Archiving Foreign Policy Teaching: Why PG428 Moved from Facebook to YouTube

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By Bernard Yegiora 

PG428 Foreign Policy in PNG is delivered fully online for students based on our Madang campus. The teaching plan set out in the unit outline revolves around three strategies: online webinars, structured Moodle lessons, and group case studies. At the start, we relied on livestreaming through Facebook to broadcast our lectures and student presentations. It worked well in creating immediacy, but as the semesters went on, we found this model lacked one crucial feature: proper archival value.

Facebook livestreams were convenient in the moment, but they were not reliable as a long-term storage platform. Once a session ended, students often struggled to revisit it. Videos could be buried under layers of posts, hard to search, or simply disappear. For a unit on foreign policy, where continuity of debates and access to past material is vital, this was a serious weakness. Students needed a way to build on the lectures of previous weeks—and future cohorts needed a record of what had been taught before.

That is why we transitioned to YouTube as our primary channel. Unlike Facebook, YouTube is fundamentally designed as a video storage and archival platform. By hosting our recorded lectures and presentations on Mr. Lahui Ako’s YouTube channel, we created a durable and organized library of PG428 content. Each lecture can now be accessed, replayed, and cited by students throughout the semester and beyond. It turns our teaching from a “once-off event” into a growing repository of knowledge.

This archival approach benefits not only our Madang-based students but also other students across the country. Those studying political science at UPNG or UoG can access our content, drawing connections between our course and their own. The general public, too, gains exposure to structured discussions on PNG’s foreign policy, broadening the reach of our teaching. In that sense, YouTube doubles as both a classroom archive and a tool for public education.

The Moodle lessons remain the structured core of the unit. Each week, students engage with carefully designed activities, readings, and quizzes. But now, instead of struggling to recall a livestream they may have missed, they can turn to the YouTube channel to reinforce their understanding. This integration of Moodle and YouTube ensures that our students have both a structured pathway and a permanent video library to support their learning.

Week 4 of PG428 explores the tension between theory and practice in foreign policy. Lesson 3 focuses on ‘Academics versus Practitioners,’ with students debating economic statecraft as a tool in PNG’s diplomacy.

The case study presentations also gain new life in this model. Rather than livestreaming them into a Facebook feed that is quickly forgotten, recording and archiving these presentations on YouTube gives them permanence. Students know that their work contributes to a collective record of learning, and future cohorts can review and reflect on how past groups approached similar foreign policy challenges. It builds an institutional memory within the unit.

Week 13 wraps up with case study submissions, and Week 14 shifts into oral presentations on Zoom alongside Lesson 9. Students are now moving from research and writing to presenting and defending their foreign policy analysis.

From a pedagogical perspective, this archival strategy supports inclusivity. Students can access videos anytime—whether they need to review a key concept before a quiz, clarify a lecture point while writing their case study, or catch up after missing a class. For those balancing academic and personal responsibilities, the archive provides flexibility without compromising on learning outcomes.

In short, the shift from Facebook livestreaming to YouTube archiving is not simply about changing platforms—it is about ensuring the longevity, accessibility, and public value of our teaching. PG428 now stands as both a unit for our students in Madang and a contribution to the wider academic and policy community in PNG. By treating YouTube as a storage platform, we have ensured that the study of PNG’s foreign policy remains accessible, cumulative, and relevant for years to come.

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