iBook recaps first year of university’s iPad-fueled Learning Studio

Abilene Christian University’s “Learning Studio: Year One Report” is now available at Apple’s iBookstore. The report provides an interactive survey of the AT&T Learning Studio, a “learning laboratory” focused on mobility and media creation.

The 35-page report recaps the story of the Learning Studio, from early design discussions through major projects in its first year of operation. Interactive features tell the story of students and faculty who worked with the Learning Studio through video interviews and sample work.

Projects profiled include award-winning student filmmakers, ACU faculty who share how a digital storytelling workshop changed their teaching, mobile media workshops for K-12 faculty, and an ACU art professor who uses a green screen to travel through time for his online art course.

The report also includes a virtual tour of the Learning Studio, providing an inside look at its recording studios and collaboration rooms. It concludes with key numbers from the first year, including student check-out statistics for cameras, room reservations and participation in training workshops.

“Mobile devices continue to transform the way we interact with media,” according to AT&T Learning Studio director Dr. Kyle Dickson. “That’s one reason we produced the report in iBooks Author. Tablets are an emerging platform in education, so we used this project to better understand the potential of publishing to the iPad.”

This book can only be viewed using iBooks 2 on an iPad. iOS 5 is required.
“Learning Studio: Year One Report” is free and available worldwide exclusively through the Apple iBookstore. “Learning Studio: Year One Report LITE” is available in a non-interactive, PDF format.

Created as part of an US$1.8 million gift from AT&T, the Learning Studio opened in February 2011 on the top floor of ACU’s academic library. A state-of-the-art 8,800 square foot facility, it is equipped and designed to support 21st century teaching and learning. Visit www.acu.edu/learningstudio/ for more information.

Abilene Christian University’s mission is to educate students for Christian service and leadership throughout the world. More than 4,500 students, including nearly 800 graduate students, enroll in ACU from 47 states and territories, and 41 nations. Visit www.acu.edu for more info.