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(This is a text summary of the He Said She Said podcast from August 17, 2005. This is a bi-weekly podcast that deals with a wide range of topic on Education and Educational Technology. The show’s host is Rob Reynolds and he is joined by Susan Smith Nash. The He Said She Said podcast is available every Tuesday and Thursday on Xplana Radio. Note: This text differs from the podcast and is not a transcript. Please be sure to listen to the podcast!)

She Said:

Absolutely! Podcasting is definitely a real force in e-learning right now. In fact, it is probably a bigger factor in education than we realize, and being used in unexpected and innovative ways.

For example, we know that people like to listen to podcasts while commuting, while doing routine tasks on their computers, while walking, and while engaged in basic tasks. We know that some people are making lecture notes, conversations about course content, and instructional audio available on mp3 files. The instructor will “wrap” the content in a shell (introductory notes, ending thoughts), and then post it. While the quality can be highly variable, we know that some people prefer to listen to lectures, then reinforce their knowledge with reading / reviewing powerpoints, etc.

We also know that podcasting is not yet real for institutions and educational content providers, which are scrambling to determine the best way to understand how learners are using the podcasts, and how to package it so that it is palatable.

One concern is that institutions and educational content providers will scoff at real-world usage and will try to impose artificial structure and protocols. This will not stop the use of podcasting in education, it will just drive it completely underground, or “off-label.” Students and instructors will still find ways to use and deliver mp3 content in a way that meets instructional and contextual needs.

Here’s an example: I recently taught an online course, “Personal and Family Narratives,” a writing class which involved writing memoirs and creative non-fiction. Somewhere along the line, I found myself really wanting to engage with the students in a more meaningful way than simply e-mailing responses and facilitating discussions. I started sharing my own creative writing blog (which has podcasts), The Fringe Journal: http://fringejournal.blogspot.com . To my surprise, students talked about how much they liked it – they downloaded files, listened to them, posted comments, e-mailed questions, etc.

The podcasting element of “Personal and Family Narratives” became a collaborative experience when one student, Jason Stevens, put together a blog, along with a podcast. It is located here: http://narratives.garbagehorror.com/

What impressed me about Jason’s work was not only that it was a blog, and truly collaborative in the sense that he responded to the students’ postings and assignment, but also that it included graphics and a podcast. The podcasts, rather than transcriptions of the narrative, consist of original songs that express personal and family narratives in more than one discursive style.

I’m not quite sure how one would put this into a strict format to follow, but I have to say that for me, it is an example of how podcasting is being used in unexpected ways in e-learning.

I’m sure there are many others, and it would be interesting to collect testimonials.

He Said

I suppose it’s possible that a technology less than a year old can always be a flash in the pan. On the other hand, podcasting is an extension of blogging, has the backing of ubiquitous players like iTunes, and has successfully entered the foray of VC funding. All in all, it seems like a pretty good bet as a technology in general.

In terms of its use in education, podcasting certainly makes a lot of sense. Will it be a sure-fire hit? Maybe and maybe not. Here are the dependencies I see for its integration into mainstream education:

• Ubiquitous publishing tools that use familiar tools (for instructors)
• Broad support by textbook publishers
• Better models for distributed audio content

Do I think it’s a go. Absolutely. Two thumbs way up!

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