The rapid advances in computing and the consequential pressure on computing educators has made it imperative that research be carried out into related pedagogical issues. The Computing Education Research Group (CERG) in its 3 years of existence has begun the necessary steps to make the Faculty a recognised player in computing education research.

CERG is, by definition, a grouping of staff who are interested in the issues surrounding computing education. This has provided the group with a broad base of expertise and specific interests. The diversity of projects currently being developed by members illustrates this.

CERG as a group which is about education, has tried not to maintain a narrow focus where computing has to be attached to education. Some research areas cover broad educational issues (plagiarism) while others are about computing technology but are about its broad use (Web-based teaching resources). Such an approach means that CERG can generate output which will be of value to the general academic and business community.

A focus is developing in one section of the CERG were the issues surrounding the role of distributed systems in educational practice are being explored. A current conceptual and research activity is defining the meaning of "Do students have an electronic eye?". That is, it is testing the pedagogical, psychological and technological assumptions about the way the Internet works in various educational contexts. It is noteworthy that both general education researchers and computing education researchers outside the Faculty and Monash are taking note of what is being done.