How MIT Turns Teaching into Podcasts, Video, and Reach

About this episode

The episode discusses how MIT has evolved its teaching methods through various media formats over 25 years, featuring insights from Brett Paci of Chalk Radio.

25 years ago, MIT made a bold choice: share our knowledge with the world, free of charge. Eventually, out of this, Chalk Radio was born as one tool of MIT's OpenCourseWare to deliver that knowledge. In this episode, Neil and Jen talk with Brett Paci, producer of the Chalk Radio podcast and Assistant Director of Media Production at MIT OpenCourseWare, about how that mission has evolved over 20+ years. From static course materials, to YouTube lectures, to short-form clips, to narrative audio, and now to full podcast and video formats. What makes their approach stand out is that it’s never been about chasing formats; it’s about following the audience. Brett shares how the team experiments constantly, and adapts based on how people actually consume content, whether that’s a 30-second clip, a full lecture, or a long-form conversation. It’s a practical look at how one of the world’s most recognizable institutions continues to evolve, not by sticking to one format, but by constantly adapting to meet learners where they are. Episode Links: Contact Brett Paci on LinkedIn MIT OpenCourseWare Chalk Radio Podcast MIT OpenCourseWare on YouTube Where in the World are Jen & Neil: Higher Ed…

People in this episode

Hosts: Jennifer-Lee Gunson, Neil McPhedran

Guest: Brett Paci

Topics covered

• educational podcasts
• media production
• content adaptation
• OpenCourseWare
• audience engagement
• MIT

Keywords

• MIT
• Chalk Radio
• podcasting
• OpenCourseWare
• media production
• educational content
• audience adaptation

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: MIT OpenCourseWare, Chalk Radio, Higher Ed Pod Con, The Podcast Show, EPOD Conference

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