iPods

Duke University gave out iPods to each of its 1,620 incoming freshmen. These iPods are to be used mainly for academic purposes, but can also be used outside of the classroom. Students will be able to use the devices to download course content, recorded lectures, foreign language lessons, audio books and music from a special Duke website modeled after iTunes. The school will supply voice recorders for some classes, enabling students to record notes while working in the field.
It is said that the project has gained momentum throughout the year. More than 600 first-year students enrolled in at least one course that used iPods. Many of these courses were for music or a foreign language, and the students used their iPods to record or receive audio files. As students began experimenting with the devices, they also began using them for gathering field notes, conducting interviews, podcasting or audio blogging, as well as for portable hard drives or as signal generators in an engineering class. Duke University really has made the use of an iPod completely different from what most people would use them for. They have made it very effective in education, which is pretty cool to me.
http://www.dukenews.duke.edu/2005/12/ipodupdate.html