Internet Vs. Development Of Contemporary Higher Education

In 1990s, following the development of traditional media such as newspapers, movies and TV, Internet has been growing into the forth-largest medium. However, as a matter of fact, Internet is only a technique instrument. It has already been proved that each significant breakout in science and technology will impose profound effect on human society, sparing no field. As we all know, society is a super-system consisted of numerous sub-systems, coordinated with each other. Therefore, when there comes out a social alteration caused by any new technology, not only the influence brought by this technology, but also influence resulted from other sub-systems ought to be comprehended, for the purpose of keeping education developing in the correct direction. However, contemporary research papers usually watch only how Net technologies are implied in education, without considering indirect effects on education. These indirect effects are generally imposed by the Net, but throughout other sub-systems. Thus, from the perspective of society, the super-system, this paper has established itself in analyzing development of education under circumstances of the Net. Except its own implication in the field of education, the Internet, as an individual sub-system, is actually a further neighbor to education than economy and culture. Therefore, this research has been justified to approach the issue of Internet's effects on education, and explore possible courses for education's future development. First, techniquely speaking, the emergence of Internet extends both means and approaches of education, signified by modern distant education--Web education. After a careful consideration on both the advantages and disadvantages of Web education, we believe that in order to fasten education development, methods of education ought to be melted and remolded into a multi-means education system, when Web education is on the highway. Second, economically speaking, the expansion of Internet has affected education on both its majors structure and courses structure. Suggested by its economic task, education has to match economic configuration with its own. Moreover, application of computers and Internet in economy has resulted in an industry revolution, represented by the emergence of various sunset industries and the reorganization of traditional industries. Therefore, education is required to make corresponding adjustments on its composition of majors and courses. What's more, culturally speaking, the growth of Internet will be companied by a slow but sure improvement about what is education. Also, with updates of Web techniques, an innovative culture, Web culture, comes out. This new culture is centered on both liberty and democracy. On one hand, the equilibration on acquiring new information has questioned that teachers are authorities where students obtaining their knowledge. On the other hand, an ideology as it is, Web culture will not be only contained in the cyber space, but impose its weight on other human social activities, including education. Consequently, the instructor-student relationship is facing a new challenge. Last, but not the least, this research has also forecasted the prospect progress of Web-age-education. In summary, as for a nation, the course of education has to be an enormous, complicated systematic project, whose development are resulted from both rectified judgments and strategies based on a logical ground. Only after a sound consideration has been given to both advantages and disadvantages of Web's influence on education development, and only after strong points from other fields have been introduced to offset its weakness, can China's education course be prosperous and soundly developed.