Preservice teachers' perceptions of using hypermedia and video to examine the nature of literacy instruction

We examined students' perceptions of media, specifically videos and a hyper media learning environment, the Reading Classroom Explorer (RCE), when plac ed in an existing preservice literacy methods course. Participant interview s and course papers indicated that these media (a) enrich classroom learnin g by providing images of progressive literacy reaching learned in coursewor k, (b) provide opportunities - unconstrained by school-day hours or geograp hic location - to observe, reflect on, and analyze practice, and (c) expand students' internship experience by providing multiple approaches to litera cy instruction. Students reported that hypermedia (RCE) allowed them to Eas ily revisit video and analyze activities across school sites, but they were more comfortable with and liked the context provided by videos. Limitation s of the media and future contexts of use are discussed.