Sour Notes?
UPLOADED LECTURES may be the future, but for
some profs they’re a real downer. BY ADAM WINER
Generally, it is not a good
sign when your brand-new
business is denounced on the
op-ed page of The New York
Times. But that’s the greeting a num
ber of new lecture-note websites—
which hire students to upload their
class scribblings—received last Sep
tember when they began posting from
more than 100 colleges. With this inno
* vation, students could monitor their
classes (and similar lectures across the
country) without actually attending
' them. In its editorial, the Times argued
the ad-supported sites would under
mine higher education. Professors were
also up in arms, insisting the sites were
violating intellectual property rights,
posting inaccurate or incomplete infor
mation, encouraging absenteeism, and
sullying academia by mixing it with
commerce. “It is completely irrespon
sible,” rages Mathieu Deflem, assis
tant professor of sociology at Purdue.
“Just imagine that eveiy 10 minutes I
have a break [in class] and say, ‘Buy
Coca-Cola.’ ” Two schools—UCLA and
UC Berkeley—sent cease-and-desist
letters to the major services.
For the big three sites—StudentU.
com, Study24-7.com, and Versity.com—
it was a rough first semester. But hav
ing left the campuses that issued desist
orders and, at least for the moment,
says Chuck Berman, CEO of Versi
ty.com. Seeking to heal the rift with
some professors, the sites have begun
seeking permission before covering a
class, and in some cases even have edu
cators review or post notes themselves.
“There are plenty of places to grow
where you can avoid major fights,”
Berman says. “If we deliver a product
that faculty endorse in certain places,
the barriers will come down in others.”
Already, some students are taking
virtual seats for study groups, and
soon professors—some lured by the
reach of a new medium, others by the
money being offered—will begin hav
ing online office hours. “I’m sure as
heck willing to give [it] a try,” says Don
Loeb, associate professor of philosophy
at the University of Vermont, who has
given permission for Versify to post
notes from his classes. “Any communi
cation of that sort is positive.”
Study24-7 cofounder Brian Maser
estimates that, by incorporating junior
high and high school students, note
sites could reach 50 million users. Aim
ing to become gargantuan student
portals, the sites plan to roll out in
creased content, e-commerce options,
and subscription-only services. “[On
line notes are] a way for us to get our
foot in the door,” says Maser. “Note
taking is just the beginning.”
But for some, that’s definitely a bad
thing. “The value of direct student-to
faculty interaction in the classroom is
irreplaceable,” says John Sandbrook,
the UCLA assistant provost behind
his school’s cease-and-desist letter. “I
hope that, at least on my watch, we
don’t start eroding that.” • • •