Check, check... Is this thing on? Podcasting in the Classroom

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On the evening of December 24, 1906 a Canadian inventor named Reginald Fessenden used an alternator-transmitter to send out a short program from Brant Rock, Massechusetts. This is believed to be the first radio broadcast. The program included a phonograph record of Ombra mai fù by Handel, followed by Fessenden himself playing the song O Holy Night on the violin. Finishing with reading a passage from the Bible: 'Glory to God in the highest and on earth peace to men of good will' (Gospel of Luke 2:14).
In his broadcast, Fessenden asked his listeners to write in and tell about their location and the quality of the broadcast. Surprisingly, listeners wrote in from hundreds of miles away!

Image by ylvas via Flickr

First Impressions


Podcasting is the modern natural extension of radio broadcasting. A brief history (Wikipedia):

• September 2000: the first system is developed that enables the selection, automatic downloading and storage of serial episodic audio content on PCs and portable devices
• February 12, 2004: The term "podcasting" was one of several terms for portable listening to audioblogs suggested by Ben Hammersley
• On September 28, 2004: Technology columnist Doc Searls began keeping track of how many Google hits found for the word "podcasts". Hits recorded on this day: 24
• September 28, 2004: 526 Google hits
• October 1, 2004: 2,750 hits
• October 18, 2004: the number of hits on Google for the word "podcasts" surpasses 100,000
• November, 2004: Podcasting networks begin to emerge
• December 3, 2005: New Oxford American Dictionary declares "Podcast" the word of the year
• September 28, 2005: One year after first tracking hits for the word "podcasts" on Google, Searls reports more than 100,000,000 hits
• June 28, 2005: Apple adds a podcast-subscription feature to its release of iTunes 4.9

So, nowadays, with a computer, internet connection and a microphone anybody can broadcast anything. Really, anything! (more on that later). As defined by Will Richardson podcasting is "the creation and distribution of amateur radio, pure and simple" (p. 112 Blogs, wikis, podcasts and other powerful web tools for the classroom). Wikipedia extends this definition: "a podcast is a series of digital media files (either audio or video) that are released episodically and often downloaded through web syndication. Initially I was confused by the addition of video files into the podcasting realm, this seems to blur the lines between videosharing, screencasting and podcasting. I had thought of it as purely audio. No matter what type of files are included in a podcast, a key identifying feature is the ability to capitalize on web syndication and subscription capabilities. You can use RSS feeds to automatically download new episodes of your favourite podcast and even transfer them directly to your iPod or mp3 player. An overview of this process using iTunes (via videojug):



Made By You:
How To Subscribe To Podcasts In ITunes


Bringing it Home

I have heard of the word "podcasting" before but had never really explored the types of shows available right under my nose. To iTunes I went! I whiled away an entire afternoon searching the site, listening and viewing podcasts on an unbelievable array of topics. I had no idea this podcasting thing was so diverse! A quick browse through several categories of interest (fashion, health and nutrition, travel, shoes) revealed endless podcasts available for every topic imaginable. Unbeknownst to me, websites I frequently visit and magazines I currently read have podcasts too. My favourite hand-made goods website Etsy has one, Women's Heath produces one with workouts for your iPod (although I was too exhausted to actually exercise after all this searching to go any further than subscribing and downloading them - still counts, right?). After a while my mind was swirling with the possibilities. I could listen to the Shoe Madam's podcast on my way to work, catch the latest Women of Web 3.0 episode while walking my dog and even dream of future trips with the Amateur Traveler during my bus ride to the University. Awesome! Again, the Read/Write Web and the power of syndication has helped me filter the massive amount of content out there and tailor what reaches my eyes and ears to my interests.

After exploring what was out there, my next task was to figure out how to create these podcasts. I explored a variety of sites and programs for this. In the end, I figured out that my new MacBook Pro has more than one program to create and publish podcasts (I actually found a program called Podcast Capture hiding in my utilities!). Garageband is another option for episode creation. But, since I work with PC's in the school environment I looked into open-source software and applications available on the Web. Audioboo and Audacity are excellent options. The former is web-based and is a simple, effective way to create and share voice recordings. Audacity is a comprehensive audio editing program but it requires software download. In my searching I stumbled upon Aviary's Myna application. This program met all the criteria I was looking for: it's web-based, fairly easy to use, allows multiple clips to be edited together and, when you're all finished, lets you download your creation in mp3 or wav format. You can import audio files or record them directly into Myna and the icing on the cake is the library of royalty-free loops, intros and music clips. This was the clear winner for me. I must mention one huge limitation to all this greatness though (alas, there's always a catch): you cannot mix something longer than six minutes. I created a screencast for this program:




