Perpetual connectivity

Lecture recordings and portable media players

Abstract

Using portable media players to enhance and support teaching and learning activities in higher education is becoming an increasingly common practice. With a growing understanding of the pedagogical possibilities of podcasting, the availability of low-cost MP3 players and the arrival of convenient delivery environments such as Apple’s iTunes U, many universities are considering how to appropriately harness this technology to support their teaching priorities and the learning needs of their students.

One of the most popular current uses of portable media players for educational purposes centres around the practice of recording and disseminating lectures. Through enabling students to use portable media players to store and playback digital copies of lectures, the intention is to make the lecture format more accessible for students and support student mobility and flexibility in their learning activities. This paper looks at student use of portable media players for accessing lecture recordings and evaluates some of the associated practical and pedagogical implications.