Advanced Learning: Education Year in Review
面对已经学会将网络和数字媒体视为理所当然的学生群体——更不用说全球金融危机了——教育者和教育机构的回应是在2008年大规模地接受数字媒体生产和发行工具. 与娱乐市场相比，教育垂直领域的使用和渗透率统计数据更难获得，因为与流媒体行业的其他领域相比，教育工作者不太关心受众和市场规模. However, 有大量证据表明，在接受和使用数字媒体来捕捉讲座和课外活动方面，有明显的增长. Moreover, an increasing number of schools, colleges, 大学利用了社交媒体和分发平台，比如YouTube和iTunes. 支持这一上升趋势的是越来越重视媒体机构之间以及最佳做法机构之间的合作和分享, technology, and techniques.
Lecture Capture Makes the Times2008 was the year that lecture capture hit prime time, or at least The New York Times. An article about MIT physics professor Walter H. G. Lewin, 因为在iTunes大学上可以免费获得他的讲座视频而成为了网红, helped to spark wider recognition of lecture capture and curricular video, both in and outside the educational community. 老灰女士的信件之后，从福克斯商业频道到 The San Diego Union-Tribune. Even the erstwhile Chronicle of Higher Education covered the growth in recording lectures, 关注这些视频是否会阻碍学生上课的争议.
Figure 1. MIT physics professor Walter H.G. 当他在iTunes U上的讲座大受欢迎时，Lewin成为了一个网络名人 The New York Times.
While mainstream press coverage is one metric for gauging a sector’s growth, 我们必须认识到，新闻媒体很喜欢赶时髦，从而缓和这种情绪. 重要的是要吸收其他数据，以确保讲座捕捉不只是另一个卷心菜娃娃或“马卡雷纳”."
Taking a gander at the slew of press releases this past year, 采用Sonic Foundry等商业平台的机构的数量和规模似乎都在真正增长, Echo360, Accordent, Tegrity, and Panopto. In December, Wainhouse Research发布了其报告《百家乐软件app最新版下载》的第二卷," which focused on videoconferencing, streaming, and capture systems. 该报告的结论是，讲座的获取有了显著增长, 主要不是为了适应远程学习者的需要，而是为了为传统的课堂学生提供可重复播放的档案. 此外，该报告还预测，到2013年，这一细分市场的增长将继续强劲.
那么屏幕另一边的人呢——那些观看这些讲座的人呢:他们是怎么想的? 威斯康星大学麦迪逊电子商务研究所9月份发布的一项研究试图回答这个问题. Using a survey sent to 29,078 undergraduate and graduate students at the university, 该报告的作者发现，高达82%的本科生更喜欢有讲课记录的课程，而不是没有的课程. 学生们提到的主要好处之一是能够弥补缺课, improved retention of class materials, and the ability to review material before class. The study also found that more than half of undergraduates value having course lectures available after course completion; they even expressed a willingness to pay for the service on a course-by-course basis.
Although this research project was sponsored by Sonic Foundry, 它是由一所声誉良好的大学进行的，没有对Mediasite或任何其他特定产品进行具体推荐. Frankly, 它更科学的调查与我在各种传统和远程课程中提供讲座捕捉服务时所做的远不科学的观察相吻合. 我的经验是，一旦学生习惯了有讲座视频, they sure as heck notice when one is late or messed up, 当他们注册了一门不提供任何讲座记录的课程时，他们很容易表达他们的不满，而类似的课程可以提供视频.
If message boards and email lists are any indication, 所有的新闻报道加上威斯康辛的报告在教育界掀起了波澜. While some educators responded with hostility, openly worrying that lecture capture dumbs down learning, 其他人则利用这些数据作为弹药，在自己的机构推动教育视频事业的发展.
Extracurricular Video
讲课记录无疑是去年教育媒体的大新闻, it wasn’t the only story. 2008年，视频和丰富的在线媒体全面整合到教育的多个方面, not just in the classroom. For instance, 密歇根州立大学(Michigan State University)宣布，该校将开始接受使用CollegeSupplement平台申请入学的学生的视频陈述.com.
In another extracurricular application, online video use grew as a marketing and communications tool as well. Although it’s difficult to put statistics to it, 我自己的观察是，越来越多的大学网站正在利用视频来宣传他们的学校，或者制作视频新闻片段. One particularly good example is the University of Richmond (Va.), which created its own Video FAQ (http://admissions.richmond.edu/faq)，学生们回答了诸如“我什么时候宣布我的专业??" and "What is there to do on campus?"
Texas A&M launched an initiative that brings user-generated video into the equation, 不仅有学生的视频，还有学生自己制作的视频. At the university’s Do You Wonder? site (http://doyouwonder.tamu.edu), prospective students can view videos produced and uploaded by A&M students that are also available via iTunes U or YouTube. Current students can upload videos at the site, which advises, "Anything goes, as long as it’s in good taste."
Figure 2. At Texas A&M’s Do You Wonder? site (http://doyouwonder.tamu.edu), 未来的学生可以观看TAM学生制作和上传的视频，这些视频也可以通过iTunes U或YouTube获得.