managing podcasting projects

[Dale Ehrhart]

Just wondering if anyone has any suggestions for managing podcasting in a middle school setting. Having 6 groups of student’s podcasting per class period in 5 different class periods at the same time isn't realistic.....So, are there any suggestions on what scenarios are feasible and equitable?

[John Nugent]

Dale,

I run and sponsor an after school podcasting program for my district. I have around 20 kids who show up once a week. This is my second year and I am just getting my act together. What has evolved is we have various positions, behind the scene people and show hosts. We offer 5 show formats, political talk show, entertainment including student news, sports, music show, and a talk show by a teacher in the high school. Sometimes we interview people in the district.

Each show ranges between 5 and 20 minutes. However, I find more people listen to the short podcasts. Some shows have a pair of students, some are alone. When they show up they are expected to have an outline of the show prepared. I have a student help me with the web site, responsibilities include site design and uploading the shows.. We also have a couple sound(and now video) students who actually record the shows.

We do all this in two hours a week! Although I usually get stuck doing some of the editing myself at home. I am a School Board Trustee and volunteered to start this program, so my time is limited. If you are running a full time program you should be much better off. I let the kids choose the position they want and usually it works out. If they want their own show, they need to present an idea and make sure they are committed weekly. Occasionally I need to decided who gets what job, but I usually find a way for all of them to be on the "air"

We used to stream audio also, where it was playing 24 hrs a day in a loop, currently we only offer the podcasts and now video podcasts.

I could go on forever, because I enjoy the heck out of it!!! If you need more info, send me a message or I can give you my phone# ...Good Luck!

ps. We used to run a Windows program, this year we switched to a Mac and we absolutely love it!

[Rita Hughes]

I checked out your site! For two hours a week, it is an excellent example of what kids can do when they want to do it. I was impressed. What kinds of camera do you use for the video casts? And now that you have gone to the Mac side, what are you using (software)?
Thanks for posting your site!
Rita

[John Nugent]

Rita,

My camcorder is actually one of the cheapest camcorders you could buy.
I picked it up at Best Buy for $200.00, however, I record directly to my Macbook and the quality is very good.

If anyone is interested .....this is what I used last year.

Audacity(software) to record on my PC laptop(software is freeware)
Two Condensor Mics for around $150.00
Eurorack Ub802 mixer board for $50.00
Cables for mics, etc... $40.00
Web site, etc....$ 5.00 a month

Now I use....

Macbook($ 1000.00) that has Garage Band(software) for podcasting.
iMovie and/or Final Cut Express(software) for Video editing.
Camcorder(Digital Tape) $200.00 + $30.00 firewire cable

Same mics and cables.

I HIGHLY recomend using the Mac if you can. The software comes preloaded on the Macbook and it is so easy!!!

You could spend a little less or spend A LOT more, for me the set-up produces really decent quality. Since I volunteer my own time and equipment, I need to watch the dollars.

I am hoping it might foster some ideas in our teachers once we finally have a couple bucks.(we just passed our first Bond in 34 years).

Thanks for your comment!

[John Nugent]

Wait I need to plug my site .... http://www.lcsradio.com

[Dale Ehrhart]

Hi John,

I'm student teaching at the Clio Middle School. Would it be possible to come in a see your program one afternoon?

I've tried having a bunch of podcasts out at once, and while its fun it wouldn't really be possible for a single teacher in a classroom. I'm pretty strong on the tech side of things .....on a windows machine :) . Here's the website of bunch of podcasts I was involved with last spring.

Japan and the Koreas

along with a couple of segment templates I've come up with:

[Danielle Letter]

John and Dale,
Wow- I can't wait to go in and view your sites! Both sound like a labor of love, which many times I really believe is the base of what we do in technology! (because truthfully, who would choose to turn middle schoolers loose with earphones and microphones just for the fun of it??) :)

I am just finishing podcasting with my 6th graders for the first time. I figure I will tell you what I did, and maybe we can come up with adjustments together. Mike Arnold from my ISD was a great source of information for this, as well as support in planning and the podcasting, so I'm sure he'd have something to add.

Mike suggested (like John) giving everyone in the group a job. One person to manage the recording, one to signal the group to begin, one to run audacity.... I found that I didn't emphasize enough for each person to stick to their job. I think once the roles are clearly defined some issues don't become issues.

We began researching and writing (or typing) our scripts two weeks before we podcasted. Having scripts in their hands enabled them to practice before hand. Transitions seemed to move a little smoother. Our average podcast was about 2 minutes. I do agree that the shorter podcasts are easier to manage, and much more friendly to listen to. This Friday we are finishing up podcasting and working with audacity. Mike and I are going to imbed them, have students listen to their peers, and then evaluate the process and the podcasts. This should be interesting!

I hope this helps. :)

[John Nugent]

Dale,

Let me know when you could stop by. We are currently meeting Tuesday's after school. Looks like you have done some podcasting, also, we could probaby interview you on one of our shows.

[Dale Ehrhart]

Danielle and John,

Thanks for your responses :)

I'll talk to my cooperating teacher today and see when there's a good Tuesday for a Lapeer visit.

I think I'm going to run this program as extra credit. I've come up with several segment ideas and rubrics, and as for the credit I'll do something like 4 points for an individual segment and 15 points for a 3 section complete show. I'll combine individual segments into 2 or 3 seperate shows. I know to keep the podcasts to 5 or 6 minutes.

I'm also going to run several 30 minute "Audacity Basics" classes before and after school.

Have a good one
Dale