The University Of Arkansas At Little Rock (UALR)

The University of Arkansas at Little Rock William H. Bowen School of Law's high quality legal education prepares students with the knowledge, skills, and ethical concepts to function as competent attorneys, public officials, and business professionals. As a component to their curriculum, UALR Law students engage in various activities and mock courtrooms to fine tune their trial skills and public speaking. UALR Law students have long relied upon a VHS camcorder to record their performances in class as a means for reviewing and self-examination. While the benefits of taping mock trials and student presentations were certain, the arrangement was less than ideal.

Motion To Dismiss Outdated Technology

Because each student that wished to record their performance would have to bring their own VHS tape, much of class time was spent exchanging tapes in the video camera. Additionally, students were limited to reviewing only their performance and lacked the ability to compare themselves to their peers or within the courtroom proceedings.

"There were many downfalls to recording classes with a traditional VHS camera but as VHS camcorders were being replaced by newer digital versions with multiple formats, we realized that we had to make a change," said UALR's Jason Jones.

Certiorari: Apreso Lecture Capture

Jones and the UALR School of Law technology team evaluated multiple solutions to replace their camcorder and tripod set-up and weighed them against their requirements. Jones wanted a solution that captured all parts of the class- including audio, video, and visual aids. The solution also had to make lecture content immediately available to students, free up instructor time, and be completely hands off.

"The EchoSystem gives us the most bang for our buck," said Jones. "There are several alternative lecture capture products that have a similar output but the EchoSystem's price, automation, central scheduling, and straightforward yet highly customizable workflow cannot be beat."

Additional Beneficiaries

In August of 2005 The UALR School of Law deployed the Echo³⁶⁰ lecture capture in six of their classrooms and almost instantly the technology was applied to a situation outside of its primary purpose. Only weeks after UALR captured their first lecture, Hurricane Katrina rocked the Gulf Coast and displaced thousands of students. In response to the tragedy, UALR admitted several first-year Tulane Law students to their institution while New Orleans was being rebuilt. Though the transplanted students were several weeks behind in course content, the EchoSystem was capturing all the dynamic qualities of the classroom experience and publishing the lectures for on demand student review. With the 24x7 availability of Echo³⁶⁰ lecture content, the Tulane students were able to make up for the classes they missed on their own time and successfully completed the semester.

Summation

Originally purchased to replace VHS camcorders for recording student presentations and mock trials, UALR has expanded their use of the EchoSystem to include the capture of exam reviews, special events and to augment student note taking in classes where interaction and participation takes precedent over thorough and precise notes.

"We began with only a few faculty members willing to capture their lectures. The numbers have shifted: now we have only a few that don't enhance their courses with the EchoSystem," said Jones. "The students were much of the drive behind the quick adoption. If a teacher was not using the EchoSystem, the students actually asked that they begin using it."

"Some of the professors were worried that students would not come to class if they could get the content online but we have found several ways to avoid that problem and have seen no decrease in attendance since the launch of the EchoSystem," said Jones.

Stare Decisis

With 65 course sections that record on a regular basis and over 36 hours of lecture content captured daily, rich media lecture review has become an education tool as commonly used as a textbook at UALR's William H. Bowen School of Law.

"The system is so easy to use that our faculty can decide to record every class; something that students appreciate because they use the online lectures to increase their overall comprehension. We think this can only improve our students' learning," said John DiPippa, associate dean for academic affairs for the Bowen School of Law.

"Beyond the ease of use and student benefits, the EchoSystem has turned into a great recruiting tool for our school," said UALR Associate Dean & Law Instructor Rhonda Wood.