Sunday, February 8, 2009

Podcasts on iTunes

Starting out being forced to listen to these podcasts on iTunes, I got a little irritated. I mean, what is the point? Well, Dr. Strange stated clearly that the point was to familiarize ourselves with the podcasts and to see how they are executed. That wasn't good enough for me, but this is what I discovered. The podcasts are SO useful! You can find out so much information on these things, information that is spoken rather than something you have to read, which can get tedious at times. After all, reading is a big part of education, but so is the spoken word and the ways we use language.

The first podcast I listened to was called Smartboard Lessons. In this particular podcast, two teachers, Joan Badger and Ben Hazzard, talk about cross-classroom collaberations and how to use podcasts to create a sense of community. Basically, they keep teachers connected, which is very important. One of the first podcasts they had posted related to their website, . They spoke briefly about what this website had to offer and how to use the information given and apply it to your own classroom. One example would be essay writing and how to correctly write a successful essay. They also give other helpful links related to the particular podcats they are doing that day.

Another podcast I listened to was Kidcast, created by Dan Schmit. In podcast #58 he discussed podcasting in the classroom and how we can better help our students to utilize podcasts to their full advantage. In this podcast, titled "The Medium is NOT the Message", he emphasized that it is not always about HOW we organize the material, but what is contained in our message that matters. Dan suggested that instead of just helping students create and use the software, teachers should have the students focus on the content of what is in their presentation. Once they create their presentation, they should deliver it in person to a live audience, such as we did in class with our own presentations created in Google.

MacBreak Weekly, another podcast not directly related to education but still quite useful, was created by five journalists. As the name of this podcast would suggest, they discussed all the latest in Apple and Macintosh, including Adobe, the IPhone, Flash, and other programs. A lot of it was comparing and contrasting, which would be very useful to those who had Macs and other products. This content could be utilized by teachers and students for better communication.

One podcast in iTunes that I really enjoyed was TWiP, otherwise known as This Week in Photography. Now, I don't know all that much about photography, but I am learning a lot from my boyfriend and becoming more and more interested in it. This podcast revealed the latest camera techniques, technology and news. In Episode #17, the professional photographers and journalists talked specifically about imaging and the best and most affordable in ink jet printers. Some of the other topics included wedding photography, portrait lighting, and selling your photos. All in all, this podcast was very helpful and informative, as were the others.

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