Week 6 Podcasting

ANDREA DELACRUZ
Apr 16, 2020
2 min read

Updated: Apr 19, 2020

This week I learned about podcasting. Podcasts are audio media where the producers of the podcast record themselves, and people can download and listen to the podcast after it has been released. It is not live; like we would expect the radio to be, rather it is recorded. People publish their podcast events typically at frequent periods, such as weekly or sometimes even daily. Listeners can subscribe to the podcast to receive alerts when a new episode is released, and they can either download the podcast directly from the creator's page, or through a third-party such as iTunes or Amazon. Some podcasts are free and make money through advertising and sponsors, while others charge a small fee for each podcast or for a podcast subscription. So, where do education and podcat have anything to with one another? Well, with podcasts, educators can motivate students to take an engaging role in their learning. Because I am a Science teacher and teach English Language Learners (ELL) I decided to focus my learning on these two topics. ELL students can benefit from listening to podcasts in different subjects, depending on their level, such as beginner, intermediate, advanced, or advanced high. To improve their speaking and listening skills, I have used FlipGrid, which is kind of like podcasting but with video. But, just about any podcast would do since the goal is for students to listen to English being spoken, and practice the English Language. Some podcasts are specific to ESL objectives, such as building vocabulary, grammar, and pronunciation skills. Many podcast choices exist to suit students of different ages and linguistic levels. Many marvelous science podcasts are available for educators to help entertainingly teach students. One of the ones I have posted on Google classroom for my students to listen to is Scientific American: 60-Second Science, but there are countless others to choose from.