ED-MEDIA 1999 Proceedings Book - Association for the ...

make an hypermedia educational environment that in many respects reflects the richness and variety of
provision found in standard University learning.
Distance Learning
Can our environment be used for distance learning The answer is “Yes and No”. The learner is an
intrinsic part of successful distance learning. Traditionally what distinguishes successful distance
learners is an extraordinarily high level of motivation to learn, a resourcefulness in developing
appropriate learning skills, and a very high ability to manage their own learning. It would be a mistake
to suppose that all “standard” University students exhibit these qualities to the same degree as
successful distance learners. So the traditional distance learner will rejoice in the web based learning
environment as a supplement to the traditional distance learning resources of books and correspondence
with tutors; many will accept web-based resources as a substitute for traditional distance learning tools.
What though of the standard full-time students We are wary of diminishing the richness of their
environment in case there is an adverse effect on student progress and success. So we do not wish to
eliminate the face to face lecture, we want to make it better. Unlike some face to face lectures
everything in our SSSO lectures is legible. The slides are clear on the computer screen, the digitised
voice played though the sound card is clear. Crucially, and unlike in face to face lectures, the
individual student controls the pace of events. Students might rewind the lecture in order to replay
something important. They might pause to check in a book something that was said. They might
pause the lecture in mid-sentence in order to construct a mail message. Such e-mailed questions do
themselves become a valuable resource as “frequently asked questions” visible to all.
Technology
The system uses RealPlayer to play streamed compressed audio. We have experimented with two
approaches to the creation of SSSO files. The first utilises Real software to embed slide-change events
into a Real-encoded audio file. The second technology uses Synchronised Multimedia Integration
Language (SMIL) to display slides at predetermined points in the audio file. This open standard
language makes it easy to “play together” a variety of media. The first technology is very simple for the
user and can be played through a standard web server using http protocol. The second, SMIL based,
technology requires the use of RealServer to deliver the files to a Netscape browser (Internet Explorer
includes an Active-X plug-in that makes the RealServer unnecessary but we have followed the more
general route). Using the SMIL solution the student-interface is more functional but also more
complicated. For example students can select any slide and play the lecture from the start of the slide
(like playing a track on a music CD). The simpler interface of the first method requires the user to
move a slider to the approximate start of the desired slide.
Conclusion
Our experience with SSSO has been limited to just a few trials, but feedback from students has been
encouragingly positive. Observations of students using the system shows that they do pause the
presentation and replay sections. A telling comment from one student is: “I like the on-line lecture
because I am in control.” We expected the quality of student lecture notes to improve as they can take
as much time as needed, however one student commented “I didn’t bother to make any notes because I
knew I could play the lecture again.” So like most educational media SSSO may be susceptible to
misuse! Next year we plan to use the method as a substitute for some of our standard lectures, so
students will experience a high quality distance learning regime as a small part of their course. To
view a sample SSSO lecture that discusses further the contents of this paper please see
http://www.dis.port.ac.uk/~johnr/lal2/start.htm