Warning – whine ahead.
This week’s experience brought home to me that I am so NOT an auditory learner. LOL
To make matters worse, I was really frustrated in my efforts to work with this week’s technology. I spent hours playing with a borrowed iPod and a generic mp3 player, and finally managed to listen to only a couple of podcasts on them. The inexpensive mp3 player didn’t recognize most of the files I converted using iTunes (although I used the identical method for all of them) and the iPod alternated between working and not working – it’s been flaky for months, according to its owner.
When I was frustrated with the players, I wondered how else I could play them, so they would still be portable. My cell phone? A CD? Ha, not so fast. These files are huge. Makes one appreciate the technology improvements that are embodied in these little handheld devices, but, the bottom line was, I didn’t come up with any good alternatives.
So, I got lucky towards the end of the week, the iPod decided to work again, and I listened to a couple of long podcasts on it. I listened while exercising, cooking dinner, driving the car (this one worried me a bit, but it was sort of just like listening to the radio – except when I had to periodically yank the earbuds out because the volume increased suddenly in the student podcasts.) But, in general, it was nice. I can see how people get hooked. However, I certainly wasn’t listening with my full attention.
I listened to the rest of the podcasts directly from the computer – a far cry from the “take this podcast with you wherever you go” picture portrayed in this week’s readings. Overall, I feel as if I invested a lot of time, with poor (or at least, variable) return. Not sure I couldn’t have gotten the information other ways better and faster. Then again, maybe that’s the old non-auditory learner thing at work.
I took an informal survey of the handful of people in my life who use iPods & mp3 players regularly. All of them do not update them frequently. They (or someone else in their family) set them up periodically with new playlists, and off they go. When the player doesn’t work, they leave them alone for awhile, and hope for the best. Sometimes they work later, sometimes not. Not very comprehensive or scientific study, I admit, but it makes me wonder about how many students really would/could use this technology for educational purposes, and how much teachers can rely on it. It would seem that if you were to plan a lesson around it, you would have to have a good backup plan!
For some of my graduate courses in the online MLIS program, teachers have provided audio components in powerpoint presentations, and/or screencasts to demonstrate tricky technical maneuverings. Have they added value? Absolutely. Have they taken a lot more time to work through than a purely written treatment of the subject? Definitely. I think that, as educators, we have to be conscious of the fact that these tools may present a lot of technical obstacles, plus be aware of the time involvement on the student’s end. That’s not to say don’t use them, but use them judiciously.
3 comments:
I have a question, the people you asked about using iPods and associated technology, how old was their median age? I'm asking because my experience is that student age - 6-18 say, don't have trouble with the technology, update the technology regularly, and listen pretty regularly. Of course we aren't talking every k-12 age student but the ones that I come in contact with on a regular basis.
I guess I'm thinking more about what the technology means to the students than to us. Isn't it important to know that the technology exists and how it works, even if it's not your thing, because it might resonate with students and some teachers?
Thats what I keep in mind all the time. There are many technologies - and non-technologies - that I just don't like or even get. But, because I know they help support teaching and learning I use them.
We can't deny that students are growing up in a multi-sensory world and they might better understand use of the technology, and like the technology, better than we do.
What do you think?
The median age was 30. The thing I found most surprising was that the younger people didn't update their players very often (maybe because they had so much stuff on them already?) Everyone - including me - agreed they liked using them once the material was on them, assuming the device was working properly.
I absolutely agree with you that students like technology, and are willing to use it, and even endure annoyances - at least for fun stuff. I don't know how much that extends to the classroom, in terms of "consuming" podcasts. If a student is intent upon avoiding work, "My mp3 player is broken" is just another handy excuse! Until the technology is more reliable, inexpensive, ubiquitous, and "transparent", I think the return on (teacher) investment will be questionable. Maybe some day we will be able to listen to a podcast with as little effort as we can now listen to a radio station, which would certainly change the picture.
Students creating podcasts, however, is another story. If the two teenagers I had to elbow away from the computer yesterday (tearing them away from Audacity) are any indication, student-made podcasts are bound to be a great hit, not to mention a great way to show what students have learned. Making the equipment and time available for students to create podcasts in school resolves access issues. And then there's the fact that students are much more likely to listen to a student podcast than a teacher one, increasing overall student learning! Great promise, all around.
I'm reading this as I'm waiting for a podcast to download... It's been over ten minutes and I'm wondering if it's my internet connection? I agree that it's not as easy (or reliable) as turning on the radio. I love what Richardson has to say about podcasts being the "hot thing in 2005"- here we are now in 2007 and I'm not sure podcasts have ever been as hot as blogs. I was talking to a boy I used to teach when he was in grade nine- he's now 20. He is an employee of Walmart in their "Tech" department. When I told him I needed a headset to listen/record podcasts, he was impressed because it's something he's not really familiar with (and "podcasts" sound good to people who aren't familiar!)
Even if these long download times are just something I'm experiencing because my wireless signal is pretty low, it's not the most accessible and easy to use thing I've ever experienced! So I'm skeptical with podcasts- in their popularity and in their practicality.
Yup... still downloading.
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