Podcasts

I've downloaded and listened to a number of podcasts - everyone from my favorite talk radio hosts to motivational speakers uses them - yet I never even thought about the possibility of using them to enhance the classroom experience. This opens up a whole new level of instruction! Now I can be in a student's ears at all hours of the night haunting with all of my favorite facts and dates and events. Ican just see it now:  I'm sitting in my class waiting on the bell to ring and in walk Joseph and Andre having a conversation about which battlefield landmark was the most important to the battlefield at Antietam Creek but they don't really know that's what they're discussing. They are just reveling in the body count at the Sunken Road because they heard it on my podcast over the weekend. They only listened to it because they knew that I'd give an all extra credit quiz over it on Monday, but they listened and that's all that matters. I smile.

Podcasts could make an excellent tool if used properly. They offer a student a way to gather information on their on time and in a medium they feel comfortable with (not to mention making the teacher look kind of awesome for even using them). It also gives the parents another opportunity to engage with their students and know what they're being taught. If you haven't noticed by now, I'm a HUGE fan of parental involvment and I think it's great when something is presented that can put the parent right in the middle of the learning experience. Some of the other Web 2.0 tools that we've looked at, like wikis, are great also, but they don't offer the students and parents the authenticity of hearing you speak. They can also be altered, where a podcast is done once it's recorded. I look forward to trying this out with my son who is homeschooled. This gives me a way to put lessons together for him and still go to work and school, and can relieve some of the burden on his mom at the same time. Exciting stuff indeed.