Category: 02b. News and Reports

Though campuses across the nation have begun transforming iPods into educational tools, few schools have embraced the technology as much as Georgia College & State University, where faculty are using the devices for everything from screening movies to podcasting answers to frequently asked questions.

Some lines from the article as well:

• “The more you free up your classroom for discussion, the more efficient you are,” said Dorothy Leland, the school’s president.
• “Now I can devote my whole three hours to Socratic dialogue.”
• GCSU officials say the school makes sure its iPod lessons supplement classroom work–not replace it.
• “[You] think it will never get the same sense of community living together, but we definitely found that sense of belonging”

Check out the full article on eSN online.

… and so reports The Daily Vanguard from Portland State University.

�Podcasting isn�t a replacement for in-classroom teaching: it is, however, an
excellent supplemental study aid,� said Chris Dawson, CTO of Web Cast in a
Box. �The option to review a lecture on an iPod, while in the car, on the train or
on vacation, is something many students are interested in. Many already have
iPods [or another MP3 player] and can listen to podcasts with very little effort.�
Schools and universities are beginning to use podcasting to archive and make
available lectures and seminars. Bart Massey, professor of computer science at
Portland State, is investigating podcasts for use in his own classes.

and the full report goes here.

Apple is adding iTunes/Pods to it’s repertoire of Apple Education Slutions. They are now offering US universities free hosting services for their educational content.

Apple shares common goals with education � to advance teaching, learning, and research through innovation, and engage and empower students. Students expect a campus environment that accommodates their digital lifestyle, adapts to their individual learning needs, and encourages collaboration and teamwork. Introducing a way to simplify and meet all these needs � iTunes U.

Let’s see if Creative is able to counter this move to capture the market share. The iTunes U home page goes here.

CNET Asia reports that Creative has launched ZenCast.com and the ZenCast Organizer software to allow Zen Vision users to manage audio and video blog content for their players. This will surely be an important step for Creative to compete for the market share in the latest podcasting trend.

Gotten this off Podcasting News:

The Oxford University Press, publishers of the New Oxford American Dictionary, has selected podcast as the Word of the Year for 2005 …
… Oxford University Press defines podcast as “a digital recording of a radio broadcast or similar program, made available on the Internet for downloading to a personal audio player.” While the Oxford definition would be considered incorrect by many podcasters, it reflects common usage without being overly technical.

… and the full report goes here.