Podcasting What Goes On in the Classroom

I just returned from the Annual Conference for Law School Computing (2006 CALI Conference). This year's conference examined, among other things, the use of podcasting by law schools. Boiled down, podcasting works like this: professors record either their lectures, or summaries of their lectures, and upload them to the web. Students can then download the material onto their iPod or MP3 player and listen to the material while driving, exercising, or doing whatever. Many of the discussions centered around what faculty thought of this technology, and some focused on the student perspective. Some uses for the technology that everyone agreed on were using podcasts for review prior to exams and being able to hear what went on in class when a student has to miss a class.

One student has created podcasts of the courses he is taking and publishes them on his blog, Life of a Law Student. I listened to this student speak and he has an interesting perspective on fair use issues.

CALI sponsored a Legal Education Podcasting Project this spring and some of the law professors involved in the project shared their perspectives on podcasting and the learning experience, the benefits of podcasting, and what podcasting means for the future of law schools. Listen (and see an accompanying power point presentation) to podcast that was part of the project here.