Here's a headline that might make people take notice.

Rural college pushes iPod use for lectures

Finally, constructive use of the portable multimedia players. Or is it? Here, some professor has students watch films...

Vess said having her history students screen films on their iPods allows her to dedicate class time to discussion and analysis. Ditto for the weekly graduate course on historical methods that she teaches.

Good idea, but it means that students will have to spend their time out of class on school work. If you think this should be expected, think again. There are few students in college today, state and community colleges, where the students actually expect to have to spend time doing out of class work. I know it sounds crazy, but I hear it all the time from other students. They are not there to learn, they are there to attend class and get a degree. My Spanish professor, the one from Spain, was amazed when a student yelled at her because he was getting a failing grade. He did no homework, didn't come to class all the time, but since he paid his money he demanded a good grade. I talked to another student in the Spanish class the other day, a high school student taking extra stuff before she graduates. She really didn't want to learn the language, she wanted just to get through the class as quickly as possible.

Somehow I don't think the iPod is going to revitalize the classroom as the article suggests. The students still have to want to participate, and I don't see that happening. I think the big problem is they are not getting the grades that reflect the work they do. When that happens, the students will expect something for nothing. My son still thinks, even after all the lectures I've given him, that he should be able to just show up for class and be able to pass the class with an A. He sleeps in class, and the teachers can do nothing about it. They are not supposed to wake him or anyone else up if that happens because somebody might get upset the student is being asked to overextend himself. It's fucking crazy, and no wonder there are more and more kids getting homeschooled.