Classes ... to record or not to record?

Oh no, not this hoary old chestnut again....

Yes, indeed. I've been musing about recording classes since a student asked me for the first time in a long while why I don't record classes regularly, as opposed to when there's a particular reason like a religious holiday or a student who requires a special accommodation.

This is something I haven't thought about in relation to my own classes for a while, and I know some folks do regularly tape (ugh - showing my age!) RECORD their classes.

I don't absolutely hate the idea, but I don't love it either. I suppose an additional concern I have these days is that, in the midst of all the discussion about new tech and distance ed, if we regularly record all classes in a residential program, we run the risk of creating confusion about whether it's actually a hybrid program. I have no objection to hybrid programs, and possibly not even to pure distance programs for that matter, but I tend to think we should be clear about WHICH kind of program we are offering. If it's intended to be a residential program and students are supposed to attend classes and have the benefits of discussion etc as the main professor-student interactions, I worry that regular recording of all classes confuses that objective and students become more inclined to skip class or not participate in class if they come to rely more and more on recordings.

It's possible that many students would use recordings as study aids in the lead-up to an exam, and I take that point, but I always prefer my students who have questions about an aspect of the course to come and talk to me about it in the lead-up to an exam rather than rely on a recording where I suspect it might be easier to take something out of context than in a direct discussion with me. Of course, that means I have to be prepared and available to speak with students in the lead-up to an exam and my policy is to do that.

In recent years, I've also taught mostly upper level discussion-based classes rather than larger 1L classes (the smaller classes do assist with my ability to be available to any students who need to ask questions in the lead up to an exam). I worry that recording smaller more interactive classes might have a chilling effect on class discussions. In a class where most students are going to actively participate in most classes, some students may be reticent to be recorded asking stupid questions (I don't know how true this is - but a few students have mentioned this in the past). I like these kinds of classes to be a safe place in which students can openly make mistakes or raise concerns and confusions. I don't know if recording would negatively affect that dynamic, but I worry that it might.

Maybe I'm wasting too much time thinking about this. It just struck me as an interesting issue in light of the fact that law schools are now thinking more about using technology for course delivery and moving to distance and hybrid education models. Do we need to draw lines more clearly between distance/hybrid versus resident courses as a more general matter, and does recording classes and making the recordings generally available suggest a distance/hybrid model? I don't know and I'm not averse to recording. It's just not something I've done for a while.

Interested in others' thoughts.

 

Comments

[Bill Turnier]

At UNC, up until I retired last year, I can tell you that all classes were recorded and the podcast access was emailed to the teacher within about 15 minutes after class ended. The professor then was in control of whether given students should be accorded access. I required students who wanted access to email me stating their excuse for missing class. The honor code applied to such communications. My reason for so restricting access was that I did not want students staying home and not attending class. It worked very well especially in cases of sickness, bad weather, problems with daycare, out of town interviews, funerals and even weddings.

[Howard Wasserman]

I audio-record all classes in an MP3 and post it to the course blog right after class. It originally was my quid pro quo for banning laptops--I likened it to having to take notes by hand during a deposition, then receiving the transcript for review a few days later. Students appreciate the opportunity to go back and fill-in their notes and listen to some things they missed the first time through. It has not affected attendance, but that is because we track attendance and a student may be barred from taking the final exam if she misses more than a certain number of classes. I have seen nothing to indicate it has had a chilling effect.

[David S. Cohen]

I record all my 1L classes, but not my discussion-based upper level courses. I have told the students that if attendance or in-class engagement suffered, I would stop. I haven't had that happen though. I've been doing it for three years now, and it's been an entirely positive experience.

[Al Brophy]

I record all my classes and make the recordings available to all the students.

[Jacqui Lipton]

That's an interesting idea re being a quid pro quo for banning laptops, Howard. I've never actually minded laptops in class but I'm probably in the minority there.
And I do have to admit that in the olden days when recording quality wasn't so good (and when we were limited to audio recordings too), I was more concerned about students relying on recordings than I perhaps would be now. The quality has definitely improved.
For those who do record, is it audio only (out of interest) or do you have video as well?

[Howard Wasserman]

I do audio-only so I can control the recording. I don't have to coordinate with IT, wait for it to be uploaded, etc. I bought an MP3 player for about $100. There also are a dozen different smartphone apps you could use.

[Matthew Bruckner]

I have a question about the nuts and bolts of recording that Howard's reply starts to answer but not completely.

Are your room's miked such that normal speaking voices are picked up by whatever you're using to record? Or is loading an app on my iphone, which I place at the front of the class sufficient to pick up everything said in normal speaking voices?

Thanks!

[Howard Wasserman]

Our rooms are not miked. The recorder I use can pick up stuff from the back of the room, although how well depends on the shape of the room and I often have to remind students to use their outdoor voices. But it does well enough, I think. And a phone app does equally well. Excuse the shameless, plug, but my Evidence class blog is fiuevidence.blogspot.com; you are welcome to listen to some of the videos and see how they sound.

[Howard Wasserman]

That should be "listen to some of the audios"

[Jeff Schmitt]

I record all of my classes and make the recordings available to all. My school has a program that records the PowerPoint slides as well as the audio. I always worry that students may not take notes or pay as much attention in class, but it hasn't stopped me from recording yet.

[Camilla Highwater]

Oh no, not that hoary old "hoary old chestnut" chestnut again . . .

[Howard Wasserman]

Jeff: Interesting It never dawned on me that recording would cause students to not take notes or not pay attention. I figured attention would come from the fact that it is still a law school class, I'm still asking questions, and class participation is still part of their grade. As for note-taking, I actually was encouraged by the possibility that they would feel less pressure to take copious, verbatim notes (the tendency when taking notes on a laptop) in favor of staying engaged with the conversation, knowing they could go back and fill-in the blanks.