Web 2.0 Why? Podcasts

(Part of a series on the rationale for the use of Web 2.0 tools in online and hybrid courses).

Why would you consider using podcasts in on online course? Podcasts come in three essential varieties from a faculty perspective: faculty created, learner created, and outside source.

Faculty created podcasts can be used to add interest for learners and to convey faculty enthusiasm for a subject. It is difficult to convey an instructor's enthusiasm for the course material through text alone. An audio file (podcast) can warmly welcome learners to a class and let them know how excited you are about the subject and about the coming term where plain text can fall a little bit flat.

Audio files can also be used by learners to change the time and location of the course – correctly formatted they can be downloaded by learners and listened to at a later time and in a different place. Many of today's learners have MP3 players such as ipods that they can use to facilitate shifts in time and location.

Audio files may also catch a learner's attention when they aren't looking (literally) – think about the learner who starts the login process, then wanders off to the kitchen to fix a cup of coffee. While waiting, an audio file starts automatically as soon as the login process is complete. The resultant noise may pull the student back to the class or at least remind them that they were doing something in the other room before they headed for the kitchen. And hearing a reminder that there is an assignment due on Wednesday at 3:00 may be more memorable than more traditional ways of imparting that information (text).

Unfortunately creating audio files is a technically challenging process that requires equipment and skills that not everyone has. The alternative is to use podcasts that others have created. An economics course I taught several years ago used a podcast from the University of Washington's Last Lecture series. The topic of the lecture was the “Morality and Ethics of Capitalism”. That was a wonderful discussion topic with which to begin a class on basic economics. Podcasts which are updated on a regular schedule are a great way to keep your class current and to encourage learners to listen to the same material you listen to on a regular basis. If you encourage your iTune addicted students to subscribe to the podcasts you like from within iTunes they will get the updates automatically.

Speaking of which, a source for academically oriented podcasts is iTunes University. To see what is available go to the iTunes music store and look for the iTunes University. Most lectures are free. You can also google iTunes University to see a list of the many schools that are offering lectures in this format. MIT's Open Courseware project is there for example, as is Stanford U.

What about learner generated podcasts? I still think there are problems with this, primarily on the “ease of grading” side. I do think it's great for students to work with the course content in any way you can get them to. To create a podcast someone has to develop a script, which of course implies someone did the research required to write that script. From that perspective, allowing learners to create podcasts is a very good thing. You just encouraged them to spend a significant amount of time working with the course material. On the other hand, the faculty then has to listen to the podcast. That has to happen in real time, possibly more than once. Faculty need to be watchful of their time in this case.

Lisa