Podcasts

This has been a really exciting task for me!  I can start to appreciate all the ways in which this tool can assist me in my role as a learning facilitator. 

On the plus side, it is so easy to create, and once it has been created it is easy to embed in a wiki or a blog, making it accessible for students.  The Podomatic software is incredibly easy to use!  I started off this task fully expecting to need to seek assistance, but was pleasantly surprised to find that using the software was as simply as following the 'wizard'-like prompts.  Podcasts are a great way to provide additional information to complement discussions held in class.  It is a great way to give additional verbal instructions to assessments, like we were provided with in relation to our first ICT assessment.

Here is the link for my (very basic) podcast:
http://podcast19044.podomatic.com/entry/2011-04-11T18_37_23-07_00

There are some minuses however to keep in mind.  Although it is a good way to disseminate information, it is important to make sure that you speak clearly and slowly, ensuring that your voice is able to be heard and understood by listeners.  I found that, while my webcam and microphone was able to pick up my voice, my recording was a little difficult to hear as it was only very feint; in future it will be necessary to ensure that the volume of my podcasts is of a more appropriate level.  Volume is all the more important as the podcast only broadcasts your voice.  If you are trying to disseminate more than just basic information, it would be helpful if students had a hardcopy document, images, web page, online resource, etc to see to support what you are talking about.  The learning profile of your students also needs to be considered.  Within a class there will be some students who are very strong visual learners, and who may find it difficult to absorb a podcast without having some visual aids to concentrate on.