“Hey, Mrs. T, how about some of our students doing some podcasts on westward migration for social studies? Could you help us with that? I think some of our students would really love doing it! ” Does this sound like something a media specialist in your school might hear while on the way down the hall, in the workroom, or at a PTA Fall Festival?
Media Specialists are usually seen as the “first responders” when school personnel or students have technology needs or desires. If media specialists have worked at developing good relationships with the teachers in a school and with the students who come to the media center every day, the conversation above will not seem at all fictional. The responsible media specialist who is approached by a colleague or student group desiring to begin a new venture like podcasting will want to have good information to share that will encourage teacher and student participation. As a relative “newbie” in the technology world of the media center myself, I would admit my lack of knowledge to my colleague or student and would immediately make plans to do some research on podcasting to educate myself. Some questions I might raise would include:
1. What, exactly, is podcasting?
2. What good podcasting programs are already out there that might be used as exemplary models?
3. How would podcasting benefit students?
4. How can podcasting be done without a HUGE outlay of monies I DON’T HAVE?
5. How can we engage students in podcasting that will encourage them to “think outside the box,” get creative, and still get their message across?
6. How can we evaluate the effectiveness of podcasting in enhancing our students’ educational experience?
Fortunately, podcasting is gaining in popularity and growing into a real multimedia wellspring of information. With positive results for students who produce them, podcasts supply information for their listeners in an entertaining way. A true win-win situation!
The media specialist who wants to look at podcasting at his/her school can hop on the Web and finds lots of examples, helpful hints, and evaluation tools about podcasting with students. In looking at the six questions above, we can find practical assistance in all those areas.
In defining podcasting, EPN (The Education Podcast Network) offers this:
"The best way to understand podcasting is to imagine a merger between blogging (regularly posted articles of news, insight, fun, grips, literature, and more) and radio, an established broadcasting medium that people have listened to for news and entertainment for generations" (Warlick, 2009).
Additionally, Tony Vincent who helped develop the Radio WillowWeb podcasting project for elementary students in Nebraska says,
"There are three kinds of podcasts. Audio podcasts are usually an MP3 file and are the most common types of podcasts. Enhanced podcasts can have images to go along with the audio. They can also have chapter markers, making it easier to skip to different portions of an episode. Enhanced podcasts are an AAC file and are not supported by all devices. Video podcasts are movies, complete with sound. Video podcasts can be in a variety of formats, but MPEG-4 is the most popular" (Vincent, 2009).
Good sites for student podcasting are readily available, and at least three sites have become premier examples for other schools wishing to start podcasting. From the Web we can find good examples of student podcasting at these sites:
· Radio WillowWeb with its “WillowCasts” from grades 1-5 at Willowdale Elementary School, Omaha, Nebraska
http://millard.esu3.org/willow/radio/index.html
I was absolutely amazed at the quality and scope of all the broadcasts at this site. From the first graders’ “Fabulous Fish” to the fifth graders’ “Remembering the Revolution,” students wrote their own scripts and produced these 8-9 minute broadcasts with music, interviews, and valuable information their classmates would love.
· “Couley Kids” showcases seventh graders’ Podcasts from Longfellow Middle School in La Crosse, Wisconsin. Their earlier URL has been now changed to an iTunes space at
http://www.apple.com/search/downloads/?q=Coulee+kids
· ColeyCast podcasts originate in the fifth grade classroom of Mr. Coley in Tovashal Elementary School in Murrieta, California. There is also information for teachers who wish to begin podcasting. Parts of speech, the human body, and Spanish explorers in the U.S. are just a few of the informative podcasts available here. Other fifth graders (and their parents!) will enjoy hearing school stuff from students their own age. There are some animations, extended readings, and still pictures available on the site that further explain each podcast’s topic.
http://www.mrcoley.com/coleycast/index.htm
Benefits to students who participate in podcasts are numerous. Students gain valuable insight into all the steps in producing material “ready for prime time.” They learn how to interview, how to write a script, how to transition between segments, how to speak before an audience, how to ratchet up interest in their topic with music and graphics, how to edit, and how to make a meaningful piece of information fun and entertaining. Here, with the help of the school library media specialist, students learn to work with adults and with each other. Guess that is what we are all about in education, right?
Budgets and dollar signs are a worry in today’s economy and are an unfortunate companion to all our great ideas. Podcasting, though, seems to give a pretty good “bang for the buck” because production materials are cheap or even free. Media specialists and students can create podcasts with step-by-step instructions and inexpensive/free equipment as described by Tony Vincent’s “Learning in Hand” Web site.
"I suggest using a USB headset microphone like those made by Logitech. Students then don't have to worry about their distance from the microphone while they read their scripts or notes. . . if you use Macintosh, I suggest using the included GarageBand software for recording and postproduction. If you use Windows, I suggest using the free software Audacity for recording and postproduction" (Vincent, 2009).
