Education Podcast Sampler

"Make you lame podcast listenable"

Digital media guru Steve Mack offered a rapid rundown of best practices in audio and podcast production at the recent South by Southwest Interactive Conference. It is titled "Five Tips to Make Your Lame Podcast Listenable."

Just because students my be a captive audience doesn't mean they need to be treated like prisoners. Be an educational Johnny Cash and deliver podcasts that sound professional, enjoyable and educational.

The Making of the 2007 Horizon Report

Educause has published an interview with two of the researchers behind New Media Consortium's 2007 edition of the Horizon Report, an annual evaluation of emerging educational technologies and and estimated time to adoption for each.

It is worth noting that podcasting was not explicitly identified in this year's report. In 2006, podcasting was lumped with "Personal Broadcasting" and given a one year adoption horizon. This year the report identifies "User-Created Content" and " Social Networking" within the one year horizon. Did podcasting fall from favor?

No it didn't. But it did end up, to borrow from filmmaking, on the editing room floor. A look at the Horizon Report wiki shows that on the shortlist for inclusion in the report was:"Can You Hear Me Now?  The Resurgence of Audio." Here is a snippet:

Podcasting was one of the early uses of audio capture and distribution, but we are now seeing new forms, including short interviews, group discussions, synchronous voice-over-IP (VoIP) audio conferences of up to a hundred people, and recordings of keynotes, performances, and courses. Recording equipment is readily available, whether it’s an iRiver, a cell phone, or software that works with a VoIP provider like Skype. We are rapidly approaching the point when any instructor can capture and distribute a lecture online by walking into the room and pushing a button labeled “record this class.

The University of Cincinnati his highlighted with an example of "a faculty member providing students with detailed feedback via audio commentaries.

Two "further reading" resources are provided:

Five Steps to Designing Podcasts that Teach(retrieved November 14, 2006 from University of Wisconsin-Madison). This short how-to article explains how to design and create an educational podcast, focusing on the educational value rather than on the technology. engage.

Beyond Text: Using Your Voice Online (Retrieved November 14, 2006). This project has explored the application of online voice technologies in different learning contexts and with different learner groups to develop models of practice and practical guides for teachers in Australia wishing to move beyond text and integrate online voice technologies into online delivery, assessment and support services.

Podcasting to hit "inflection point" in 07?

Dan Colman, the lead editor of Oculture.com and  Associate Dean & Director of Stanford's Continuing Studies Program was recently interviewed on America Public Radio's Future Tense about the open courseware movement and its growth through the medium of podcasting.

On his blog he summarizes the recent Pew Center study that suggests podcasting may -- depending on how you interpret the numbers -- not be as pervasively adopted as believed. Still, he suggests that "Somewhere in '07, [educational podcasting] should hit an inflection point. Supply will increase demand. Demand will trigger more supply. We'll see exponential growth and never look back."