MERLOT Journal of Online Learning and Teaching Vol. 5, No. 2, June 2009
395
Integrating Online Multimedia into College Course and Classroom:
With Application to the Social Sciences
Michael V. Miller
Department of Sociology
The University of Texas at San Antonio
San Antonio, TX 78249 USA
michael.miller@utsa.edu
Abstract
Description centers on an approach for efficiently incorporating online media resources
into course and classroom. Consideration is given to pedagogical rationale, types of
media, locating programs and clips, content retrieval and delivery, copyright issues, and
typical problems experienced by instructors and students using online resources. In
addition, selected media-relevant websites appropriate to the social sciences along with
samples of digital materials gleaned from these sites are listed and discussed.
Keywords: video, audio, media, syllabus, documentaries, Internet, YouTube, PBS
Introduction
Multimedia resources can markedly augment learning content by virtue of generating vivid and complex
mental imagery. Indeed, instruction dependent on voice lecture and reading assignments alone often
produces an overly abstract treatment of subject matter, making course concepts difficult to understand,
especially for those most inclined toward concrete thinking. Multimedia can provide compelling, tangible
applications that help breakdown classroom walls and expose students to the external world. It can also
enhance learning comprehension by employing mixes of sights and sounds that appeal to variable
learning styles and preferences. Quality materials, in all, can help enliven a class by making subject
matter more relevant, experiential, and ultimately, more intellectually accessible.
Until recently, nonetheless, film and other forms of media were difficult to exploit. They had to be located,
ordered, and physically procured well in advance either through purchase, library loan