Podcasting in the Classroom and Library

 

https://soundcloud.com/user288203499/sets/poems

(my podcast on a silly poem by Kenn Nesbitt)

Podcasts are great little audio files that let you hear information when you want it.  They can be used for something as simple as telling about a project or as complicated as a radio show.  In education, they are used in numerous ways. 

There are podcasts devoted to author talks, technology, trends in education, inspiration and thoughts on particular lessons being taught.  Most of the time they are found embedded in blogs, however they can also be found in various educational websites and through podcast media like iTunes or Podcast.com.  What's particularly nice is that once you find a blog you are interested in, you can subscribe to it and listen to it when you want to, whether that be in your car on your phone or on your computer.  Thanks to technology, you are not at the mercy of a radio show time table!   

For students podcasts can be used in equally effective ways.  Students can use them as a way to reflect on what was learned after a unit of study or aid them in research.  They can be used to take notes from if a lecture was missed or be used to record and share authentic musical pieces as well as record and share authentic speeches or recitals of poetry.  Podcasts can also be used from one year to the next, in which students demonstrate to upcoming students what they learned after a particular unit.  Podcasts can be used to share information across the country or across the world.  They also work especially well for auditory learners who do best by listening to information.



Podcasts can also be used with QR codes.  They can be embedded into blogs or downloaded onto a phone or computer.  What's nice about it is that students can display their work, have a QR code with it and then parents and friends can scan it and listen to them tell about their work or project.  It gives a student a new sense of ownership and pride in what they have accomplished, (not to mention of course it is just fun and exciting).

Some of the best tools to create podcasts include:  Soundcloud, Audioboo or Podomatic.  Each of these websites are free and pretty simple to use.  They only record sound and offer no visuals.  As far as hardware, be sure you have a microphone to get the best sound quality.  It can be done without, but you may sound a little muffled and not as clear as you would like.  Another thing that is helpful is to prepare and practice what you are going to say.  You want to be sure that your message is clear and pleasant to listen to.  Nobody wants to hear a rambling, unclear message. Once you have your podcast to your satisfaction, you can publish it to iTunes, Podcast.com or Ourmedia.org.  Be sure to promote it so that others will know about it.  You can do this by posting your URL link of your podcast feed. 

              

   

With some simple instructions and a few lessons a student can be taught how to create a podcast.  If you don't want to get too involved and use QR codes you could just have students download the podcast into their personal e-mail or virtual tech folder and use it in class or e-mail it home for parents to hear.  Start small and have students write up what they want to say about a picture they did.  Have a day to just record the message into one of the above suggested podcast sites and save it into their home drive.  You could take another day to go in and have the kids e-mail it to their parents at home or to siblings.  Once you get the hang of it, the possibilities are endless!  Easy, effective and exciting for kids, podcasts can bring new meaning to enrichment.