A good way to begin in a small way is with a single podcast in a “Podcast for Dummies” approach. By producing a segment for “Our City” at http://learninginhand.com/OurCity/participate.html the novice “podder” can make a meaningful project under the expert guidance of Tony Vincent of “Radio WillowWeb” fame. Here Tony gives step-by-step instructions for what to include in a short segment explaining about your home city. Prompts for script-writing, suggestions about how to put it all together, and explicit directions for publishing it in a contained site are all here. Check out some existing podcasts from a city near you at
http://learninginhand.com/OurCity/index.html
How can we add to the appeal of podcasting for students? After all, being “on air” is exciting enough for most students of any age. We can, however, offer ways for students to get creative with their podcasts. Adding music really gets them interested. Vincent has suggestions for that, too.
"For making music, I suggest using Sony's free ACID XPress. Visit ACIDplanet.com each week for free musical loops for ACID Xpress . . . podsafe music is the term for music that can be legally used in a podcast and freely distributed online for others to download" (Vincent, 2009).
Nine different hyperlinks at Vincent’s “Create Podcasts” take you to FREE podsafe music distributed on the Web. Inserting graphics or photos add another dimension to the podcast experience. Great links and video tutorials helpful to media specialists are available at http://www.mrcoley.com/coleycast/podcastingresources.htm/. Another great media specialist’s resource is a free 34 page booklet with how-to podcasting tips available for download at http://learninginhand.com/podcasting/booklet.html
Finally, as with all educational endeavors, we need ways to evaluate what we are doing. Have we really provided another way for students to learn something new and interact in a meaningful way with others? Have we encouraged creativity and higher order thinking skills? Or are we simply providing a techno babysitting service? Ways to assess our progress with technological goals in education are offered in several spots. Two of them are described here.
The “A+ Podcast Rubric” from Ann Bell at the University of Wisconsin offers potential podcasters a way to define a good podcast, engage in self-evaluation, and engage in a discussion of what a good podcast should contain. This rubric can be printed out to use with students.
Note: descriptions below were chosen from Bell’s “exemplary” stage; many more descriptors are available at the web site. Possible points for each section range from 9 (exemplary) to 0 (Incomplete).
· Introduction—catchy, clever, relevant information, clear purpose, immediate engagement of the listener
· Content—creative, original, innovative content with accurate information and succinct concepts
· Delivery—well-rehearsed, smooth, conversational style
· Interview—open ended drawing interesting and relevant information from the interviewee.
· Graphics, music—graphics/artwork create unique and effective presentation enhancing what is being said and with quality graphic design
· Technical production—recorded in a quiet environment without background noise and distractions
· Group/partner work—team members contributed equally and assisted in editing process
Find Bell’s work at http://www.uwstout.edu/soe/profdev/podcastrubric.html
Kathy Schrock’s Guide for Educator’s web site has a podcast evaluation tool of 13 questions including audience engagement, presentation of content, and audio delivery with response choices of YES/NO/NA. Students and teachers can use the form to evaluate podcasts they are listening to or podcasts they make themselves. Schrock’s site is at
http://school.discoveryeducation.com/schrockguide/pdf/evalpodcast.pdf
So, Mrs. T, can you help? Yes! I can learn more about podcasting with the materials listed throughout this article and in the References section at the end of the article. I can find good models of student-produced podcasts. I can see the benefits of students who learn by doing and then share it with others. I don’t have to spend my dwindling library budget purchasing new technologies because podcasting is inherently inexpensive and free in many ways. My students and I can get creative and add interest by popping in free music and graphics to our podcasts. We can assess our “job well done” with rubrics freely available on the web and in teacher-student discussions. In the words of our President, “Yes, we can!”
References
Vincent, T. (2009). Create podcasts. Retrieved September 28, 2009,
from http://learninginhand.com/podcasting/create.html
Vincent, T. (2009). Podcasting. Retrieved September 27, 2009, from
http://learninginhand.com/podcasting/index.html
Warlick, D. (2009). What is a podcast? Retrieved September 27, 2009,
from http://epnweb.org/
Your third and fifth questions are really what are going to make podcasting – and vodcasting – a popular educational tool. At least, that’s my opinion. “How would podcasting benefit students?” And then, “how can we engage students in podcasting that will encourage them to ‘think outside the box,’ get creative, and still get their message across?”
I think students get bored with writing the same old research paper over and over again. And it becomes a matter of “how many pages do I have to fill?” Rather than, “what am I supposed to learn about this topic?” From somewhere deep in my memory of this past summer’s courses, I remember someone saying that Google has turned research papers into “copy and paste papers.” I’m paraphrasing, because as I said, I can’t remember where I heard this. But I believe it is true.
I have to say though, as a Telecommunication Arts grad with a focus on script writing, this task or skill does make you think. It probably goes without saying, but script writing is a much more vocal medium. You can’t just write something based on how it will read on a page; you have to think about how it will be heard. And I think this will translate into pod/vodcasts. Students won’t be able to copy and paste because it won’t be their voice. If they are participating in the podcast, they will have to actually say the words aloud. I don’t know too many students who are going to risk sounding ridiculous by repeating exactly what they read off the White House web site (n.d.), “Lincoln made extraordinary efforts to attain knowledge while working on a farm, splitting rails for fences, and keeping store at New Salem, Illinois.” They will put this sentence in their own words.
