About the Author
Maryann Forbes is associate professor of the School of Nursing.
Mary Hickey is assistant professor the School of Nursing.
Lectures Unlimited: Learning Anytime via Audio Podcasts
Maryann Forbes and Mary Hickey
forbes@adelphi.edu, hickey@adelphi.edu
If you see students walking across campus tuned into their iPods, don’t assume they are taking a break from school and listening to the latest music they’ve downloaded. They may, in fact, be reviewing for a final, catching up on what they’ve missed in class, or reinforcing what they just learned. Podcasts, audio files of recorded events, such as classes and lectures that are made accessible online, are increasingly being used by both Adelphi faculty and students.
Although students have been recording classes for many years, the concept of a faculty-recorded podcast is a relatively new phenomenon and has many advantages. The Oxford University Press, publishers of the New Oxford American Dictionary, selected podcast as the new Word of the Year for 2005. The quality of a student tape recording is affected by where the professor is standing during the class. The podcast, by contrast, provides a much clearer recording for the students, particularly because the use of a microphone ensures that the quality will be consistent as the professor moves around in the classroom. Additionally, a traditional tape recording is available only to the student to whom it belongs; whereas a podcast can be accessed by all students in the class.
In fall 2006, FCPE began offering podcasting services to faculty members. Here’s how it works. A small recording device is worn by the professor during the class. It has a small microphone, which can be clipped onto the shirt or collar. The device is held in a pouch with a shoulder strap or belt hook. After the class, the recording is uploaded by faculty to a Web site, where the students can retrieve it within about 72 hours. A PowerPoint slide presentation of the material, and the link to the podcast, can both be posted on Blackboard. This approach allows all students to access the audio and slides from the class simply by entering the Blackboard environment. By clicking on the podcast link, they have the ability to download the podcast to their iPod, MP3 player, or hand held device, or just listen to the audio file on a computer.
In our experience, the first few times wearing the recording device was a bit awkward: we were very aware that we were being recorded. However, we shortly became accustomed to having the device on, and even found we sometimes forgot to turn it off at the end of class!
Like all technologies, podcasting can have complications. Here are a few ‘troubleshooting’ tips that we have, unfortunately, learned through experience:
- Always check the batteries of the machine;
- Ensure that the machine is not ‘full,’ like a computer disc, and
- Make sure to put the microphone in the “mic” input, or the lecture will not record!
- Be sure to repeat any student questions so that they can be heard on the recording.
- FCPE recommends stopping between topics to generate separate files, or the upload will take too long: that really helped!
- If you have difficulty with uploading, contact FCPE for help.
- For those teaching more than one class, FCPE will open separate files for you that correspond to your course number.
Many students have indicated that podcasting has enhanced their learning. They’ve commented that it provides an opportunity to learn “on the go”; whether they are commuting to school or standing in line at the supermarket. They can review the material covered in class, double check their notes, and reinforce the material prior to exams. We’ve found that students with English as a second language count on the podcasts because they can stop the lecture and go back to what was said at their own pace. We now get many emails from students asking when the podcasts will be posted (particularly before exam time) Students with difficulty learning in a distracting environment can listen to the podcasts at home, or in the library in a quiet atmosphere. Students with a predominantly auditory learning style also benefit.
One question we had at the outset of podcasting was whether or not students would attend class when the lectures were being posted in both print and audio. Our experience has been that using the technology has not decreased our attendance. Rather, our classes are full, and students are engaged both in and out of the classroom. 
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