Journal #7: Podcasting - NETS 5

In joining the Classroom 2.0 community, I participated in a local and global learning community to explore creative applications of technology to improve student learning. I chose a tool from the Classroom 2.0 website that interested me (Podcasting) and followed two discussion threads about the technology. I defined the term and then discussed what I learned from the tool. Finally, I evaluated and reflected on current research and professional practice provided by other educators in the threads.

Podcasting

Definition - The term podcast comes from "iPod broadcast". Podcasting is a great way for people to create files (podcasts) that others can download to their media devices. Broadcasts were first designed as audio files to be listened to on an iPod or other portable device. Now, they are often listened to on computers and can be made with audio, images, and videos. A podcast has a web feed, known as RSS, that allows it to be cataloged and followed in various podcasting directories, such as iTunes.

What I learned from the tool:

I learned that podcasting is a very useful tool for educators. Teachers can provide podcasts to students or make podcasts with students. Itunes and websites, like www.podcastalley.com, offer thousands of free podcasts. You can subscribe to a podcast series or listen/view one episode. For example, www.howstuffworks.com offers over 200 podcasts available for free at iTunes. You can set up the free subcription and iTunes will save the next episode in a list for when you want it.
I learned that there is software available that makes creating a podcast fairly easy. You can simply record an mp3 audio file or a more advanced mp4 video file. Students become motivated to create podcasts in the classroom when they realize they can share it with an audience around the world. Their podcast can be save and then listed in iTunes, with other major content providers, like Disney and the Discovery Channel. The process of creating a podcast provides a valuable cross-curriculum learning opportunity for students and appeals to the various multiple intelligences of students.

Discussion Thread 1:

"Podcasting Daily Lessons"

This thread was started on September 28, 2009 and has 17 posts. The thread starts when a science teacher asks for ideas about how to create and use podcasts (or vodcasts) in her middle school classroom. She wanted to know how to include it in her daily lessons and wanted some suggestions. The first response was from a teacher who had a good experience using a bluetooth headset to record his voice while walking around the room. The next post in the thread was from a teacher who had started a podcasting club with her students using a Mac. She discussed how she used Powerpoint to make slides of vocabulary words and definitions. She saved the slides as .jpg files and then used Garage Band to make her podcast. She had her students add their voices. She also suggested using a Smartboard to make a podcast, and she offered a link to a youtube tutorial on how to use a Smartboard. Finally she discussed how there are some new video cameras on the market, like the Flip camera, that record straight to mp4 files, which then can be added to iMovie.
The next poster said that Promethian Activboards are another option other than the Smartboard for recording voice to something you are presenting. Other posters said that they use Audacity (someone recommended the beta version which allows for exporting to MP3 format easily) for recording and editing audio. One post had a link to a very interesting site, http://www.masterymaze.com with screencasts of different subjects, including dozens of Powerpoint presentation about world and U.S. history. Another post mentioned a teacher who uses a Flip video camera and tripod to record the audio and content on her Smartboard. She posts it to youtube and then embeds the link on the schoool wiki. Lastly, a poster introduces iPadio, a free service for consumers that allows you to record a podcast by using your phone. You call a toll free number and then the podcast, or "phlog", is posted on the iPadio site. Then from there, you are able to download or embed it to another site. One example of iPadio being used today is 13 year old Jordan Romeiro calling and giving daily updates from base camp on Mt. Everest - his phlog is linked to Facebook.

Discussion Thread 2:

"Great Post - 100 ways to use podcasting for learning & studying"

This thread was started on January 16, 2009 and has only 7 posts. The first post included a link to a blog showcasing the 100 ways to use podcasting. Although the thread is very short, I chose it for two reasons. First, there were posts that stated that the blog was removed and then that the link is dead. As sometimes happens, websites, like blogs, get deleted and the link cannot open the webpage that the poster has referred to. So what would have been available to others is now not accessible as originally intended. It an unfortunate consequence of the ever-changing internet. However, another poster saved the thread by including a different link to an article that he said was very similar. Secondly, I chose this thread because I discovered a lot of great content in the substituted online article that is found here - 100 Ways to Use Your iPod to Learn and Study Better. In the article there are links to many podcasts. By clicking on one of the links, I found podcast resources that I can use in the future from The Education Podcast Network. This is a site that serves as a directory of a wide range of podcasts categorized by subject matter.