach online. Chapter 2, "Myths and Constraints of Online Teaching and Learning" provides 18 tips to try to dispel or overcome the constraints. The myths focus on leaner and instructor roles, and technology concerns. The constraints involve fear of technology, levels of ability, access, language issues, disabilities, and overcoming time zones issues. Many of these tips provide only superficial solutions to serious concerns and could easily be expanded to correspond with the number of tips provided in other sections of the book. The emphasis in Chapter 3, "Organizing the Online Course," focuses on setting goals, objectives, creating a course syllabus (and what should be included), and on how to evaluate student learning. This section provides 47 tips that can be easily integrated in online teaching. For example, the section on evaluation provides quick tips on using multiple assessment techniques online, including quizzes, essays, portfolios, interviews, reflective papers, peer and/or self-assessment, and ways to collect feedback from students on the course. The final Chapter 4, "Beginning Instruction in the Online Course: Implementing the Course Design," provides 40 tips relating to teaching activities, strategies, creating learning communities, and last words. This chapter will be useful for individuals interested in moving beyond putting their course notes online and finding activities that fit into their discipline and style of teaching. The authors set the tone of the book from the beginning with their preface that introduces their experiences, as well as their results from a medieval personality test. The book is personable and easy to read, and although each tip can be read individually, they are written so that they are part of a larger picture. This book has only 74 pages, and therefore is a quick read (quicker if you are looking for a specific tip) and for under The Canadian Journal of Higher Education Volume XXXII, No. 1, 2002 140 Book Reviews / Comptes Rendus $20 Canadian it is a relatively cheap investment. Further, Hanna, Glowacki-Dudka, and Coneiçâo-Runlee do not base their tips on any one platform or technology, which means their tips will be applicable beyond our current technology. I think an instructor teaching with technology for the first time can use these tips, and the more experienced professor may find a gem that they can apply in their teaching as well. However, for the more experienced professor the tips will appear as common sense, things they already do or have thought about, and for the new instructor the tips will not provide enough information to be able to implement them effectively. Having said that, this book was not written to be a comprehensive guide in teaching and learning online, rather it is excellent for starting the dialogue for using technology for teaching online groups. The Canadian Journal of Higher Education Volume XXXII, No. 1, 2002