Podcasting and Learning

To be honest, before enrolling in this class, I was familiar with the term "podcasting," but that is where the familiarity ended. Our tech department offers what is called "mini-t's" where many different technology topics are addressed. Last year, there was a training on podcasting...I now wish that I had taken that class. I agree with the authors of the materials that I read, in that this is a fun way to learn. In a world where almost everything that we do revolves around technology, I can see how podcasting would and does keep students engaged and learning.
I found the ideas/projects in Kristen Fontichiaro's "Podcastin101" to be beneficial in suggesting the many and varied ways that podcasts can be used in the classroom. I particularly enjoyed viewing some of the podcasts that were available online. I could hear the enthusiasm in students voices as they read, talked, and/or discussed their projects. Using the podcasts to assess students learning is a great way for the teacher to evaluate his/her teaching as well as student learning.

WHAT WOULD I DO????
If a teacher approached me about podcasting, I would tell him/her that podcasting is new to me, but I am very interested in learning more about it. I would do some research, and I would also do a school-wide survey to see if any other teachers are interested. If there was a significant number of interested teachers, I would ask out tech department if it would be possible to set up a group training one afternoon. If there was low interest I would ask for training for the interested party and myself. I feel that once the two of us were able to create some podcasts and show other teachers how their classes could benefit from podcasting, interest would grow. I am interested in increasing student learning and knowledge. I'm also excited to find innovative and different ways to encourage learning and participation and that is why I would be interested in helping this teacher (and myself) learn more about podcasting.
I agree with Fontichiaro in that project should start small. I believe that an excellent starting point would be with booktalks. I intend to begin creating some booktalks for the media center and including them on our school web page. This would be a great tool in interesting students in books. I can also envision students doing book reports using podcasting. As teachers become more familiar with podcasting, they could use them in instruction. I feel that it would be beneficial for teachers to record tutorials for lessons and post them to the school website. Students who have difficulty with homework assignments could go to these podcasts for additional help (and parents,too). It might even be helpful to have students record tutorials.
The possibilities for using podcast in schools, media centers, and classrooms is endless and exciting.