Duke University

Duke is relying on i pods not only to play popular music, but also to download lectures and books. They give out a number of i pods to incoming freshman that already hold the academic calendar and freshman orientation material. The school has okayed it with apple to have a sort of special site for its students to go to. At this site, students can download language lessons, audio books, lectures, and of course music.

The school is making an attempt to think creatively about educational processes. Duke notices the huge impact i pods have made in the world of music and the staff is hoping i pods will have the same impacts on their students and education. This is an experimental program and only the incoming freshman were given the i pods. Upperclassmen were loaned i pods for the duration of the course that required it.

If I were to use i pods in the classroom, I would do very much the same things Duke University is doing. I would download lectures, foreign languages, and even books. There's just one huge downfall . . . teachers can't afford to supply a classroom of students with i pods. So, even though this is a nice idea for an upscale college with money to throw around, it is more than unrealistic for an elementary education teacher.