presentation of course notes using http

[Stephen Le Hunte]

> >There appears to be a fair amount of interest in producing parallel paper
> >based and html based versions of 'lecture' notes.
> >
  Speaking as one of the (probably very) few students on this list, I 
can say I would have been very interested in this kind of lecture 
approach (past tense because I'm now a postgrad..)  However, as far 
as I can see it, at present, the web based notes should be treated as 
an extra to any standard lecture based materials.  I say this for two 
reasons.  Firstly, not all of the students will be sufficiently net 
savvy to want to bother with the web based information.  Secondly, how 
many students actually go away and read up extra information in text 
books, let alone go to a (normally over-crowded in our 
department) computer room to read extra information?
  Of course, it does beg the question, how 'virtual' do you want the 
lectures to become?  If the web based notes are what would be 
presented in the formal lecture, and can be read/printed at students 
leisure, how many students will appear at the lecture? 

> >My personal feeling is that this is to simplistic and that this sort of
> >material should not be 'published' unless it contains some 'value added
> >content'. Unless it is as an interim measure.
> >
  I'm not convinced of this argument myself.  Any notes/information 
published on the web for lecture courses would have a very 
narrow field of interest, specifically, those taking the lecture 
course and so would be of value to them and probably only them.  Just 
because the lecture doesn't add 'value' to the web as a 
whole, doesn't make it any less valid than plenty of other 
information available.  Someone with no interest in Chemistry 
wouldn't read the notes anyway.  
  I'd suggest considering the target audience first, then the rest of the 
world.  Just because it's accessible to the whole world, 
doesn't mean they'll all read it, then criticise it's value.

> I start the lecture with some Web based materials, perhaps with a few
> molecules thrown in. But despite all this technology, I
> still use chalk for the major part of the lecture.
>
  Supporting what I mentioned above, it should be treated as an extra.  If 
departments have the capabilities to use these great new 
technologies, then they should be used, if only to prove their worth 
to people in other departments to convince them of investment.
  Which leads into a discussion on how to educate academia as a whole 
(very tenuously) which is my other message.....
  Thanks for listening,
  Steve
 

------------------------------------------
Stephen Le Hunte     (cmlehunt at swan.ac.uk)
Author of the HTML Reference Library 
ftp://ftp.swan.ac.uk/pub/in.coming/htmlib/
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