Steve Bett, Ph.D.
Instructional Designer
Telecommunications Consultant
eMarketing Consultant
Graphic Artist / 
Web developer

Email:     sbett@mailcity.com
                    114 Starlight Drive
City:        Natchitoches
State:      Louisiana
Zip Code: 71457
Country:  USA 

List Manager
Saundspel[applied linguistics discussion group]
TeleLearning [distance education egroup]
Webmastering [HTML XML ASP disc. group]

Previous Positions
Associate Professor of Commercial Graphics
  [imaging, prepress, editing, visualization]
Asst & Assoc. Professor of Mass Communications
   [RTV - Journalism, writing, info-grahics, ]
Director of Continuing Education 
   [and Off Campus Credit Programs]
Director of TeleLearning
  [Statewide Distance Ed., Distributed Learning]
Sr. Instructional Technologist [ITDI] Webmaster
Course Developer, Trainer
Director of Media Services
Director of Academic Computing
Director of Marketing [eMarketing]
eCommerce Consultant [ECRC, Lamar U]

Location: LA-TEX Louisiana-Texas
Natchitoches, founded 1714, is the oldest town 
in the Louisiana purchase [photo] and the
home of NSU  Northwestern State University

Sports Interests:  Basketball, Biking, Windsurfing
Travel Interests : Europe, Brazil, 

Family
Wife: Maria - retired grade school principal
Daughter: Sophia - Program developer for UT
Daughter: Stepanie - Tech Officer, WHO
Grandchildren

Charitable Work
Habitat for Humanity - dev. Web page
Web pages for Beaumont Chamber
Texas Social Services [Region 5]
Orange Chamber of Commerce 

Education
Indiana University, Bloomington
BA Philosophy of science
MA social science & statistics
PhD Telecommunications 
[RTV, Journalism, Instructional systems design]

Also attended GMI-Tech in Michigan - Deans list 
in Electrical Engineering. Coop student with GMC.

Where I hang out: distance education and 
applied linguistics lists

Memberships: Smithsonian, LACUE,
HTML Guild, IIMA-Imaging and Information Management, IICC, SALT, 
H.323 discussion group, Linguistics discussion groups, Distance Education and Instructional Technology discussion groups, DEOS, AISA, 

Publications: 
Distance Learning & Web course development

Satellite Education System Costs. OTP 1971
Internet Based Learning [Sylus/Kogan-Page, 1999]
Evaluating and Improving Web Courses
TeleLearning Plans for 2000-1
Importance of immediate feedback
Resistance to asynchronous learning
Webmastering Syllabus

Alphabets & Writing Systems

Is the English Writing System Dyslexic?
The Trouble with Spelling
An Alphabet for English [PV7] [Saxon]
The Sounds of English
Dictionary Resources
Glossary - Linguistics/Phonetics
Spanish Diphthongs   Latin I
Sitemap-L links to language study  sites

Newspaper / Newsletter Columns
Web Resources:  Simpl Speling Newsletter

Demonstrations
Spanish Painters
An outline of the visual arts
Writing Systems Compared
 

Business Ideas Bright Idea Page [could be part of Blue Light] [includes half baked ideas since most ideas start this way].  The reason for posting them on the Bright Idea page would be to get some feedback, to improve their bakedness, and to bring them closer to realization. The page could promote an exchange between inventors and buyers and investors. I don't think that a person should be overly concerned about being ripped off.  The greatest insult to a true visionary is being ignored.  This is the fate of most bright ideas. Most bright ideas are reinventions - most have been thought of before. Successful ideas are usually reinventions that were given a different twist or retried under different conditions. The bright idea page is not entirely original there are several other attempts to post social inventions and ideas. [provide links].  All of the earlier efforts are graphically challenged.  They tend to be rather gray.  Inventors usually need to picture their invention. No one has quite turned the corner yet so the trick is to find that special something that makes this incarnation the one that takes off. One thing that hasn't happened is someone taking an idea and moving it to the next level or someone explaining the weaknesses in the proposal.  Some care has to be taken here because the really bright ideas seem harebrained. They are usually ridiculed out of existence rather than countered with a superior idea. What I want: 51% ownership.  Partner will provide marketing and promotional services equivalent to a 50% investment.