Bringing it to School


Although I am on leave this year for my studies I have been asked to do some technology work and projects at my former school. As part of their AISI project, I am funded for approximately three half-days per grade (K-9, plus some planning time) to work with students in some area of computers and technology. This arrangement has multiple benefits for all involved and this week in particular I was able to capitalize on it and use the grade sevens as my guinea pigs in a podcasting experiment on Friday afternoon. Each student in this junior high program has their own laptop and the school has wireless internet throughout so there are few barriers to what I can do with them. Inspired by podcasts by kids (Radio WillowWeb and others freely available on the Educator's Podcast Network) I proposed the onerous task of creating a podcast in one short afternoon. I began by sharing some kid-produced podcasts and giving them a brief tutorial of Myna. After approximately 20 minutes of instruction they were off into groups of four, brainstorming segments, writing sketches of scripts and recording pieces. My role for the afternoon was their guide, helping them with the odd snafu, giving time cues and suggesting guidelines for appropriateness. The results were AMAZING! I was so impressed with how engaged they were and how they were able to complete a finished piece within the afternoon (had we had more time we would have written more detailed scripts, experimented with music and further polished the finish product but, the bare bones are there). Here is a peek at one group's final product:



If I can offer one piece of advice to teachers interested in podcasting with their students it would be to just go for it! I had no idea what was going to come out of this afternoon with these kids, the whole project could have gone flat but instead it was one of the most powerful teaching experiences I've ever had. You can read and read and read (as I did) about the benefits of podcasting but until you try it, you won't know how amazing it can be. There wasn't one student in that class that was afraid to dive in and at the end of the day they left the class talking about ideas and segments for future episodes.

This activity got me thinking about other ways podcasting can be integrated into the curriculum. Here's a list I have compiled (for more ideas see here, here and here):

• Debates
• Classroom News (weekly or monthly)
• Audio school/neighborhood tour
• Interview experts from far away (Skype is a helpful tool to assist with this)
• Literature discussions

Teachers can also make use of podcasting to share news and events with parents and search out podcasts that compliment teaching subjects.

On his wiki Digitally Speaking Bill Ferritier provides a number of practical suggestions for integrating podcasting into the curriculum. His downloadable resources also provide structured scripts and guidelines that make it easy to get the ball rolling with your students. The example below guides students to create a script for a literature debate.

Handout IMHO Script


Packing up and Moving on

During my journey in preparation for this blog post I have discovered the power of using podcasting in the classroom. This is a medium that is accessible, easy to create and does not bring up many of the same privacy issues as video or photo sharing. Students have the opportunity to meaningfully participate in culture and society and take ownership of their content for an authentic audience. Chris Shamburg offers some insight on the 21st century skills students are developing while using this medium. Chris is the author of the book Student Powered Podcasting and can be heard in a thought-provoking episode of the ISTE Author Series Podcasts. He explains that the power of podcasting lies in the shift from being consumers of content to creators of content (this certainly seems to be emerging as a common theme in all this web 2.0 stuff!). The higher level thinking skills of synthesis are required as students collect and evaluate multiple sources to produce a podcast. Podcasting also allows students to connect personal interests to popular activities and opinions. Students take ownership of their work as they produce for an authentic audience from (potentially) anywhere in the world:

“For example, the hands-on and reflective approach to copyright, fair use, and digital media that students employ in their podcasting can become a tool for them to think about the balance of individual rights and community benefits. Similarly, the powerful idea of audience, whether in creating a media review or an audio tour, can become a tool for them to empathize with and anticipate the needs of others. In student-powered podcasting, these issues are not isolated lessons, but fundamentals of students’ work as podcasters.”

Of course, Chris warns that podcasting is not a miracle tool meant to repackage standard, boring teaching. We do not want to use this tool in a way that would result in passivity in our students. We need to make sure we are integrating the technology in a way that will “help them effectively participate in media creation, personal understanding, and communication with others”.

Photo by Derek K. Miller via Flickr
 

Even in his wildest dreams I don't think the brilliant Fessenden could have fathomed what he was on to with his broadcast on that fateful Christmas Eve in 1906. This singular event led to the advent of modern radio broadcasting as we know it today. (As a side note however, one has to wonder if he obtained proper permissions from Handel to play his tune!)

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