On the five-minute lecture website of the Open University of China (OUC), a micro lecture series entitled “Li Ping’s Modern Literature Appreciation” presented by Professor Li Ping, is very popular and has won a great deal of praise. On the afternoon of April 2, the OUC Digital Learning Resources Centre organized a seminar on the micro lecture series entitled “Li Ping’s Modern Literature Appreciation”, summarizing the creation of the micro lectures and inviting various parties to discuss ways to promote the construction of high-quality micro lectures. 

“Li Ping’s Modern Literature Appreciation” was the first series of micro lectures made by the OUC. The series was planned to include 50 micro lectures. So far, 14 lectures have been completed, including: “The Trouble Hidden in ‘Moonlight Over the Lotus Pond’”, “From ‘Thunderstorm’ to ‘Sunrise’”, “Love in a Fallen City", and "Full Love’”. Learners can access the OUC's five-minute lecture website via various types of mobile devices. Among the lectures, “The Trouble Hidden in ‘Moonlight Over the Lotus Pond’” has been very popular since being posted online in July of 2013, with over 15,000 viewings.   

Professor Li Ping introduced the teaching characteristics and construction conditions of the series of micro lectures. He explained that the use of video has allowed for the inclusion of many kinds of technology, including: animation, 3-D, and virtual reality. It also allows for the application of methods such as literature appreciation, stereoscopic viewing, and reflection and questioning in analyzing poetry, and hoped that these advances would increase the ease with which learners could absorb knowledge and develop greater appreciation for the topic.   

In discussing the topic, Professor Qian Xuchu, from Jiangsu Open University, remarked that the opening of the series of micro lectures entitled “Li Ping’s Modern Literature Appreciation” showcased the OUC’s decision to build a cultural brand during the transition process. As one part of the construction of course resources, the key problem is lecture orientation, and so he suggested that in the making of micro lectures, the relationship with other educational resources and the relation between sound and picture should be addressed.   

Professor Zhang Zhizhong, from Capital Normal University, expressed his hope that micro lectures could be an ideal form of learning resource, with the primary emphasis placed on the main points to be studied, while at the same time giving consideration to normal learners in society, so as to popularize humanistic education and aesthetic education. He suggested that the selected subjects for the series of micro lectures should not sacrifice their integrity, and that the selection of topics to be covered should contain balanced representation.   

The Dean of the OUC School of Arts and Law, Ye Zhihong, pointed out that micro lectures are a type of learning resource which can satisfy the demand to help all people in today's society to achieve the goal of lifelong learning, and would facilitate the goal of integrating degree course construction and non-degree course construction, and also help introduce the OUC's famous teachers to a wider audience.  

Chen Juan, the Dean of OUC Experimental School, thought that the series of micro lectures entitled “Li Ping’s Modern Literature Appreciation” could play a role in instructing learners, with future micro lecture productions constantly striving for perfection in the micro lecture’s orientation, script writing, and post production so as to increase the influence of the micro lectures.  

Associate Professor Hu Jicheng pointed out that the series of micro lectures entitled “Li Ping’s Modern Literature Appreciation” had unique artistic features and was significant in its selection of a subject, instruction, and picture. However, he also noted that some aspects could use improvement, such as the teacher’s gestures, curriculum elements, and the production standards.  

Shan Congkai, Director of the OUC Digital Learning Resources Centre, said that the OUC supported the focus on working to perfect all curricular materials when it came to the development of micro lectures, and that micro lectures could help introduce the excellent teachers and outstanding curricula offered at the OUC via outstanding technical means and fine form. The audience and students would ultimately decide if the materials were "perfect" or not.

At present, there are 8,476 micro lectures on the five-minute lecture website of the OUC, encompassing such fields as life and leisure, literature and art, and history and culture. Over the next three years, the OUC will build up a library of about 30,000 micro-lecture-based teaching resources, covering hundreds of subjects related to both degree education and non-degree education; the overall project will also see the completion of the learning assessment system and its integration with course management, multi-terminal presentation, assessment, pushing, and counting systems.

Associate Professor of Hunan RTVU Jin Zaisheng, Associate Professor of Zhengzhou RTVU Wang Yuntao, Associate Professor of Zhejiang RTVU Xie Xiaojian, Professor of Beijing Open University Wang Ningning, and Director of the OUC Department of News and Public Information Xiong Yingjin attended the seminar. 

By the OUC Digital Learning Resources Centre