Duke adopts online learning tools | The Chronicle

... “The University has adopted several online tools, such as digital textbooks, applications and online courses, to aid students in their academic endeavors. One such Apple iPad app, Cachalot, was developed by University faculty, staff and students spanning several departments for marine biology classes taught by research scientist David Johnston. The electronic textbook integrates text, photos, videos and other digital material in a single app. ‘It’s basically a scalable, open-access textbook to introduce students to marine science and conservation,’ Johnston said. ‘It uses examples from big, beautiful, compelling ocean creatures.’ Cachalot is available as a free download for anyone—not just Duke students–and is built on an open source platform that other professors can adapt to create their own apps for their classes. The Cachalot app, which Johnston uses for Duke’s Marine Megafauna class, is split into three sections. The first section features encyclopedic descriptions of marine mammals alongside multimedia components that help students visualize the animals. The second section includes class readings and space for annotations and highlighting. The third part includes interactive audio and video components, as well as animations. Sharon Chan, a junior, appeared in a video about Cachalot that was shown to the Board of Trustees and has now used it for two biology classes, Marine Mammals and Marine Megafauna. Chan said she appreciates the way the app incorporates technology that students are already using everyday into the classroom experience. ‘If you’re reading something and have a question, you can tweet through the app about it and someone will answer it,’ she said. ‘You’re constantly learning from different channels, which is a lot more interesting than having to read from a textbook. That’s the way we’re moving toward.’ When Apple debuted the revamped iTunesU app in January, Duke was one of the first universities—alongside Stanford University, Yale University and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology—to contribute content...”