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Excerpt
Description: Since early 1998, we have developed a procedure for videotaping first-year lectures, converting them to a streaming video format, and making them available on the Web within 24 hours with minimal staff time. In 1998–99, four preclinical courses with at least 24 one-hour lectures each were recorded using a digital camera, a laptop and desktop computer, and various video equipment and software, funded by a grant from the Texas Telecommunications Infrastructure Fund. Each lecture was digitized directly to the laptop and transferred to the desktop computer, where it was converted to a streaming video file, and then the file was linked to a Web server. Students accessed the lectures using computers in the medical center or via modems from home. Playback software (RealMedia® 〈http:www.realnetworks.com〉) enabled students to conveniently skip to specific areas of interest.
We asked the students (n = 168) to complete a survey at the end of an eight-week academic block to assess their use of the streaming video lectures and their perceptions of quality and value. We also retrieved data from the Web server about the students' accessing of the files, including the durations and numbers of hits. The average numbers and durations of hits per lecture and per course were calculated and matched with the subject material and lecturer.
Discussion: We assumed that to enhance learning or to support assessment of lectures, the streaming video lectures must transmit the lecture content effectively and must be made available to the students in a timely manner. Results of our written survey confirmed that both were being achieved—83% of the students reported reviewing lectures online, and 45% found doing so “valuable” and 46% “very valuable.”
Analysis of the access data showed variations in use within a given course as well as between courses. Several lectures or sequences of lectures had above-average usage, and one course received significantly more overall use than the others. Even though the explanation for these differences is not known, periods of high usage may reflect a combination of difficult material or an inadequate presentation. In addition, these results are an intriguing form of objective information (i.e., actual student behavior) rather than the more typical subjective form (student opinion). In this respect, access data enable us to target a small subset of lectures (which otherwise might have gone undetected) for further evaluation using other assessment tools. Therefore, we have found that streaming video files can be beneficial to both students and faculty alike.
