GWU on iTunes U
2012 AMX Award Winner
ColonialCast

What is ColonialCast?

ColonialCast is a multimedia system that provides a variety of Academic services for faculty and students, including lecture capture and media distribution. This system simplifies podcasting of lectures for GW faculty by automating the capture, upload, and delivery of audio and video recordings. Course recordings are available to faculty and registered students through Blackboard and iTunes U.  

What is iTunes U?

iTunesU

iTunes U is a place to host educational content such as lectures, interviews, and supplemental course materials all in the familiar environment of iTunes.

iTunes U is now available on the GW Mobile app. Download the mobile app for convenient, portable access to course podcasts

Did you know?

  • Over 150,000 course files have been downloaded from GW's iTunes U site
  • Over 1,000 courses have been created in iTunes U since the beginning of the program

 

How does the process work?

  1. ColonialCast seamlessly automates recordings of class lectures by allowing faculty members to schedule audio capture start times in advance.

  2. The audio capture routine stops at the end of class and the resulting MP3 file is published and made available to students via iTunes U.

  3. Students are able to download or stream the MP3 recordings from their personal computers and mobile devices.

Colonial Cast Benefits

What are the benefits of ColonialCast for faculty?

  • Eliminates the need for faculty to have personal recording devices to capture lectures.
  • Allows faculty to distribute podcasts in a convenient, widely accessible location.
  • After the initial scheduling process, limited or no additional effort is needed to manage course files.
  • Limited technical skills are required to produce and distribute quality podcasts.
  • Encourages students to engage with course materials outside of the classroom.


What are the benefits of ColonialCast for students?

  • Allows students to participate in class discussions while ensuring they will not miss important notes
  • Allows students to review course materials at their own pace.
  • Allows students to clarify concepts discussed in class during preparation for homework and exams.
  • Provides students convenient, portable access to course materials.

ColonialCast and iTunes U Tutorials

Below are tutorials that can help you and you students get started.You will need the Adobe Flash player and Adobe Reader to use these tutorials.

For Instructors


For Students

Classrooms with ColonialCast recording capability

The select classrooms below on the Foggy Bottom and Virginia Science and Technology campuses are equipped with audio-capturing hardware that automatically records live lectures and converts them into downloadable podcasts.