Film increasingly important aid in teaching and marketing

In short films on YouTube, iTunes U and other media, universities present their research and education. Oxford and Cambridge do it, but so far MIT in the US is streets ahead. It is not only a matter of building a brand in a situation of increasingly fierce competition, but also of new opportunities to develop methods of teaching and learning. In Lund, important efforts are also being made to move the University into the era of virtual education.

Potential students want to get an idea of what it is like to study at Lund University, researchers need to reach out with their findings and lecturers see major opportunities for education using the new technology. Film is also used to present the University for donors, the media and the public. These are the fundamental prerequisites for the project Multimedia for Education and Research at Lund University, which has been underway for the past year. The aim of the project is to create a shared database for film material produced at the University, develop support services for production and distribution, expand the possibilities to use film in marketing and communication and, not least, encourage and develop the use of film as a teaching aid.

“This is a great opportunity to present research and education at Lund University. International competition for students, researchers and research grants is becoming fiercer. In the US and the UK, students are used to being able to download teaching material. This development is now coming to Sweden”, says Johan Nyman, project manager for the university-wide project.

Film also offers an opportunity to develop the traditional concept of education. It is not only a question of survival and marketing. When the repetitive elements of a course are removed from the teaching, time is freed up for questions and more in-depth discussions.

“Dialogue with the students is very valuable. Filming repetitive elements of my courses gives me more time with the students”, explains Peter Jochumzen, a senior lecturer in economics who is on the project steering group. He is one of the pioneers of film in teaching at the University, having used it since 2003. Peter Jochumzen makes films on the computer. He records his voice as he draws on the screen. This is known as a ‘screencast’. The equipment is relatively simple and cheap. All that is needed is a computer screen that can be drawn on, a microphone and a recording program.

“I mostly make short films where I present more complex sections of the course material and solutions to exercises”, says Peter Jochumzen.

All the students have to do is sit down at the computer and play, pause and repeat as many times as necessary. Film forms an important teaching aid for the students.

“From an educational point of view, it is important to recognise how film can be used in teaching. The aim is to be able to offer good service to the students outside the physical university environment. One role model is MIT in the US. Today it is possible to follow entire courses free via their web portal”, says Marita Ljungqvist, senior lecturer in Chinese and director of studies at the Centre for Languages and Literature (SOL).

Ljungkvist has many irons in the fire. She is a member of the project’s working group and also coordinates a project for the Centre for Educational Development (CED), which is putting together a toolkit for teaching staff and students who want to make films, full of practical advice and tips.

Marita Ljungqvist has used film in her teaching and last year she received Lund University’s teaching prize. Her films show her speaking Chinese with a student and discussing various grammar rules.
“Starting to learn Chinese from scratch is difficult, especially by distance learning. The response from the students has been extremely positive”, she says.

“At SOL we have language courses in Yiddish. If we could offer courses online in a good virtual environment then we could also expand the market for these courses. Then those who are interested could study Yiddish at LU, irrespective of where they live in the world”, says Marita Ljungqvist.

- Johan Lindskoug

Footnote: Links to Lund University’s YouTube and iTunesU pages can be found at www.lu.se.

Johan Nyman films and Ingela Björck s Danielle Lanyard at the Innovation in Mind conference. The is available on Lund University’s own YouTube channel. Photo: Gunnar Menander

Johan Nyman, Peter Jochumzen and Marita Ljungqvist are all involved in the project “Multimedia for Education and Research at Lund University”. Photo: Mikael Risedal and Johan Lindskoug