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 Education Resources

In the 1970's and early 1980's I built one of the largest Free Universities in the world - over 125,000 people received the catalog and over 25,000 actively participated in one or more of the over 300 courses offered at 50% below their market value. [only a few were free].  The Free University wasn't entirely free of fees but it was free of most of the other barriers to free expression in the marketplace of ideas.

Access to information should be free
This is a philosophy underlying the public library.  FeU extends this idea to web courses.  While access is free, there is a charge for any additional service other than connecting the person with a desire to learn to peers who are interested in the same topic. 

Feu separates course development from teaching, testing, evaluating, granting of credit, transcript maintenance, student services, etc. 

Free U would maintain a learning exchange or db of students, peers, those willing to share their ignorance, and those willing to share their expertise. 

Professionals and authorities would be allowed to charge for their services much as they did in the middle ages. 

Schools and teachers would be able to use Free U courses and course materials to supplement their own courses at no charge. 

They could offer an on-line course and charge for it on the basis that they were charging for value added services. 

The electronic Free eUniversity would be free of fees until you, as a student, wanted to hire a teacher/tutor or have someone test your mastery of a subject.  Maintaining your transcript and granting credit would cost about what half what other online schools charge. 

The Free University course catalog would be populated mostly with courses that were developed elsewhere and shared.  At the current time, most schools prevent access to course materials until you have paid your fee.  At FeU, anyone could access the course materials which would be equivalent to or better than a $600 course. 

The difference is that there would be no instructor, only peers.  You would be able to hold discussions with other who were working through the same course materials at near the same time.  The course would have assignments and would include numerous self scoring practice tests.

Those completing the assignments could take a test (for a fee) and if they passed, they could have it recorded (for a fee).  Credit would be rewarded and most credits could be transfered as easily as credits from traditional schools. 

One difference would be that Feu would help the student build a portfolio including papers turned in for courses.  Those reviewing transcript for purposes of transfer credit would be also able to review the course requirements, gradebook and papers.

The idea rests on finding a critical number of teachers to contribute course materials and a couple of million investment dollars to get it off the ground. If the idea took off, then there could be several courses on the same subject and student evaluations indicating which ones students preferred or found to be the best. 

The contributing instructor/course developer would also be listed as a teacher/tutor so posting the the FEU site would have a potential in adding on-line students to a course.

The site should become a popular place for course developers to steal ideas. This would be allowed as long as credit was given. 

Business Proposals, continued
Portable boat with comfort seating

Most kayaks are not easy to car top, either they weight over 30 lbs. or they are not particularly aerodynamic.  Kayaks are usually comfortable to sit in but there is only one position.

I want a small hybrid water craft that 
(1) can be paddled or sailed and which 
(2) has comfortable adjustable reclining seating
(3) weights under 30 lbs.
(4) is as aerodynamic as a surf board.

Those are the design parameters and I think I have a solution.

Links to Idea Networks
Valerie Yule's Ozie Ideas
Social Inventions

What I would do with an unexpected day/afternoon off...
Spend time with my wife or go biking, hiking, or windsurfing.

People admired most

People who solved the problem of earning a livelihood and went on to make significant cultural contributions. Marconi would be a good example. 

So many people stop when they achieve their first goal: financial security.  The trick is to have ever expanding dreams and then accomplishing some of them.

My personal mottos
Everything in moderation, including moderation. 

Education is about lighting fires and inspiring people to reach for their dreams

My greatest achievement...
A nurturing environment for my family. 

Contributions:

• Cost benefit studies of telecommunication 
• technologies for delivery instruction

 
• Proof of concept for a learning exchange and a free university

 
• Vision of 21st century distance education

 
• Difference between the old and new schooling paradigms

 
• Proving that online marketing works

 
• Technology plans schools and universities

 
• Web pages for community service organizations and small businesses

 
• Training courses for ebusiness and for on-line teaching [links to be added]