Remember the old days when professors used overhead projectors to show slides to their classes? Or when tape recorders provided sound bites and advanced playback techniques?
Forget archaic teaching aids of the past. Now, Fairfield joins a select number of universities across the country that are utilizing iPods and iTunes U, a special iTunes program developed by Apple and Stanford University, to provide students and faculty with innovative education methods in and out of the classroom.
Last fall, Fairfield began to use iPods to record tutoring sessions in the Writing Center. Other professors simply wanted a way to create podcasts of their lectures to put on their Web sites.
With the popularity of video iPods, portable microphones and the latest user-friendly iTunes released in early September, Assistant Director of Computing and Networking Services Jay Rozgonyi said this combination will encourage new technological ventures in college courses at Fairfield.
“The fact that so may students already own and use iPods make them a natural leverage for classroom use,” Rozgonyi said. “I’m convinced that most students would rather download lectures and videos and take them wherever they go, rather than be tied to an active network connection.”
Sarah Howe ’07, a tutor at the writing center, likes the idea of utilizing an iPod during tutoring sessions to create a stronger tutor-student relationship.
“If you listen to a session and figure out where you lost the student or when they really got what you were saying, then you can learn from that and be a better tutor,” said Howe.
Most professors would agree that finding a way to revitalize lessons on Shakespeare, laws of chemistry or business trends is necessary for successful student learning and class enthusiasm.
Suzanne Campbell, assistant professor of nursing, agrees that audio-taping classes with video iPods and posting lessons on Fairfield’s iTunes U site could provide greater benefits to students at Fairfield and abroad.
Campbell taught a course last spring to three students in Galway, Ireland and maintained contact through WebCT and instant messaging.
With the advances in recording available through iPod technology, Campbell said that all of her students now have access to “full lectures and student dialogue in class” via podcasts even if they are sick or miss class.
The possibilities of iPod programming at Fairfield seem endless.
“Why just limit this resource to enrolled students?” asked Rozgonyi. “Wouldn’t prospective students like to see video tours of the campus? Or alumni see highlights of last night’s basketball game?”
Leave a Reply