“Our iTunes U project has gotten people from all over the campus really talking to each other.”
Dr. Victoria Szabo
Stanford on iTunes U: Revolutionizing Curriculum and Communications
Effortless Content Access
After the course content has been organized in Stanford’s academic iTunes U site, students now log into the site using a secure authentication and authorization protocol in the university’s course management system (authorized administrators can upload and edit content via the system as well). With just a few clicks, students can find recorded lectures, music, and other content that supports their classes.
The content can then be downloaded to an iPod or a notebook for easy mobile learning, or to students’ desktop computers for study at home or in their dorms. Students also have the option of burning CDs of the content. From start to finish, Szabo says the process is almost effortless.
“We’ve been tracking usage on our alumni site for the past few months, and it’s been fairly intuitive,” she notes. “We’ve had upwards of 100,000 downloads, and we’ve received very few requests for help. And the academic site seems to be working out just as well. Our iTunes U initiative has gotten a lot of attention, yet needs very little support, which is a great combination.”
iTunes Initiative Sparks Collaboration
Szabo says two steering committees now guide Stanford’s iTunes U initiative - one for the public site, and one for the academic site. She is especially excited about the interdepartmental communications that take place at the gatherings.
“At the steering committee meetings, we have people from the business and medical schools, engineering, the library, our central IT organization, and others, all sharing their perspectives,” says Szabo. “Our iTunes U project has gotten people from all over the campus really talking to each other.”
Creating an Open Environment
In the future Szabo and her colleagues are looking to add new digital content, and repurpose existing content for Stanford’s student and alumni population worldwide. No matter what format iTunes U may take, Szabo is confident that it will continue to be an important part of Stanford’s curriculum.
“iTunes U is not only reenergizing older content, it’s getting people excited about the content, and it’s empowering them to manage the content themselves,” Szabo finishes. “Eventually, by integrating iTunes U into all of the other applications we have out there, we’ll be able to create a totally open environment at Stanford.”
iTunes Initiative Sparks Collaboration
Szabo says two steering committees now guide Stanford’s iTunes U initiative - one for the public site, and one for the academic site. She is especially excited about the interdepartmental communications that take place at the gatherings.
“At the steering committee meetings, we have people from the business and medical schools, engineering, the library, our central IT organization, and others, all sharing their perspectives,” says Szabo. “Our iTunes U project has gotten people from all over the campus really talking to each other.”
Creating an Open Environment
In the future Szabo and her colleagues are looking to add new digital content, and repurpose existing content for Stanford’s student and alumni population worldwide. No matter what format iTunes U may take, Szabo is confident that it will continue to be an important part of Stanford’s curriculum.
“iTunes U is not only reenergizing older content, it’s getting people excited about the content, and it’s empowering them to manage the content themselves,” Szabo finishes. “Eventually, by integrating iTunes U into all of the other applications we have out there, we’ll be able to create a totally open environment at Stanford.”
