Slidecast yourself: Exploring the possibilities of a new online presentation tool

Many educational theorists stress the importance of social aspects for effective learning. In "communities of practice" for instance, groups of practitioners might learn from each other and eventually constitute a shared identity. Web 2.0 provides an ideal opportunity for this. An example of such a Web 2.0 information technology is slidecasting, which can be described as podcasting by synchronizing PowerPoint and voice. Anyone can upload their slidecasts to a website with an interface similar to YouTube, and anybody can watch these products. However, there is limited research on this topic, its possible application in education, and its popularity in businesses. We therefore studied the educational implications of introducing slidecasting in the classroom, sent a survey to our students to detect their attitude towards this new teaching tool, and organised a focus group with communication professionals. We can conclude that slidecasting can be successful in education, but that it will not immediately gain access to the corporate world due to problems concerning confidentiality and the very nature of slidecasting.