PJSTAR
January 20, 2012
U of I professor uses Beatles as a teaching tool
Michael Cheney, a professor at the University of Illinois at Springfield, is no newcomer when it comes to computer classes.He can recall the PLATO (Programmed Logic for Automated Teaching Operations) system at the University of Illinois that was born way back in 1960 and went through several refinements on the U of I campus. Although the PLATO version that Cheney, 60, recalled had “400 wires, going in every direction,” the idea of using technology to teach was born with that system, he said.The problem with online learning is that since students have different learning styles, you need to try different things to reach them, said Cheney. “Oral is one element. Since I’m not a big books-on-tape guy because I get tired of listening after 25 minutes, I suspected that students might be the same,” he said.Cheney decided that three to five minutes was the ideal length for podcasts he offered to students. As a child of the 60s, Cheney mined the iconic Beatles for his podcast material. But Beatles history — not their music — is what he captured in the podcasts. “We covered subjects such as ‘Why Liverpool?’ and ‘What’s skiffle?’ among other topics,” he said. Cheney even devoted a four-minute podcast to the “Paul is Dead” controversy from the 60s.
http://www.pjstar.com/blogs/mindingbiz/x1192848524/U-of-I-professor-uses-Beatles-as-a-teaching-tool
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