Thing 19- Podcasting

I had heard a lot about podcasting and was a bit underwhelmed with what I heard during the podcasts. It seemed very similar to using a tape recorder. I think the biggest convenience of this is that many students could download the files to access rather than one student or a small group listening to a tape player.

I think that it would be an interesting way to have students practice their listening skills, but the professional podcasts would mainly apply to higher-level students. It's really hard for beginners to listen to something that is not in context. When I can point at something, talk about the size and color, students get the idea. If they heard someone talking about news in French, they probably would recognize some things, but the majority would go over their heads.

One of the podcasts I listened to was about French grammar. I couldn't imagine trying to make any sense out of that without having visual cues. Of course, if I had a visually-impaired student, that would probably be a great resource.

I think this would be useful for recording some class discussions to share with parents, absent students, the administrators, etc. to show what we did in class. One of my major concerns is trying to keep absent kids caught up, so I could see using this resource occasionally.

I liked some ideas such as having students make a sample radio program. They could record an interview (with a "famous" person), give a weather report, tell the local news, etc. and then the class could listen to the whole cast.