Learning on Your Terms...

When was the last time you used your Walkman or Discman? Well, those days have quickly faded as we have migrated to Apple's iPod and other MP3 devices. Our society has become accustomed to downloading our songs and if we have a slow connection, we become restless. What about the days when we used to drive to the music to purchase a tape? Once again, a faded memory. Since we have trained ourselves to enjoy our entertainment (music, videos, news) on our schedule in our hands, it only seems logical that education follows the same path.

Students still go to school, but learning has begun to revolutionize and I think if we catch the bandwagon like we did with entertainment our students will be more successful in their academic endeavours. In "Apple's 'iTunes' site" there is a section called "iTunes U." This section often gets overlooked because it might not have the latest Beyonce track. However, this subset of iTunes enables us to access educational content from major universities and listen to it just like music.

On Apple's website, http://www.apple.com/education/itunesu_mobilelearning/itunesu.html they explain the power of this method of learning by stating:

iTunes U delivers easy, 24/7 access to educational content from hundreds of top colleges, universities, and educationally focused organizations across the country. And it’s accessible to anyone with a Mac or PC.Students can sync iTunes U with any iPod or iPhone, so they can go right on learning while they catch a meal, walk to class, or work out at the gym. Engaging students on their home turf, iTunes U offers audio and video that make subjects more vivid than any printed page ever could. iTunes U allows schools to open all or part of their content to the public, from parents to alumni to anyone with a love of learning.

I think we will begin to adopt these new supplemental learning avenues and this will help keep keep our students engaged. Just like we adapted to mp3 players such as the iPod, look out for a generation that will use these devices for learning too. Learning on "their" terms...

**Apple offers student and faculty discounts! For more information: http://www.apple.com/education/hed/students/discounts.html