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The Minnesota Daily

Serving the UMN community since 1900

The Minnesota Daily

Serving the UMN community since 1900

The Minnesota Daily

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Centralize online teaching programs

With the addition of iTunesU, the University should look into centralizing its teaching resources.

The University utilizes various electronic mediums for teaching, including Webvista, Moodle and most recently, iTunesU . The latest application allows professors to post podcasts and other supplemental learning material and is the electronic medium that permits student- and professor-generated audio content. Its launching signals a step in the right direction for online learning, but it also underscores one of the chief problems with the UniversityâÄôs online teaching resources: a lack of centralization and thus usability. As the University emerges into a more technologically equipped institution, different departments are piloting new programs to cut costs and to enhance their course material. Online accesses to course readings provide students with a more economical alternative than spending hundreds on course packets at the bookstore. This is no doubt encouraging. But the technology has fragmented. For instance, while Webvista remains the dominant medium for most professors, it varies among academic departments. iTunesU makes access to course material superfluous. A solid recommendation for the University would be to streamline the programs used for online materials. Usability would improve and it is much more appealing to advertise a solitary medium than various and excessive outlets in terms of marketing for University programs and research. We understand that a testing or piloting period is necessary to find the best program available. The University should make this assessment in a timely fashion. We also urge the institution to strive for efficiency with online usage just as it does with its other programs.

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