Audio News

We have heard how many universities have started putting free course work online, while other institutions of learning are actually entirely online based. The internet and technology are clearly indispensable in higher learning, and very well ingrained in the teaching methods. However, as if accessing all of one’s books and lecture notes online wasn’t enough, some universities have decided to offer course material for the iPod, to make courses truly portable. The laptop is already a staple and common site in most lecture halls, now it seems that students will be able to complete their work with only an Apple MP3 player.

The American Ivy league universities, Harvard and Yale, already have an iPod learning system in place. Essentially, the system works by loading course material, such as audio lecture notes, books, or course readers, onto the iTunes U service, where students can then download the information for free. This also means the service in not only open to the iPod, but actually any iTunes capable device, including the iPhone, iMac or PC. The step is largely believed to have been taken in an attempt to relieve the financial burden placed on many students who are forced to purchase expensive books for their classes. Moreover, it is also seen as a way to make education more convenient and accessible for students who might have scheduling conflicts with certain classes and might not be able to make it to lectures. At any rate, the new development adds one more use to the already very versatile and multidimensional iPod MP3 player.