Podcasting? Fantastic!

When you hear word podcast, visions of fishing rods striving to catch peas may pop into your mind. Well, you’re not even close. Think more radio broadcast, but recorded and made available for your listening pleasure (and viewing pleasure in the case of videoblogging and screencasting).

Reflections on the process of learning about Podcasting

I can tell that podcasting is a fairly new concept, as my Microsoft Word program is underlining the word! However, it seems like they have been around for awhile. I’m fairly comfortable with podcasts, but more on the side of ‘consuming/utilizing’ them and not so much with creating them. I subscribe to several podcasts from CBC, which are delivered to my ITunes podcast library weekly.

Now I’ve stepped to the other side of the fence and I’ve realized that creating them is not a difficult process. For creating mine, I chose to use GarageBand on my Mac, which was a fairly easy. Basically, all I had to do was hit record and go for it. However before hitting record, I planned out what I was going to say: short intro: reading of Halloween by Jerry Seinfeld and then short closing. I was hoping for a ‘one take’ process. However, I messed up on a line, and thought I’d need to start from the beginning. But, I just stopped recording, backed up to the end of the last ‘perfect’ sentence and then hit record again. After listening to the track, I was happy to hear that it was seamless. Can you tell where the seam is?

After recording it, I needed to export it into MP3 format, as it was still in GarageBand’s format. I then uploaded the file onto box.net so that I could link to it from my blog.

Discussion of Podcasting in terms of my own personal learning

I’ve used podcasts in the past to expand my own knowledge. To improve my French language skills, I’ve downloaded podcasts from “French Pod Class,” “Coffee Break French,” “One Thing a Day in French,” and lastly, “La Semaine Verte.” I would then listen to them either on my laptop, or on my IPod Shuffle. I could practice my French while on a long solo car ride, or while running, or doing mindless work.

I’ve also used podcasts to learn more about topics that interest me, such as investing (Good ole’ Suze Orman). I’ve also used podcasts to stay on top of current events and news. I find this especially helpful while traveling and don't have access to a TV. I would download the hourly or six o’clock news from CBC's website.

They can also be entertaining, such as “Definitely Not the Opera,” which is a mix of music, personal stories and discussion of current relevant pop-culture topics (ie. Social networking).

I can also use podcasts to learn about emerging technologies and how to incorporate them into my classroom practice. There are tonnes available at Dr. King's site, "Podcasts for teachers." Here, they have podcasts on everything from Twitter to help with podcasting.

Discussion of Podcasting in terms of teaching & learning

I have not utilized podcasts very much in my classroom as of now. However, I see the possibilities for utilizing podcasts in the elementary school context are pretty limitless. My class and I listened to an interview with our favourite author, Trenton Lee Stewart.

I have used it in the University context as well: I used a podcast from CBC’s “Definitely Not the Opera” during a presentation to teach my classmates about dialects.

As my discussion group and I mentioned during the week, podcasts can be used to bridge the gap from school to home. Podcasts of new French vocabulary can be posted on a class website and then can be downloaded to be utilized at home. This is especially useful to parents who are not fluent in French.

Podcasts can also be used to promote reading. When students present a ‘book talk’ at school we can record it and turn it into a podcast, which can be accessed later for students who may be interested in the same book.

Braun (2007) suggests recording public speakers, performances, and interviews. (pp. 15). This allows students to revisit the event, or for people who could not attend to experience it.

Richardson (2009) suggests that, “Social studies teachers could have their students do oral histories or interviews or reenactments of historical events” (pp. 117). He also suggests that, “Science teachers could have students narrate labs or dissections or experiments to record their progress” (Richardson, 2009, pp.117). I think that these suggestions would definitely enhance student learning, partially I think because it would increase the motivation of the students.

As far as cons go, I couldn't think of or track down many of them. One would be the whole privacy aspect, once again, which always is a concern. For example, if we're posting students' names and podcasts on our school's or class' site it could be a cause for concern. Another con would arise when we want students to utilize our podcasts at home. It "requires them to have access to the technology at the time they want to interact with the material; unlike a written lecture, which they can.. review at their leisure. (Neidorf, Robin., (2006), pp. 106). In other words: if a student doesn't have a computer, or access to the internet, this poses a challenge.

So, in conclusion, podcasting, I believe, will continue to be used as a device to educate and to learn. More and more, I think teachers will begin to incorporate them more and more into not only teaching, but also for student projects, and for class websites.

Works Cited

Braun, Linda W. (2007). Listen Up! Podcasting for Schools and Libraries. Information Today: Medford, New Jersey.

Neidord, Robin. (2006). Teach Beyond Your Reach. Library of Congress: Medford, New Jersey.

Richardson, W. (2009). Blogs, wikis, podcasts, and other powerful web tools for classrooms. 2nd Ed. Corwin Press, Thousand Oaks, CA.