Podcasts of University Lectures?

theslashdot asks: "I'm working at a major university in the US, and have been charged with posting pod-casts of class lectures on the internet. The problem is whether or not posting the videos would allow students to skip class and just download the lecture, instead. I guess the problem is trying to strike the right balance between allowing good students to take advantage of this resource, but discourage bad students from staying at home all the time and watching all the lectures right before the exam. So what methods can be used to provide these pod-casts for the students who actually attended class? In terms of when the lecture should be posted, what would be a good time-frame? Immediately after the class? 24 hours? One week? One class behind schedule?" "In terms of trying to prevent this, here are some possible solutions I've come up with:

- Post the lecture with authentication based on the class list for those enrolled in the course, although this would not really discourage truancy.

- Post the lecture with authentication based on those who attended the class (student cards would have to be barcode-scanned at the beginning of class); this would prevent those who missed the class from downloading the lecture, but presumably they could receive a copy from a student who did attend the class. Additionally it would create a major hassle for all students to ensure that their attendance is registered.

- Post the lecture with a single password that the professor distributes to the class during the lecture. This would discourage students from missing the lecture, but likely those students missing class could simply obtain the password from another student who did attend the class."

Comments

Re:I hate this "school" of thought.

[atomicstrawberry]

The person I'm thinking of actually asked a college level, calculus-based physics-for-engineers professor to explain how 3x = 2x + 10 became 5x = 10, x=2

I would ask that too, since it should become x = 10.

Re:Why does it matter if they come to class?

[buswolley]

My professors often podcast, or make mp3's of the lecture. Let me tell you, if you thought the lecture was boring in person, wait till you here it over headphones.

Re:I hate this "school" of thought.

[Iznogood]

"The person I'm thinking of actually asked a college level, calculus-based physics-for-engineers professor to explain how 3x = 2x + 10 became 5x = 10, x=2 (the numbers might have been different, but it was similarly simplistic)."

3x = 2x + 10 => x = 2? Only for extremely weird values of 2...

Re:Why does it matter if they come to class?

[rjstanford]

I'm even have a degree in English.

Hmm. Did it come with any kind of money back guarantee?

It builds moral fibre

[EmbeddedJanitor]

In my day, we had to walk through 6ft of snow and sit on stone benches in unheated lecture theatres. We wrote with goose-quill pens and had to keep ink bottles under our clothing to stop it from freezing. We did all our calculations with tables & slide rules. Ever since calculators and ball-point pens came in, students are getting soft. Half the reason to come to university is to build the moral fibre needed to be a a leader in industry. We had to sit through lectures and so should the kids of today..... blaah, blaah blaah.

That's basically what this all boils down to.

Re:Why does it matter if they come to class?

[Anonymous Coward]

Thank you. You make an important point.

As an adult tactile learner with ADD, I've found that, for me, reading is far more difficult challenge than it is for others. Any additional form of reinforcement is valuable. The experience of going to class, at a time and place designated for learning a topic, is very helpful.

I only wish I had known all this before I flunked out of college.