What is a podcast? videocast? webcast? anicast?
A podcast, according to wikipedia, is a digital media file, or a series of such files, that is distributed over the Internet using syndication feeds for playback on portable media players and personal computers. A podcast is a specific type of webcast which, can be just a sound file, a Narrated presentation file or Flash animated file, or it can be a videofile. The term “podcast” comes from Apple’s portable music player, the iPod, but they can be downloaded and played on almost any MP3 or MP4 player.
In other words, a podcast is a collection of files (usually audio but may include video) residing at a unique web feed address. People can “subscribe” to this feed by pasting the URL of the broadcast to an aggregator (like iTunes – software that runs on the consumer’s computer). When new “episodes” become available in the podcast they will be automatically downloaded to that user’s computer. Unlike radio or streaming content on the web, podcasts are not real-time. The material is pre-recorded and users can check out the material at their leisure, offline.
You can subscribe to podcasts and listen to them by streaming the content or just download it to play later. Some phones and game players have the ability to play podcasts and download them from the web.
(From Wikipedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Podcast )
Ok – so you can go to the URl or web address to see/listen to the podcast, or you can “subscribe” to the podcast and have the editions sent to your aggregator – like iTunes. Videocasts are ‘movie’ or ‘Flash files’ and anicasts are animated graphics with a sound file.
Educational Podcasts:
- http://teachingwithpodcasts.blogspot.com/
- http://www.epnweb.org/
- http://audio.weblogs.com/
- http://edlf345.podomatic.com/
- http://www.nationalgeographic.com/podcasts/
- Dan’s Math cast
- Princeton Vocab Minute
- Notes in Spanish Podcasts
- Science Friday – NPR
- Tech Tip Tuesday
Using Podcasts:
Grab your students’ attention by using podcasts for explanations, examples, as tutorials, for vocabulary development, or as a study aide. Show students where the educational podcasts are and how they can be downloaded to their mp3 players for studying. You may need speakers to amplify the sound from your laptop in the classroom.
How can I create Podcasts?
There is a free sound recorder called Audacity available from http://audacity.sourceforge.net/download/windows ; download the 1.2.6 version. You should also download and install LAME MP3 encoder to be able to export the sound files as MP3. (You want to do this!) You should also download the LADSPA plugins and the VST enabler from this page.
You need a digital microphone – USB is best and can be purchased from local “Tech” stores. There are Audacity Tipsheets on the shared drive or on websites such as the Audacity Tutorial, or Audacity Documentation . Music to add to your productions is available from the Podsafe Music Network or Freeplay music.
7 responses so far ↓
Thanks also for the Podcast tab I think I’m up to speed now!
Record the sounds of learning! There is a fantastic site for creating a voice and picture file which records voices realtime on the internet. Visit http://voicethread.com
Teachers can register for free accounts and make files for each student in the class so they can upload diagrams or pictures and explain their work. Students in a class can make comments on other files. Visit voicethread.com
I got a chance to listen to several of the podcasts from Tony Vladu’s class. I even went home and downloaded Audacity and learned how to do my own podcasts and it took me around 20-30 minutes to figure it out. I think it would be a great opportunity to post lecture material so students could download for future use. It would also be of good use for students who missed class.
Good afternoon,
I just listened to the MOB’s podcast on the glider science project. They did a great job and its worth listening to. I will be posting my monthly magnet podcast on the website soon. Stay tuned.
Good morning everyone,
I will have my magnet director’s podcast completed soon. I am also in the works of creating a podcast with powerpoint slides for my 8th grade magnet recruiting visits in January. I think this will be a great way to showcase one piece of technology we are using at Heritage.
Awesome! We have student podcasts on our Heritage website linked on the Student page. Please listen and comment on these. Students thrive on feedback. There is also a new page on the website that lists educational podcasts/vodcasts available in specific content areas for learning. Please send any URLs for podcasts you would like added to this site.
Remember that you can sign up for time with me to learn podcasting. We are planning regular, weekly podcasts for students to broadcast what they are learning. Let Mr. Ray or myself know if you are interested in having your students create a podcast to share their learning.
Good morning everyone,
I have started my 8th grade recruiting visits to all the middle schools and I am showcasing the use of podcasting. I created a powerpoint last year and I have included mp3 files to all the powerpoint slides. All the 8th graders really seemed to like this technology. I am going to place this presentation on the school website at the conclusion of all the presentations. Check it out!
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