It may not have the gee-whiz factor of high-tech innovation, but changing expectations for what happens in class may prove to be a bigger advance in teaching. In this article, the author discusses a teaching technique called "flipping" and describes how "flipping" the classroom can improve the traditional lecture. As its name suggests, flipping…

Michael Wesch has been on the lecture circuit for years touting new models of active teaching with technology. The associate professor of cultural anthropology at Kansas State University has given TED talks. "Wired" magazine gave him a Rave Award. The Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching once named him a national professor…

Recording class sessions so students can view them online is becoming routine on many campuses. But all that taping can lead to "uh-oh moments," such as when a professor's joke about the college dean ends up on YouTube, or a private comment to a student after class is inadvertently broadcast. Some lecture bloopers caught on tape are…

When video recordings of Ravi Janardan's computer-science course at the University of Minnesota-Twin Cities first went online, the students loved it. Instead of dragging themselves out of bed for the 8 a.m. lectures, many started skipping classes and watching the recordings instead. Recording lectures is becoming more and more common, and many…

In this article, the author discusses two approaches to teaching: "a guide on the side" and "a sage on the stage." He juxtaposes Alison King's heavy-handed characterization of the traditional college lecturer, and offers his own characterization of self-styled stage-hog professors to offset King's caricature. He also presents a composite picture…

In this article, the author describes how recorded lectures can be utilized as powerful educational tools. He relates that recorded lectures had been useful to him particularly when he starting a new course for his students. While there are clearly advantages in using recorded lectures, the author also shares some of the disadvantages in using…

Many college classrooms these days may as well have lighted signs over their doors that read "On Air" or "Recording in Progress." A growing number of professors are recording their lectures and making them available as podcasts--regularly updated sets of audio files that students can download to their computers or MP3 players. Some campus…

Students of Coppin State University are using a system that merges video recordings of class lectures with a digital version of the students' own notes. The system, sold by Tegrity Inc. is unusual in its use of an electronic pen along with digital recordings, with administrators and faculty members believing that the technology would improve…

In an article in the "Northern Star," a university student newspaper, reporter Lauren Stott began a lyrical note: "It's every student's dream: Wake up for school, stumble over to the computer, and download the day's class lectures ... then crawl back into bed--iPod in one hand, notebook in the other." The object of the student journalist's…