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Taking Law lecture theatres to the students through cyber-space

April 26, 2006

Mark Kneen podcastingThe University of New England's Law School Web site has taken a quantum leap in distance education by using the latest Internet technology, known as “podcasting”. Students can now use an MP3 device such as an iPod to listen to their latest lecture, which is regularly updated in the process referred to as a Podcasting, like UNE, Training and Development Officer, Mark Kneen is pictured doing here.

“Now, distance is increasingly less of a barrier for students striving to complete a law degree at UNE,” said Professor Stephen Colbran, Head of the School of Law at UNE. “When students cannot get to a lecture, the lecture can now come to them. In addition, they can listen to a lecture at their own convenience.”

Podcasting delivers content (audio / video) to people when, where, and how they want. It makes the experience of listening to or watching a lecture series via cyber-space as close to the experience of being on-campus as possible.

“The School of Law at UNE is the largest in regional Australia and is the nation's largest distance education provider in law,” Professor Colbran said. “The attraction of this style of study is UNE's well-established reputation in the field and the overall flexibility. The addition of podcasting to our formidable Web site services has further enhanced the quality and convenience experienced by UNE's distance education students.”

“Students studying the unit called 'Introduction to Legal Systems and Methods' in 2006 at UNE can now download recorded lectures as MP3 files or as a subscribed podcast,” he explained. “This is only the first unit to go 'live'; several other units will soon follow. Associate Professor Harry Geddes started recording lectures in the first week of semester one and will continue until lectures finish.

“This is an important development and will provide considerable assistance to students in their study of law. Now, external students have the advantage of hearing the lectures that were once only available to internal students. We are quite excited with this new development and are looking forward to delivering more podcasts for other units as soon as we can.”

For further details, contact Professor Stephen Colbran, Head of the School of Law at UNE: (02) 6773 2910

Posted by Gary Fry at April 26, 2006 10:29 AM