Podcasts

For this assignment I viewed the following podcasts:
ConnectLearning
Smartboard Lessons
KidCast
EdTechtalk
MacBreak Weekly
This Week in Photography

This is the first time I have ever dealt with podcasts and I was very intimidated by them at first. I have never seen one before now.I did not even know what one was. After playing around with them,I think that they are interesting. It took me a little while to get the hang of things, but I finally did. I did not realize how many types of podcasts there were! There is one on every subject you can think of!

All of the podcasts started out with some form of an introduction. Some began with music and/or small talk, kind of like a radio talkshow. They didn't just jump right in to the meat of the information. They got your attention first. The small talk made the hosts more personable, like you knew them. The podcasts that had video were the most beneficial to me because I retain information better when I can see it. I enjoyed the podcasts because there were no commercials and I was able to navigate through them.

The podcasts wrapped up much like any other radio talk show. At the end of the podcasts the hosts gave out contact information and some closing remarks, and other resources that might be helpful to the viewer. Most of the podcasts ended with a song, much like it began.

I can see where podcasts could be beneficial in the classroom. It opens up a new way to learn for students. I think that podcasts would be more useful for high school students or in an online class setting in a college. I think that they might be too confusing for elementary school students unless they had very clear and easy step-by-step directions.