By Rachel Blackburn – February 9, 2018
On January 17th, Penn State Professor Jonathan Brockopp held a lecture on Religion, Ethics and Climate Change at Michigan State University. This was a lecture unlike others – as part of DISC’s goal to connect learning between BigTen schools, Penn State University and the University of Michigan also received live broadcasts of the lecture, which was displayed on a projector. On one half of the screen, the audience could see Professor Brockopp speaking, while the other side showed his presentation visuals updating in real time. By utilizing this technology, students and staff from all three universities were given the opportunity to listen to this lecture and participate in a live Q&A session.
Whether it was at Michigan State or one of the campuses receiving the broadcast, audience members were given the opportunity to ask Professor Brockopp questions about his lecture in real time. At Penn State, the audience was primarily made up of Professor Brockopp’s students, both from his DISC class on the Crusades and another class he teaches about Climate Change and Ethics. Even through the digital format of this lecture, students were able to engage and offer insightful questions, as well as hear questions from those at other universities. The opportunity to participate in a live lecture from another campus truly presented a unique learning experience for the audience.