Guidelines for podcast production and use in tertiary education

Abstract

Within the framework of the New Zealand (NZ) e-Learning Guidelines Project the University of Canterbury carried out a series of activities in order to investigate ‘good practice’ in the design and use of podcasting and related materials. The NZ e-learning guidelines consist of a number of questions each relating to a different aspect of provision and use of e-learning resources. This research focused on the following guidelines:

• ST9: Do the technologies help students successfully meet the learning outcomes?
• ST7: Will the e-learning foster students’ curiosity and creativity?
• TD1: Is the use of e-learning appropriate to the intended learning outcome?
• TO7: What ICT support is in place specifically for e-learning, and is this support reviewed regularly?
• MO1: Can staff and students easily use the learning technologies and the online resources?

Five departments from different parts of the University participated in this research over two semesters. Each department adopted their own approach to the creation and use of podcast materials. The five departments who contributed to this research project were Japanese, Computer Science, Music, Economics and Schools’ Outreach. The experience of staff and students throughout the investigation was charted through the collection of qualitative data at the outset, during, and at the end of the research period. Student focus groups, individual discussion, and online questionnaires were each used to collect and triangulate responses. In terms of quantitative data reporting, for example, the Japanese course produced 15 podcasts with a mean duration of 17 minutes which generated 4, 666 hits (file accesses) over one semester. Quantitative data relating to other aspects of this course and for the other courses involved in study were used in the analysis.