Electronic communication networks are in wide use for college-level language and writing
instruction and are being adopted for use in elementary and secondary school classes. Teachers use
network-based approaches to literacy instruction to support authentic reading and writing,
collaboration, student-centered learning, writing across the curriculum, and the creation of
classroom writing communities. A case study of network-based college classrooms identified great
diversity in the ways these goals were realized. Nevertheless, common factors shaped all of the
implementations: institutional goals, practices, and gateposts; theories, personalities, and
established practices of teachers; student characteristics and expectations; features of the
technology; and available resources. These factors suggest that like any innovation, the introduction
of computer technology to promote interaction and learning in educational settings is a complex
process that cannot be divorced from the users or the setting. This complexity needs to be understood
so that perceptions of and expectations regarding the value of the innovation are neither idealized
nor superficial.published or submitted for publicationis peer reviewe