People at Lansing's three high schools had a conversation with one another Friday without leaving any campus. The technology test drive may have been complicated to achieve, but it looked as simple as a pull-down screen with two projected squares, whose inhabitants could see and call on students as if they were in the same classroom. It's called distance learning, a concept that could alter the future of education in mid-Michigan. For now, it's a slow-growing effort to stretch student opportunities with gadgetry owned by few local schools. Lansing hopes to launch video conferencing in high schools next fall, linking area teens with Advanced Placement and other courses that otherwise might not be offered.

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