The other factors about podcasts or vodcasts that will make students think outside the box and benefit them further are a wider audience and stronger sense of permanence. A research paper can be written, and the student will see it, a parent might proofread it, and the teacher grading it will read it. End of audience in most cases. But a podcast might be listened to by the entire class. A student’s peers might be required to listen to the podcasts of other groups within the class – much like we are with both our podcast and blog projects. And again, the student or students creating the podcast are not going to risk ridicule, so the podcast will be put in the students’ own words. Not only will they have to think through the material being presented so that it is in their voice, but they will have to think how their peers will hear the information.
Trust me, it is a powerful feeling.
(See second comment)
(Continued from first comment)
Many of you may have experienced something like this when posting your first blog post. How will it read to others? How will they take my words? I had that fear when I wrote my first column for the newspaper (and ok, most of the columns I wrote after that first one) and my first book review for the magazine the paper owns. But in a way, I think both of those mediums were easier for me because I had been trained to think and write more conversationally. Write the way you would speak, but better.
Blogs, podcasts, and even newspapers and magazines are public – which can also make them much more permanent. Yes you may have to join or subscribe, but your words or your voice are out there for others to see and hear. A podcast created by a student or group of students can be posted on a web page, much like the “WillowCasts” we heard. Five or ten years from now, these second graders we have listened to will be in their teens, but their podcasts from Willowdale Elementary could still be heard on the web. That also gives you some pause when creating a project like this – infinite audience and permanence.
So I think that is how two of your questions are going to be answered. “How would podcasting benefit students?” It will make them think about what they are learning because they will have to think about the topic in their own voice. And how can we engage students in podcasting that will encourage them to ‘think outside the box,’ get creative, and still get their message across?” The more they have to think in their own voice, about something that will be heard by a larger number of people, the more creative they will become. The more they will want to impress their peers and larger audience.
Abraham Lincoln: 1861-1865. (n.d.). About the White House: Presidents. Retrieved October 2, 2009, from http://www.whitehouse.gov/about/presidents/abrahamlincoln/
Thank you for an informative post. Your links were really helpful too :)
Media specialists are definitely "first responders." Sometimes, the demand is immediate, and you have to wonder where the fire is at that warrants the urgency, ;). I think its great that you are taking the initiative to learn new technologies. I bet you know more than you think though!
Regarding the podcasting programs out there, I am working on a list to put on our (our = Holly and I) wikispace (https://why-web2-0.wikispaces.com/) as I develop the links shown in my navigation. Podcasting is found under Digital Storytelling. The listed resources barely scratch the tip of the surface. There's so much out there in terms of Web 2.0 tools that it's nearly impossible to find them all. But I am in love with the read-write web and all the collaborative opportunities it seems to offer.
Also, I agree with Holly, finding the answers to three and five are key to podcast growing popularity. As the "first responders" we need to show teachers and administrators how valuable these are by using them. You know, learn by doing, yada, yada. After they are used with a few classes, their effectiveness can be assessed. I think that since students are making their own little productions outside of school anyways, we as educators might as well tap into these talents. It may even motivate students who are masterful at making video productions but who could care less about research because they view it as a less interesting pursuit.
As far as expenses are concerned, the good news is that you can do podcasting for free. I like that Web 2.0 allows you to do most anything for free. You can pay for fancy equipment, but there's free resources that can turn out really nice end products. The fun part is convincing the technology department to unblock them. I discovered that I have to play with all the different freebies to find out what I like best.
I was really impressed with the comments posted here. Being a classroom teacher, it is always helpful to see what other teachers are trying to incorporate into their classrooms and even more intriguing to find out what kinds of ideas you all have about the media specialist's role in guiding teachers and students when incorporating technology. I agree that the media specialist is the first responder to such questions and I liked the already popular links to podcasting in the classroom that were included; I believe this to be the best way to let the teachers know that the media specialists are capapble and useful to finding appropriate ways to incorporate podcasting in the classroom or any other media for that matter. It gives us credibility with other reluctant teachers. This would be a great opportunity to do an inservice for teachers and students. Showing resposnisble use of technology is the key to helping our students judge what are appropriate and inaapropriate ways to communicate.
Thanks for the insight,
Raina Dupree
when I taught pre-k, I was considered to be tech savvy person. Anytime a teacher needed some help with technology in their classroom or even sometimes at their home they called on me. As a media specialits, being the go to person for technology can be a little daunting. As you mentioned making youself aware of the latest technology and how it can be utilized in the classroom is a full time job by itself. When I was researching for the blog posts, I searched for wikis by students and was amazed at how many I found. I found wikis created by children in the first grade. That is really impressive. The children were offering information about the revolutionary war. They included vocabulary, poetry, useful websites, and even a skit with one of the children as Thomas Paine. It was wonderful! Here's the Link http://millard.esu3.org/willow/radio/index.html