Lipstick on a pig? – Lecture notes as video podcasts on the iPhone

Eugene O'Loughlin

Abstract

Lipstick on a pig? – Lecture notes as video podcasts on the iPhone

Apple’s suite of hand-held devices, the iPod, iTouch, and iPhone, offer plenty of opportunities to educators to provide educational material in several media formats. These devices represent the leading edge in touch screen hand-held devices. Already, many third level institutions world-wide have introduced such devices in many different ways to both engage learners and teachers, as well as provide administration support. Some software vendors that create authoring tools, e.g. Toolbook, have versions for creating content for the iPhone. The iPhone 3G has recently become the top selling mobile phone in the United States (source - NDP Group). In a recent “All About iPhone Report”, Wu (2008) reported that for the first time the iPhone has become a lower cost alternative to expensive multiple digital devices and services, transforming it from a “luxury item to a practical communication and entertainment tool”. According to the report, growth rates of iPhone penetration are three times higher in lower income groups when compared to high income groups. Clearly, the iPhone, and its many competitors, are putting immense technical power into people’s hands – consequently creating more opportunity for mobile learning.

You don’t need expensive tools to create content for the iPhone. In this proposed presentation for the Practitioner’s Track at EdTech 2009, the author will demonstrate how to create content in the format of video podcasts for the iPhone using common office tools and open source software. In a step-by-step procedure the author will summarize the techniques used as follows:

  • Begin with a standard PowerPoint presentation
  • Narration options (within PowerPoint or using Audacity)
  • Saving slides and narration in appropriate format
  • Adding video from a Webcam
  • Editing content
  • Using Windows Movie Maker to create a Windows Media Video (WMV)
  • Converting WMVs to MP4 format for the iPhone
  • Using iTunes to create and sync a video podcast library

While some material used will be created beforehand, the author intends to create content “live” as much as possible in the time allocated. The objective will be to take a standard PowerPoint presentation and show it on an iPhone with narration in 15 minutes.

The presentation will finish up with a short discussion on the use of video podcasts in mobile learning. Many educators regard video podcasts as a substitute for attending lectures in the minds of students. Some educators feel they are a valuable add-on to the learning process, while others think they are simply a “fancy” way of presenting the same lecture notes as in class (hence the “Lipstick on a Pig” title).

Bibliography

NDP Group (2008). The NPD Group: iPhone 3G Leads U.S. Consumer Mobile Phone Purchases in the Third Quarter of 2008. Accessed 30th January, 2009 at:

Wu, J. (2008). All About iPhone. comScore Report. Accessed 30th January, 2009 at:

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