To Podcast or not? – Position Paper
TO PODCAST OR NOT?
Podcasting is a digital audio file that is written, recorded, uploaded on the internet with an RSS feed and then downloaded to be listened. This method of communication and learning is still a fairly new concept to lots of teachers. Many educators are hesitant when it comes to learning and using new technology in their classrooms with their students. Podcasting is gaining more and more popularity among teachers and students alike. Does it increase learning or does it take away from the time used to teach the curriculum? The following paper will look at the advantages and disadvantages of using podcasting in the elementary classroom. There are many articles and research that support podcasting in the classroom. The benefits of podcasting are very similar from article to article and from the higher education level to the K-12 classroom. Most studies on podcasting have been focused at the post secondary level by putting lectures online in an audio format to be accessed at any time. At the K-12 level, not as much research has been conducted but the focus is mostly on student created audio presentations. The advantages to creating and listening to podcasts that will be presented in this paper will include; challenging students and increasing motivation, improving collaboration, providing ownership of learning by creating knowledge and the podcasting process as an indicator of success. The limitations to podcasting will comprise of; the need of clear goals and commitment from students and educators, being able to focus on and retain the information from listening to podcasts and becoming overly focused on the technology rather than the task. Is podcasting with the students a useful tool to increase learning or is there still research needed to be able to use this tool effectively in the classroom?
Podcasting may be attractive to educators because of it’s listening component. At the elementary level, teachers must report on listening skills and this may be one way to provide opportunities for this strand of learning. There are thousands of podcasts on a variety of subjects that it is likely that something suitable to a class unit/topic may be found to enhance the learning. The production of a podcast is also very easy. It does not require much, a laptop, a microphone, an audio recorder and the internet is all that is needed to podcast. The teacher assigns a topic, students research and select relevant information to write a script and records their podcasts and publish it. Students own their learning when they podcast it (Warlick, 2005). Podcasting is another way to make content interesting and fun and it’s also provides a new opportunity to make students better learners by turning them into teachers (Warlick, 2005).
Another advantage to podcasting is that it will create a challenge for students to show their knowledge and motivate them to create something that is compelling to others to listen to. Interactive dialog and collective problem solving are key to helping each other understand and retain information. Creating a podcast fosters an learner-centered environment and encourages a stronger sense of community of students who are motivated to work towards a common goal (Vess, 2006). Students are more and more connected to the technology of today and educators need to find a way to connect and grow with this technology. Using podcasts will motivate students to show their knowledge in a fun and active manner using a meaningful medium, something they are familiar with.
In the end, we want students to find meaning in what they have learned and feel successful in how they have shown their knowledge. The podcasting process has several benefits to the student which help them achieve greater success with their learning. It will give students greater confidence with their oral language skills. By practicing and recording their script over and over again, students feel they are better prepared then if they were to give a presentation once in front of the class (Vess, 2006). Next, work habits and group collaboration are learned and improved as students need to work together and plan in advance to have things written, rehearsed and recorded. Podcasting will also help with the success in grammar (Vess, 2006). The more the script is practiced, reviewed and listened to before it is published, the likelihood of the writers and group members catching grammar/language mistakes is increased.
There are so many arguments to support podcasting in the classroom, however, there are some limitations that also need to be presented. The following points have been brought up in these two articles iPods: Informative or Invasive? (French, 2006) and Talk the talk: Learner-generated podcasts as catalysts for knowledge creation (Lee, McLoughlin, & Chan, 2008). Students are engaging in a multitude of tasks involving media simultaneously. Therefore, attention may not always be directed at the task at hand and having to listen to a podcast may not be as effective as teachers would like it to be. Also, Dual Encoding Theory and other research has shown that information received through one sensory channel is not processed or stored as well as information received by two channels (French, 2006). It explains why teachers are always trying to make learning interactive and hands-on. This shows that an audio only podcast may only be beneficial to those who are good auditory learners in situation with little distraction. If students are listening to a podcast while doing other tasks, their attention is split therefore the retention of the material may be hindered.
The second limitation about podcasting that has been brought up is the need for common goals and commitment to produce and engage in this shared activity. The best way to produce a podcast so that students show learning and are engaged are by following these steps. The group needs to script write and edit, present, record, publish and share. These tasks require lots of group work, which means that students need common goals and commitment from each other to accomplish this task. If students are not committed to this shared activity equally then they may have not been actively engaged in the collaborative process to create a podcast. The collaborative process is a major goal of the whole podcasting process and it is what makes podcasting a worthwhile tool in learning without the common goals and commitment by all who are involved podcasting would not be as effective. There is also the issue of copyright where permission to use the content needs to be acquired. So when researching and listening to podcasts, students need to make sure that the information is authentic, suitable and true.
The third limitation has to do with the technology itself. To create a podcast, there is no textbook to tell you what to do. It’s very much self-directed by reading information on the internet and playing and experimenting with the programs. The teacher is limited by his or her knowledge of the program and is often learning new things at the same time as his or her students. Teachers have to be very careful that the focus is on the process of the podcast, script writing, editing and presenting to create and retain knowledge. The recording and publishing are means of getting that information to a wider audience and a means for encouraging collaboration. Also, a file server that is capable of hosting the podcast needs to be found, along with the appropriate technology.
In conclusion, the advantages to podcasting in the classroom seem to be more significant than the disadvantages. After looking at both sides of the argument, more time and effort are required at the beginning to establish a good foundation for the creation and production of the podcast. The teacher will have to teach students about what makes a good podcast, and provide students with the skills needed to work collaboratively in a group and solve problems using constructive dialog. The technology needed to host a podcast and also to create on will need to be research ahead of time. After the legwork is done, the advantages for the learner with the podcasting process from researching for script writng to publishing is well worth the preparation work of the teacher. Having an active student-centered learning task provides and knowledge-rich environment for students, podcasting will do just that.
BIBLIOGRAPHY
- French, Donald P.. “iPods: Informative or Invasive?.” Journal of College Science Teaching 36.1 (2006): 58-59.
- Lee, Mark J.W., Catherine Mcloughlin, and Anthony Chan. “Talk the talk: Learner-generated podcasts as catalysts for knowledge creation.” Journal of Educational Technology 39.3 (2008): 501-521.
- Vess, Deborah L.. “History to Go: Why iTeach with iPods.” History Teacher 39.4 (2006): 479-492.
- Warlick, David. “Podcasting.” Technology & Learning 26.2 (2005): 70.
