Digital Pedagogies Assignment 1 Embedded Task 2

What is a Podcast?

A podcast is an audio file that is shared online with others across the internet, this is usually achieved through the use of an RSS feed and subscriptions (day, 2018 ). A podcast differs from an audio file because of its shareability across the web, this shareability is a result of the RSS feed which is able to update websites across the internet that host podcasts quickly.  

What can a podcast do?

A podcast will enable students to work to a higher level as they would need to be able to present their topic in a digital form, but as a podcast students will not be able to use images like they would with a video. This difference will hinder students who are more of a visually learner but it may help students who learn better through audio or by having thinks expanded to then verbally. There are many ways in which a teacher can fully utilise podcasts, one such way that would be very useful for a history teacher such as myself would be for the students to give their parents or grandparents interviews on their family history and then having those podcasts shared so the class can learn more about their peers (edtechteacher, 2017).

Podcast sharing.

Podcast are different from just uploading an audio file online and as such they require a different set of skills that would not be suited to a classroom environment. A way to avoid or circumnavigate this issue most people use a podcast hosting website such as libsyn (libsyn, 2004). Companies like libsyn take your audio file and convert it to the necessary file type as well as create an RDD feed for your podcasts so that any future episode are kept together. The downside to this method is that companies like libsyn will charge money for hosting the podcast and creating the RSS feed for you.

Safety with podcasts.

There are many problems that can arise with exposing students to podcasts such as giving students access to podcasts containing things inappropriate for students (profanity, descriptions of violence or assault). As a teacher we are tasked with making sure students are taught in a safe and nurturing environment and as such we should make sure that any podcasts that we show the class have been thoroughly listened to so that nothing explicit or graphic is exposed to the class. Other safety issues can come with students uploading their own podcast and giving away personal information to strangers. If a student was interviewing a family member for a podcast and their home address were to be mentions that podcast would not be suitable for sharing with the internet and perhaps not being shared with the class unless that information can be cut out.

Teaching with podcasts.

There are many different ways in which podcasts can be used to teach one that I believe could be particular fun would be doing a historical interview podcast series where students take turns each lesson to interview each other as historical figures. Students would need to have an understanding of the figures that are going to interview in order to write up questions and answers for the series as well as be able to use the technology involved such as a microphone and compute to a large degree in order to complete the task. I believe that this would enable an ordinary task to be completely redefined so that students are able to complete new tasks that would be otherwise unthinkable (Schrock, 2018). 

References

day, i. p. (2018 ). WHAT IS A PODCAST? Retrieved from international podcast day: https://internationalpodcastday.com/what-is-podcast/

edtechteacher. (2017). Podcasting – Using Podcasts in the Classroom. Retrieved from edtechteacher: http://edtechteacher.org/tools/multimedia/podcasting/

Gray, C. (2013, March 07). What is a Podcast? A Simple Explanation of Podcasting. Retrieved from YoutTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_awu2loGzL0

libsyn. (2004). libsyn. Retrieved from libsyn: https://www.libsyn.com/

Schrock, K. (2018, January 16). Resources to support the SAMR Model. Retrieved from Kathy Schrock Guide to Everything: http://www.schrockguide.net/samr.html

Digital Pedagogies Assignment 1 Embedded Task 1

Utilising effect ICT tools in an educational environment is a sure-fire way to improve the learning outcomes of the students who engage with the tools. Blogging is one sure tool that when utilised correctly are a great pedagogical tool, as well as a fun way for the class to interact with each other online.

What is a blog?

Editing in a screenshot of my blog after it has already
 been posted to show the functionality. 

A blog is an online space that anyone can create and access, blogs will usually focus on one topic or subject and will contain many posts or entries about that topic. One advantage of using a blog rather than a traditional website come in the utilization of the comments feature. By using a blog in the classroom, the teacher will be able to review and give feedback to the students instantly by commenting on that students post. A is far harder to edit or make quick changes to in comparison to a blog which would be helpful as from my experience as both a student and preservice teacher last minute changes are a common occurrence in the classroom. However, blogs are not without risks, utilising blogs within the classroom can open new way to bully other students with the comment on posts and teacher need to take the time to impart upon the students the proper procedures or as some call it the netiquette that should be followed. The risk is minimised greatly when the teacher is using a safe blogging tool and is monitoring the blogs for any issues, Victoria are using Edublogs within classrooms and New South Whales access online sites through the Links for Learning initiative (Birt, 2018).

Effective usage in the classroom

The SMAR model Popularized by Dr. Ruben Puentedura (Schrock, 2018)

Blogs are a tool that when used within a classroom can allow for certain students to flourish and feel much more comfortable with the work and feedback. Many students who are self-conscious or shy will find blogs to be a way to express themselves in regards to the topic in a much more comfortable manner. In order to evaluate the efficiency of blogs in the classroom the SAMR model is applicable, I feel as through blogs are at the redefinition tier of the SAMR model as a blog will allow for the complete redesign of some task with the added benefit of instant feedback from not only the teacher but also fellow students blogging can open up new ideas within the classroom.

Blogging about History

Blogging open ups many different teaching opportunities with schools, I feel that blogging can be particularly usefully within my own subject history. As history is a very in-depth subject with many tangents and options for learning, the difficulty in teaching can be extreme. With blogs there is an opportunity for peer teaching within the classroom, students being able to research the aspects of the topic that they find interesting and post the resulting information on their blogs for their classmates to read and give feedback that could be more information from a new perspective to links that can be made with other blogs. History is such a large subject that it is impossible to cover every aspect of a topic within a classroom lesson and most students will not be looking forward to doing homework on topics they do not like. By using blogs within the subject students can research aspects pf the topic that they do find interesting and post those facts onto their blog for other to read with the whole class doing this all the students will be researching what they enjoy while still covering the bulk of the course material.

References

Birt, K. (2018, January 01). Topic 3: Digital Tools 1- Web spaces. Retrieved from CQUMoodle: https://moodle.cqu.edu.au/mod/book/view.php?id=580102&chapterid=39128

Schrock, K. (2018, January 16). Resources to support the SAMR Model. Retrieved from Kathy Schrock Guide to Everything: http://www.schrockguide.net/samr.html
Minayev, A. (2018). What Is a Blog? Retrieved from Blog Basics: https://blogbasics.com/what-is-a-blog/

My First Post

My first post on this blog.