Podcasting, according to Wikipedia, is “the practice of making audio files available online in a way that allows software to automatically detect new files and download them.” Technically this is accomplished using RSS feeds to provide information about a collection of audio files in MP3 format. The term podcasting is often used to refer to one off audio broadcasts that can be downloaded from the Internet although this is not, strictly speaking, a true podcast which should be a ‘series’ of broadcasts. Podcasting lets anybody with a microphone; a computer and an Internet connection publish audio broadcasts that can be listened to by people anywhere in the world. Because the barriers to entry are very low, podcasting is rapidly becoming a popular way for people to share audio broadcasts. Podcasts are free and can be automatically downloaded to portable media players, so they can be listened to whenever it’s convenient.

In education podcasting can be used by both teachers and pupils. It is a fast, convenient, and low cost way to extend lessons both within and beyond the classroom. From simply recording existing lessons to developing new and extended course material, teachers and pupils alike can take advantage of the many benefits of downloadable content contained in educational podcasts. Using podcasting as part of a child’s daily educational routine has many potential advantages.

Practical Issues

You need to have a computer with built in sound and a microphone and it is often better to have a separate throat mike. You will also need a host to hold your podcasts so that people can subscribe to them and get automatic updates. See the weblinks at the end of this section for some ideas on doing this and also see the attached Podcasting Guide.

In the classroom

• Can provide bespoke materials to support any learning situation with audio material for learning "on demand", at anytime and anywhere
• Potential to support or extend the work of any pupil with special need
• Useful for children who miss sessions, e.g. due to illness.

At home and in the community

• Great community/school link potential.
• Regularly broadcast an RE newsletter
• For those with a reading difficulty or for English as a second or third language
• A whole new approach to homework, e.g. audio notes to reinforce learning

Personalised learning

• children benefit enormously from making a podcast:
  • It gives them a potential audience of thousands for their work and they can think about tailoring their podcasts for different audiences.
  • They must concentrate on their speaking and listening skills which will have consequential effects on their writing skills (writing scripts, setting up interviews etc).
  • Publishing their own podcast is hugely motivating for pupils; also gives them a sense of ownership.
  • In learning how to create a podcast, pupils are extending their ICT skills and capabilities to embrace new technologies.
  • Podcasts can be interactive; the audience can be invited to send their comments, giving valuable feedback to the children about their work

Teacher Use: A teacher was concerned about getting some of the key ideas for the GCSE paper for the students. She had made up some revision sheets and also had placed her notes and slides on the school intranet for the students to download but she wanted something else which might help the students. She decided to set up some mp3 downloads on both the RE website and also make these available for the students to copy off a key drive.

She made both audio recordings and also narrated over her slides to make some vide recordings. These were useful not only as revision tools but also for the students who had missed particular lessons.

Student Use: The teacher in a class had done some work on learning styles and realised that some of the students in his class who were very good at oral work, discussion, debate, answering questions, produced significantly weaker written work. The teacher was concerned that these students were disadvantaged in assessment. So, he asked them if they would prefer to hand in assignments in oral rather than written form. The students used digital recordings to produce a short audio report which the teacher assessed using the same criteria as the written work from others students.

See also the 10 technologies page - Idea 1 - "making it funky"

How do I create a podcast?

• for PC's using the Podium software - link
• for Apple using Garageband - link or using Quicktime Pro - link

How do I listen to a podcast?

• Subscribe and listen using iTunes - link
• Download a free copy of iTunes for your Apple or PC