Podcasts and Oracy

Podcasts: to be honest I didn’t really tap into this resource much in the past.  When I think of podcasts the first thing that comes to mind is my brother’s friend podcasting weekly about his own video-gaming skills.  Undoubtedly people have learned some useful tricks from his work, but for me, it didn't exactly make watching or creating podcasts seem all that alluring.   

In the last few days I have found that I have been missing out on so much.  Podcasts seem to cover ceaseless territory.  As an education tool in oracy, children have the opportunity not only to access endless media resources; they have the opportunity to create media.   Students’ learning hereby has the potential to expand out of the class-room and into the global community!  Kids can listen to and verbally respond to the resources a teacher brings into the classroom.

What could be more empowering for a child than to use oracy to cast his/her own messages, projects, and beliefs for the world to find and engage with?  Using podcasts, students can communicate with and learn from like-minded peers, or they can expand their community to include a world of diversity. 

As a class or individually, the group can learn about the perspectives of people in every field of work, and from any country.  Furthermore, they have the opportunity to instantly engage with these people because teachers and students are able to comment and share with pod-casters and other viewers.  This level of engagement naturally encourages active learning and critical thinking.  Children don’t have to accept that which their learning materials tell them, they have the opportunity to ask questions directly to their teacher’s resources.  Listening and formulating intelligent responses facilitate oracy in and out of the classroom because it ensures children are engaged in learning and communicating.

Pod-casts can be used in every subject and encourage that children are developing their oracy and interest levels in all fields. 

·        * Science?  Find a living scientist’s podcast to teach children firsthand knowledge about their research. 

·         *Drama? Students can create a mock interview with Martin Luther King and share it with the on-line community. 

·         *Math?  Kids can watch and hear demonstrations that can be replayed over and over again, even from home if needed. 

·         *Social Studies? Hear historical stories from elders themselves.   

·         *Art? What better way to display students’ work than in a gallery where parents, grandparents, aunts, uncles, and friends all over the world can see it and later discuss it with them. 

·         *Physical Education? Teachers and students can follow a yoga pod-cast or exercise video which gives visual and verbal instructions. 

·         *English and Language Arts? A class can create a book and publish it online.

In conclusion, Podcasts offer endless opportunities for teachers to exercise creativity in their exposure of children to oracy.  Using podcasts there is the potential to foster a global community within the classroom.  A podcast can be used to engage students in anything they are interested in from gorillas to nuclear energy.  Who knows, kids might even use podcasts to learn a thing or two about video games too.