The problem of this study is a description and analysis of the process used by a consortium in the development of college credit courses by television. The purposes of the study are to delineate objectives for the development by a consortium of the American Government telecourses, to describe the process used, to analyze that process relative to the objectives stated, to make recommendations for reformation of the process, and to develop a guideline model for future consortium produced telecourses. The description, analysis, and recommendations for reform are based on the experience of the author as the content editor-writer for the project. Analysis is also based on the related instructional design and telecourse development literature. Further analysis is based on the process evaluation observations of other key consortium team members involved in the development of the American Government telecourses.

Asynchronous distance education telecourses are the technological version of traditional correspondence courses. Students in asynchronous telecourses receive videos and printed material but they may not have any contact with the instructor or other students. This study analyzed the academic performance of 154 Southwest Virginia Community College students enrolled in 27 different telecourses during one semester. The purpose of this study was to determine if students' cognitive styles impacted their achievement in distance education courses. Students were given the Group Embedded Figures Test (GEFT) which categorized the students as field dependent or field independent. A field dependent's cognitive style is one that constitutes social activities whereas field independent's have a more self-mediating style, preferring solitary activities. It was hypothesized that field independent students would be more likely to complete asynchronous courses. Chi-square analysis indicated no significant differences in success (grades of A, B, C) or nonsuccess (grades of D, F, I, or W) rate for field independent-dependent students. Although females were significantly more likely to be field dependent, in the total research group and traditional age group, this did not impact their success in distance education courses. The data of this study indicate that achievement rates were not related to the variables of gender, age, or GEFT classification of the students. Future research should expand on this study by analyzing the cognitive style of students who received each of the grades (A, B, C, D, F, I, and W). Longitudinal analysis should track the cognitive styles of students through the completion of a degree.

The problem of this study was to test and compare the impact of two alternative educational treatments on the rate of success among high-risk students enrolled in the United States History telecourse at Richland College, DCCCD during the Spring Semester of 1980. The purposes of the study were to determine whether 1. The rate of success, that is, the proportion of students completing the course with a grade of "C" or higher, would increase among high-risk students in either experimental group; 2. The rate of success would increase among high-risk students with poor reading skills in either experimental group; 3. The rate of success would increase among high-risk students with poor academic motivation for telecourses in either experimental group; 4. The rate of success would increase among high-risk students when related to the demographic variables used as predictors and collected for the students who were in either experimental group; 5. There would be a difference in the effects of experimental treatment I and experimental treatment II in helping students with poor reading skills to complete the course with a grade of "C" or higher; 6. There would be a difference in the effects of experimental treatment I and experimental treatment II in aiding students with different levels and types of motivation to complete the course with a grade of "C" or higher; 7. There would be a difference in the effects of experimental treatment I and experimental treatment II in helping students with the various demographic characteristics used in the prediction equation to complete the course with a grade of "C" or higher.