I know this is probably old news, but I’m mentioning it because it seems like one of those things that might have been flared up in the edtechblogosphere (we really need a better name - would the eduborg collective work with everyone else?) at the time it came out but then quickly faded off the radar. Some initiatives deserve repeating periodically. I’m also mentioning it because its part of the research for my Master’s project. I suppose I could add it to del.icio.us or blue dot it, but I’m feeling chatty tonight.
What is it? Here’s the official blurb, straight from the source:
The Duke Digital Initiative (DDI) is a multi-year program of experimentation, development, and implementation of new and emerging technologies to explore their effective use in support of the university’s mission. A growing number of faculty from a variety of departments, programs and schools have explored new technology-assisted approaches to instruction. Faculty and students use portable, personal multimedia technologies and digital course materials contribute to the course experience and to students’ learning.
Sounds fun - looking for an edugeek with a fondness for podcasts? The DDI grew out of Duke’s exploration of educational uses of iPods in 2004-05. Some of the results are impressive, especially for a project that started only two years ago (which is almost as old as the podcasting medium itself). In the spring of 2006, there were approximately 70 iPod courses reaching approximately 1400 students. iPod courses represented a diverse range of academic disciplines including language learning, humanities, social sciences, science, math and engineering.
The real transformative power of the iPod courses comes not when they are used as a medium to deliver lectures, but when they are used as a product for students to demonstrate knowledge. This comes as no surprise to me, but reading that there are real-life experiences that fit with my beliefs is immensely rewarding. Instructors, in fact, report that the quality of student work and level of student engagement increases when students are supported in publishing their work beyond the classroom boundaries.
If you are interested in educational applications of emerging technology, and some of the results that are being reported from the field, you should take a look at the site - Duke Digital Initiative. It kind of reminds me of the tag line on the Muppet Show for muppet labs - “where the future is being made today”.
Entries (RSS)