This study describes the various roles major interactive media can play in classroom education, including advantages, disadvantages, and evaluation of efficacy drawn from research. Selected authoring programs are reviewed, as are criteria for selecting authoring programs for use by teachers. The physical and instructional features of optical interactive media interfaces are described and the results of a provincial survey of microcomputer usage are summarized. Media described in the paper include videodiscs, CD-ROM, and microcomputers. The paper also includes a catalog of delivery technologies for distance education, presented on a delivery continuum ranging from face-to-face to multimedia configurations. A comprehensive glossary of terms is included. (Contains 66 references.) (Author/ALF)