Portable learning: Podcasting can help students study at any time, any place
By Annie Van Cleve
Special to The Capital Times, USA
It's not exactly whistle while you work. It's more like study while you walk.
So the student you see walking on the Library Mall wearing earbuds could very well be listening to a podcast lesson from a UW course.
"It's the idea of reaching students informally through something they are already doing (i.e. using iPods and listening to podcasts)," said Jan Cheetham, e-learning coordinator at the UW's DoIT academic technology center.
Podcasts are files containing audio or audio and visual content. The files are sent directly to a computer via a subscription service.
Tim Osswald is one UW-Madison professor who has embraced the technology. In one lesson Osswald, an engineering professor, explains how a young Madison man received third degree burns after an industrial hose transporting sulfuric acid ruptured. Osswald's dialogue occasionally pauses and music plays. After five minutes the engineering ethics lesson is over.
Schools across the nation have begun exploring the potential of podcasts as an educational tool. And the UW has been at the forefront of this technological revolution through a partnership with Apple's iTunes U.
Here's how it works: A type of software called RSS - really simple syndication - makes a path from the source where the podcasts are found on the Internet to the music library on the subscriber's computer. This enables the user to simply open their music library and find a new podcast waiting. It's sort of like having a newspaper delivered to your doorstep.
The point is to complement the classroom experience with an outside medium that's easily accessible to students.
Cheetham said DoIT is working to implement new technology at the university, but their approach is to ask how technology can be used to improve the learning process - it's not technology for the sake of new technology.
E-learning coordinators work directly with a professor to examine the course itself and figure out how material can be presented to facilitate a student's learning experience.
Podcasts allow students access to long-lasting information - stored on their MP3 players or computers - that can be easily transported.
UW student Matt Karcher used podcasts in a course taught by Professor Randy Dunham last spring. Karcher listened on his iPod while walking to class.
Students are able to use the information in a way that complements their personal learning style and familiarity with the material. The ability to stop in the middle of a program or go back means the program can be used almost like an electronic flashcard.
"Individual students can focus on mastery of issues they struggle with by reviewing only the parts they need to as many times as they want to," said Dunham, professor of management and human resources in UW-Madison's School of Business.
Dunham, who said students have reported higher learning with podcasts, has used podcasts in various ways. Sometimes he reiterates information from lectures to facilitate understanding. He has also created optional podcasts which include clips from video interviews. This fall he created podcasts to replace 2 days of lectures in his Executive MBA class. For non-full-time students, podcasting offers greater flexibility. It eventually could become an alternative way to earn a degree.
"We see this as a way for students to come to class and just listen and absorb with their eyes and ears. Then later they listen to a podcast to fill in their notes," said Cheetham.
Some professors record podcasts while they lecture through the use of simple recording devices. Others present case studies to introduce side issues not ordinarily discussed in the classroom due to time restraints.
Podcasts also have been used to record practice sessions of the School of Music's symphony orchestra and to record different bird calls for an ornithology course. Some courses even require students to create podcasts as assignments.
Cheetham said the medium allows the instructor to be more creative and comprehensive in their teaching.
"I try to make a nice story," Osswald said, who inserts music and humor to make his podcasts more enjoyable.
This speaks to the very nature of podcasts, which evolved as a type of alternative radio that allowed people to express their opinions in much the same way as a blog. Mindful of people's attention spans, one of the guiding principles of podcasting, according to Cheetham, is to keep the podcast under 10 minutes. Many podcasts are unscripted and casual, giving them a personal quality. Cheetham compared listening to a podcast to visiting a professor during office hours.
Although podcasts offer increased exposure to material, some are concerned that podcasting will make it easier to take advantage of the system. UW student Aaron Smith said one of his professors offered to record lectures as podcasts and post them online. The class, however, voted down the idea because they felt it would reward students who didn't attend class.
"I love being in the classroom and nothing will ever replace interaction between teachers and students," said Osswald, who uses podcasts only to present supplemental material.
