| Learning Objective #1: identify the most effective way to podcast lecture material for nursing students. | |||
| Learning Objective #2: list the steps involved in compressing a wav file into an MP3 file. |
Design: A survey design
Methods: Nursing students (N=100), 45% Asian, average age 24 (±6) years, 90% were female students enrolled in a pharmacology course at a private university in San Francisco during September 2006 to May 2007. Data were collected using structured online interview guides. Independent t-tests were used to test the differences in listening to podcasted lectures by gender. One-way between groups analysis was also conducted to explore the impact of age and ethnicity on listening to lectures podcasted.
Findings: Mean podcasting scores were higher for females than males, (94.8 vs. 86.0), but the difference was not statistically significant. Asian students had higher mean podcasting scores and listened to podcasted lectures more often compared to white students (p=.03). Younger students age 21-24 had higher mean scores and listened to podcasted lectures more frequently than students age 25 and older, (p=.03).
Conclusion: Both male and female students listened frequently to podcasted lectures, although this was not statistically significant by gender. Podcasting pharmacology lectures may be beneficial to all nursing students, but is especially helpful to auditory learners and students that speak English as a second language. These findings may encourage nursing professors to enhance student learning in the classroom by integrating podcasting in their teaching techniques.