Giving education a voice- a practical guide to podcasting

Giving education a voicea practical guide to podcasting Martin Belgrove 1 15/06/2009 What is podcasting?   Who has heard of it? Who has done it?  What were your experiences What sort of things would you like to podcast 15/06/2009  2 What is podcasting? A quick definition  Podcasting = ipod +broadcast Means of publishing audio files on the internet  3 15/06/2009 Some terminology  Audio files:- MP3, WAV, WMA RSS (Really Simple Syndication, feed, reader) Podcatcher Bit rate 128kbs 64kbs 48kbs 32kbs ID3 tags 15/06/2009     4 Benefits of Audio        Enthusiasm and engagement with topic. Giving learning a voice Supported by student owned technology. Can be anytime- anywhere. additional/supplementary information which can support a lecture, course or concept. Student content can lead to resource banks. Excellent resource for some disabled learners or those with English as a 2nd Language. 15/06/2009 5 Barriers of Audio       Unlike text, an audio file cannot be searched. Length of recordings vs engagement. Large/group discussions are not appropriate. Time considerations for lecturers re creation, editing and upload. Adverse impact on physical lecture/seminar attendance? Could have accessibility issues for some learners. 6 15/06/2009 Different voices       Tutorials Pre-lecture scene setting Assignment guidance Guest speakers Lectures (bits or in full) Exam advice or revision notes 7 15/06/2009 Different voices        Marketing Welcoming greetings to students Intro to activities Frequently asked questions Voice annotation of ppt slides Student advice Student voices 15/06/2009 8 Is it worth it?   92% of students accessed podcasts when available 72 % of students thought it had a positive effect on their grade Podcast access is dramatically higher close to exams and assignment deadlines  Source: Journal of online learning and teaching: Vol. 3, No. 2, June 9 15/06/2009 Is it worth it?  “You never know when you are going to need to hear it again; they were always helpful”. “It‟s nice to have that they‟re a “safety net.” I don‟t always get things the first time, so it‟s a nice option to have”. “It makes keeping up with everything easier, since you can go back and clarify what the professor was saying without having to ask the professor”. Vol. 3, No. 2, June 2007   Source: Journal of online learning and teaching: 10 15/06/2009 UEL experiences     6 members of academic staff recorded descriptions or their modules and uploaded them to UEL Plus tracking statistics paper based module descriptions document posted on UEL plus has received a total of 143 student hits 8 podcast audio descriptions have received a combined total of 179 student hits. It would appear that this is an effective method of communicating with students 15/06/2009 11 UEL experiences    A series of 6 Law lectures were recorded and uploaded to UEL Plus statistics show that more students have accessed the podcasts (180 hits) than the module guide (71 hits) and the assignment instructions (71 hits). End of module feedback from students identified that they considered it a valuable aid to learning and noted it as one of the items they liked about the course. 15/06/2009 12 Some considerations   Provide scene setting information at start – Like a „Contents Page‟. Consider writing a plan / monologue. To script or not to script – – – Write as you speak. Pace the content – 1 min = 100-125 words. Ensure detailed / specific information is written for accuracy    Ensure you know your content. Rehearse the material. Record your voice and listen back – 15/06/2009 13 Some examples  Some UEL examples 14 15/06/2009 What do we need?     A microphone A recorder (computer or portable) (preferably MP3) Optional: Audacity (desktop recording and editing) Somewhere to put the recording online – UEL Plus, itunes or designated server 15/06/2009 15 Recording Devices  Ideally use a recorder that records in MP3 format. – It saves having to convert the file later Prices for MP3 recorders vary from £60 to £250+ – – 16 15/06/2009 Adding files to UEL Plus A practical demonstration 17 15/06/2009 Audacity Software Can be accessed from the university menu Can be downloaded at home. See my wiki for details 18 15/06/2009 Using Audacity Plug in your microphone to record To learn more visit my podcasting wiki or sign up for podcasting training http://www.uel.ac.uk/sdel/staff_development/index.htm 19 15/06/2009 Considerations        Purpose of recording Accessibility (is transcript needed?) Quality of recording (background noise) Recording settings Duration of recording Recording other people Where to put it 20 15/06/2009 Questions  Any questions? 21 15/06/2009 Further Assistance  Martin‟s Podcasting Pages http://martinspodcastingpages.wetpaint.com/  22 15/06/2009