Podcasts are also being integrated into education through textbooks that come equipped with interactive materials.
Special to The Capital Times, USA
It's not exactly whistle while you work. It's more like study while you walk.
So the student you see walking on the Library Mall wearing earbuds could very well be listening to a podcast lesson from a UW course.
"It's the idea of reaching students informally through something they are already doing (i.e. using iPods and listening to podcasts)," said Jan Cheetham, e-learning coordinator at the UW's DoIT academic technology center.
Podcasts are files containing audio or audio and visual content. The files are sent directly to a computer via a subscription service.
Tim Osswald is one UW-Madison professor who has embraced the technology. In one lesson Osswald, an engineering professor, explains how a young Madison man received third degree burns after an industrial hose transporting sulfuric acid ruptured. Osswald's dialogue occasionally pauses and music plays. After five minutes the engineering ethics lesson is over.
Schools across the nation have begun exploring the potential of podcasts as an educational tool. And the UW has been at the forefront of this technological revolution through a partnership with Apple's iTunes U.
Here's how it works: A type of software called RSS - really simple syndication - makes a path from the source where the podcasts are found on the Internet to the music library on the subscriber's computer. This enables the user to simply open their music library and find a new podcast waiting. It's sort of like having a newspaper delivered to your doorstep.
The point is to complement the classroom experience with an outside medium that's easily accessible to students.
Cheetham said DoIT is working to implement new technology at the university, but their approach is to ask how technology can be used to improve the learning process - it's not technology for the sake of new technology.
E-learning coordinators work directly with a professor to examine the course itself and figure out how material can be presented to facilitate a student's learning experience.
Podcasts allow students access to long-lasting information - stored on their MP3 players or computers - that can be easily transported.
UW student Matt Karcher used podcasts in a course taught by Professor Randy Dunham last spring. Karcher listened on his iPod while walking to class.
Students are able to use the information in a way that complements their personal learning style and familiarity with the material. The ability to stop in the middle of a program or go back means the program can be used almost like an electronic flashcard.
"Individual students can focus on mastery of issues they struggle with by reviewing only the parts they need to as many times as they want to," said Dunham, professor of management and human resources in UW-Madison's School of Business.
Dunham, who said students have reported higher learning with podcasts, has used podcasts in various ways. Sometimes he reiterates information from lectures to facilitate understanding. He has also created optional podcasts which include clips from video interviews. This fall he created podcasts to replace 2 days of lectures in his Executive MBA class. For non-full-time students, podcasting offers greater flexibility. It eventually could become an alternative way to earn a degree.
"We see this as a way for students to come to class and just listen and absorb with their eyes and ears. Then later they listen to a podcast to fill in their notes," said Cheetham.
Some professors record podcasts while they lecture through the use of simple recording devices. Others present case studies to introduce side issues not ordinarily discussed in the classroom due to time restraints.
Podcasts also have been used to record practice sessions of the School of Music's symphony orchestra and to record different bird calls for an ornithology course. Some courses even require students to create podcasts as assignments.
Cheetham said the medium allows the instructor to be more creative and comprehensive in their teaching.
"I try to make a nice story," Osswald said, who inserts music and humor to make his podcasts more enjoyable.
This speaks to the very nature of podcasts, which evolved as a type of alternative radio that allowed people to express their opinions in much the same way as a blog. Mindful of people's attention spans, one of the guiding principles of podcasting, according to Cheetham, is to keep the podcast under 10 minutes. Many podcasts are unscripted and casual, giving them a personal quality. Cheetham compared listening to a podcast to visiting a professor during office hours.
Although podcasts offer increased exposure to material, some are concerned that podcasting will make it easier to take advantage of the system. UW student Aaron Smith said one of his professors offered to record lectures as podcasts and post them online. The class, however, voted down the idea because they felt it would reward students who didn't attend class.
"I love being in the classroom and nothing will ever replace interaction between teachers and students," said Osswald, who uses podcasts only to present supplemental material.
Podcasts are also being integrated into education through textbooks that come equipped with interactive materials.
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