A problem I have with podcasting is that I am a visual learner. I don't like listening to books, speeches, podcasts, etc. as I need the written word to follow. My mind begins to wander instead of concentrating on what is being said. I looked at the different sites for podcasts and found the best ones at podcast.com -- "ALSC Blog Podcast" seemed to be the most relevant. I tried to share to my RSS feeds a podcast from this but don't know if I was successful. The Yahoo link didn't work and I think I had to go to iTunes to get the Yahoo podcasts. I am also a kinesthetic learner -- the combination of listening and writing works well for me. That's how I passed college lecture courses. I took word for word notes sometimes from famous lecturers -- probably still have the notes somewhere. However, I do see the beauty of podcasting. I first learned about them from Julie Drake at the LA County Office of Education who gave workshops on how to do podcasts. It was cutting edge!! The best thing she shared was a podcast by her expert that he did with his two children who were evaluating a sport they were watching. It was fun and especially great to hear the children. So the educational applications are there -- book talks, interviews, step-by-step instructions, etc. etc. Now, another colleague uses Voicethreads. How does that differ from podcasts? And is it easier to do? I'll have to find out.
I too, am a visual learner, and often find that my mind wanders when I am just listening and not reading along or taking notes. But there are are so many wonderful recordings and podcasts out there now that I have enjoyed, and I am so glad to have them for the audio learners. I especially like the "enhanced" podcasts that have a visual component. I love VoiceThread because you have so much flexibility combining visual and audio content. I think podcast is a concept and VoiceThread is one of the tools you can use to create podcasts.
ReplyDeleteThank you for the distinction. I wasn't sure. I don't know if I'll ever try either one but I am glad to know about them.
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