My response to the teacher would be, “I’d love to help!” Part of my job as a Media specialist is to collaborate with teachers. If I tell the teacher I don’t know anything about podcasting & am not willing to find anything out, it will send a negative image to the teacher. That teacher will not see me as helpful and most likely will not want to collaborate in the future on other activities.
Even if I don’t know much I can find at least the basic and necessary information. This will build the relationship between the teacher and myself. If this becomes a positive experience for that teacher they could tell other teachers and that would be a good way to get my foot into the collaboration door. I would offer what knowledge I do have and encourage the teachers efforts to bring new technologies into the classroom. If I know a teacher with a lot of background in podcasting I would send the teacher to who can help best & may even go along so I can learn.
Podcasting is not a resource used by my elementary school. Teachers could use podcasting in place of a weekly paper newsletters. In the newsletter teachers talk about current and upcoming units, events going on at the school, things students should be working on weekly like addition, multiplication, etc. This might make some parents more connected with the teacher if they can see them weekly.
Before the year starts the teachers can post a podcast about themselves for those parents that aren’t able to come to open house on their staff page on the school website. Many of our parents check the teachers webpage as soon as they find out their teachers child’s teacher.
Students could create a podcast to show what they've learned from completing a research project.
The teacher can record students doing a play and post on their school webpage for those parents to watch that couldn’t attend.
Students can create a book review via podcast. If the whole class reads a book, the teacher can have every student create a review & then compare and contrast the reviews.
Using podcast when teaching the voice trait could enhance what you’re trying to convey. The teacher can read similar papers, one with good voice and the other without. Students should be able to hear the difference.
The more I think about the variety of applications there are for podcasting, the more excited I get about this as a great teaching resources. I work in a high school. I wish I had a dime for every time I have said, or heard a teacher say, something like "I have to constantly repeat what I have told the students...or...what can I do to get their attention?" It can be very frustrating. Then, on top of that, parents complain that teachers have not given good instructions, when the student has failed to pay attention. Teacher websites give teachers tools to "re-present" important instructions for assignments, giving them somewhere to direct students and parents, when the student either missed it the first time, or was absent, etc. I could see more teachers using podcasts to post assignment directions, making them easy to see and hear, and I could also see more instructional podcasts for targeted lessons. The "cool factor" would bring in more users, helping to make the larger tool, the website, a more vital tool for the teacher...and the students.
ReplyDeleteI like the suggestions you have for ways to incorporate podcasting in the school, from using it as a school wide form of communicating news to having students create podcasts. Podcasting is one way to provide differentiation for student assessment. By providing podcasts as an option for students to present what they have learned, students will be able showcase their knowledge. This could be a great option for shyer students to come out of their shell. Podcasting could be a safe forum for students to express themselves, without the pressure of messing up in front of a classroom of their peers.
ReplyDeleteYou have some awesome ideas about how podcasting can be used at the elementary level. I love your idea about creating a podcast for the parents that miss Open House. I had also thought of a similar idea about student work. Our system has recently started using student portfolios. By including podcasts in the portfolio, you get to see samples of student work and actually hear the child describing what he/she learned and why it was chosen for the portfolio. I also like your idea about the book reviews. It makes me think about the Reading Rainbow book talks. How awesome it would be to have some students create similar work.
ReplyDeleteI agree that we should make sure to find out the information if it was not previously known. When first reading this prompt, I was unsure of ways that a podcast could be successfully used in the classroom. You gave great examples of how this could be done. I really like the example given by Mike where he suggested that directions to assignments can be given and posted via podcast. This would save frustration on the student's and parent's end as well as the teacher's. Teacher's will be able to direct students to the website where the podcast is posted both if they were absent from school and if they did not hear it in class (whatever reason that may be). Also, if students need that clarification, it will always be there as a resource. There will be no more "I can't remember what you said" excuses. This is perhaps one of the greatest benefits the school can gain from this technology.
ReplyDeleteI especially took interest in your suggestions for using podcasts to increase parent awareness and parent involvement. Podcasts for parents could be very functional and provide pertinent general class information- such as the information that would be distributed at Open House, as you suggested. Parent podcasts could also be designed to provide parents with more insight into their child's individual learning- like using them for research projects or plays.
ReplyDeleteParent involvement is so crucial to the academic success of a child! The more ways that we can provide parents with opportunities to become involved and aware of their children's learning, the better. Podcasts seem like an excellent tool for engaging parents as well as students.
Helping teachers is a part of a media specialist job. Helping teachers in a meaningful ways is very rewarding. You have shown that you are the right person to become a media specialist. You express that you will go beyond the call of duty to help teachers learn about a podcast. You ideas show that you have developed ways to collaborate with teachers.
ReplyDeleteRAM-http:// reallyawesomemediaspecialistsblogspot.com