Academic Multimedia

Academic multimedia. Something other than marks on paper or that virtual page.  Academic multimedia covers a range of practices across a spectrum of technologies, which may include:

1. automatic recording (audio and sometimes video) of an event primarily designed for a face-to-face audience (e.g. a “normal” lecture, visiting or guest lecture).
2. Desk based podcasts, screen casts, vodcast, lectures, talks, webinars, learning objects, blogs and other social media for immediate learning, teaching, feedback and research purposes (That is what this is).
3. Live event recording for purposeful post-production of high-quality (TED style) learning and other inspirational objects.
4. Light-touch or incidental post production (editing and transcoding) of recordings from many sources.

Why do we want the institution to encourage people do this Academic multimedia will have several audiences and purposes:

1. learners on modules
2. Teachers, administrators and learning technologists
3. Researchers
4. Marketing, Recruitment, Outreach, Public, Governors,

There will be boundary layers between these.

Learners on modules might want

1. 1. Revision and catch-up
   2. Flexible scheduling for learners with complex lives
   3. Support for transnational learners
   4. Satellite campus (simulcast lecturers)
   5. Open online courses for recruitment and outreach)
   6. Academic language skills development (Academic Literacy)

Teachers, administrators and learning technologists might want

1. 1. Creation of reusable learning resources and “flipped learning” – I did a post about flipped teaching last year (sadly now defunct brookesblogs.net)
   2. Responding to learners’ requests
   3. Implementing inclusive teaching practices; fairness
   4. Enabling distributed collaborative working, work-based learning, teaching studios, assessment conferences, action learning

Researchers might want

1. 1. Virtual conference presentations,
   2. ePosters
   3. Distributed collaboration
   4. and, increasingly, valorised academic publishing. This will be the topic of a separate little talk.

Governors, Recruitment, Outreach, Public facing colleagues

1. 1. Materials with which to build and promote reputation
   2. Attract students: virtual open day
   3. Attract researchers
   4. Attract teachers

There is not one single technology that can deliver all of these things, though we can probably consider it in layers. That will be the topic of my next little talk.

See you soon