ally and practically, that the Internet is a volatile and changing virtual environment. The task force will take great pains to include only the most stable of network services when listing resources and groups for the faculty who will need to implement the strategy, which is a good solution to the problem of changing offerings on the Internet, but by no means a fool-proof one.
The Internet is a collection of more than 32,000 interconnected computer networks around the world that make it possible to share information almost instantly. The networks are owned by countless commercial, research, governmental, and educational organizations and individuals. The Internet allows the more than 75 million computers and 200 millions users of the system to collaborate easily and quickly through messaging, discussion groups, and conferencing.
Users are able to discover and access people and information, distribute information, and experiment with new technologies and services. The Internet has become a major global infrastructure for education, research, professional learning, public service, and business and is currently growing at the rate of about 32 percent per month.
Internet access also makes contact with people all over the world possible, bringing into the classroom experts in every content area, new and old friends, and colleagues in education. With access to the Internet, the El Salaam sites can become a valuable source of information as well.
The first step in the implementation plan is to recruit an interested and dedicated businessman or businesswoman from the community to head up the task force. This is essential, since too often in inter faculty task forces, the agendas of various departments can clutter and obfuscate the agenda. A businessperson, someone based in the ôrealö as opposed to the ôacademicö world can be expected to maintain a firmer focus on the issues at hand (Broad & Newstrom, 1992).
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