Podcasting as Part of the Hand-Held
Mobile-ed Revolution
TennesseeBob, Globe-Gate Research, bobp@utm.edu
I am not a real podcasting techie, but I did stay in a Holliday Inn
Express last night. All seriousness aside, I am a member of the
AATF Commission on Telematics and New Technologies. I am dropping in to
address 5 short topics about podcasting
1.
explain how podcasting is different from making things available on a
web site
The RSS concept webfeed with
XML format which we now call "podcasting" has been visible since early
2001, though the term was originally coined in 2004 by Ben Hammersley
in an article in the Guardian
(broadcasting/iPod). I have to add that the word "baladiffusion" is
preferred in French. (I have heard " baladodiffusion" and
"podiffusion")
RSS 2.0 (Really Simple Syndication, Rich Site Summary, RDF Site
Summary) The specification. RSS is a standard for syndicating
frequently updated content from a site via a newsreader. Now Apple
builds RSS right into the system and uses it for innovative
communication such as Photocasting in iPhoto. If I am not
mistaken, the new Windows does also.
Atom (an XML language) is
another feed format used in podcasting
RSS and Atom are two flavours of what is more or less the same thing: a
‘feed’ which is a wrapper for pieces of regularly and
sequentially-updated content. Syndication is the process of using
RSS/Atom for updating, a timely automated delivery of relevant
resources. As such, it participates in the "just in time"
learning-centered revolution we see in mobile education and e-managed
learning systems. Instead of just being there, it is delivered at
the zenith of its relevancy. That is what makes it not just
another web resource.
It is like getting issues of a magazine in a subscription, allowing
students to focus on what is germane to one step at a time in their
learning process, and allowing teachers to make adjustments according
to the character and progress of the learning community.
2.
say something about its role in course management
With Blackboard, Web CT, and more recently independent systems like
Moodle, integration of resources, familiar interface, student
intercommunication capacities, gathering statistics, electronic course
management is becoming increasingly important. Hand held devices,
and in particular iPods are already in the mix
Middlebury Language Schools iPod project
https://segue.middlebury.edu/sites/achapin-ipod
Shows that hand-held mobile devices can join the course management
revolution. Media players can track an individual's consumption of
media that can be remixed in dynamic lists (i.e. iPod's smart
playlists) and matched up with other data. During the project, tracking
metadata was extracted from all the iPods used in the Middlebury
College Language School iPod Pilot Project and aggregated allowing
faculty researchers to see very accurately how students used the iPods
Course Management and Timed release of course materials
Working with actual course management software to time availability of
units with RSS feeds, emails or bulletin board topics, blogs and the
chatroom available through Blackboard communication tools is also
possible in managing distance aspects of a multimedia mobile
educational experience.
How might my institution use this technology? UTMartin has been
the hub of the Mid-Continent Consortium for International Education,
and still has an important board presence. One of the things we
hope to accomplish is preparing students to for their international
immersion experiences, harnassing their proficiency gains in their
reintegration into their respective programs. Giving students an
engaging cultural introduction in advance of their immersion would
facilitate a horizon of expectations, making the reality of the actual
experience more meaningful. Podcasts would be part of this. These
could include recorded messages from teachers and animateurs and from
former participants. They could also include copyright-free or cleared
music or video clips and photos.
Perhaps we could require students going abroad to contribute a small
series of recorded statements about their experience, including
something about their homestay, their favorite activitty, a memorable
field trip, a memorable meal, a place outside the university and their
families which they found interesting, an explanation of a document
they had to deal with, how they became interested in attending their
program, or they could interview someone. They may or may not be able
to start this on site (The Quebec and French campuses have good
technology, including WiFi, labs and broadband residence halls) When
they return they could make the rest of their recordings, sending them
to whoever is collecting them. This editor would be in charge of
the podcasting production
3. say something about its role in the coming wave
of mobile education
The first personal computer I worked with was the "Apple IIe" 64kb of
RAM and only 16 kb of ROM and cost about $1300 Imagine the
hand-held iPod with 80 G with five million times the memory costing
under $400. We have made progress.
Among the hand-held digital devices finding a place in mobile
education: PDAs ,iPods, smartphones, Blackberry, ebook readers,
etc.
How PDAs Work
http://electronics.howstuffworks.com/pda.htm
Modern PDAs combine computing, telephone/fax, bluetooth, Internet and
networking features. A typical PDA can function as a cellular phone,
fax sender, Web browser and personal organizer. PDAs began as
pen-based, using a stylus rather than a keyboard for input. This means
that they also incorporated handwriting recognition features. Some PDAs
can also react to voice input by using voice recognition technologies.
Three practical and psychological aspects 1) synchronization of
information with the desktop, 2) mobility that gets you beyond your
hard wiring and WiFi 3) iPod and others can be connected to projector
for class. 4) distance learning
iPods
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/IPod
You have content prepared for iPods which you can get through Youtube
and Google, plus podasts. You can convert computer video for
them. It is very probable that iPods will evolve to include more
PDA functionality in the near future. Right now they are video
and audio playing storage, retrieval and transfer devices with lots of
metadata capacities. If the iPod is formatted on a Mac OS X computer it
uses the HFS Plus
file system format. If it is formatted on Windows, it uses the FAT32
format. They have limited PDA-like functionality and can display text
files. Contacts and schedules can be viewed and synchronized with the
host computer, and some built-in games. 5th generation iPods, because
of a firmware update (September 2006) have downloadable games,
adjustable screen brightness, and gapless playback. Connectivity
includes dock, firewire and USB.
converting computer videos for iPod
"Videora iPod Converter" Here's the link:
http://www.videora.com/en-us/Converter/
Podcasting is important because it will push the development of other
functionalities and because it bears witness to the superior storage
capacity of iPods.
4.
talk about the iTunes U initiative
My University is joining Sanford, Berkeley, Duke, Brown, Purdue,
Arizona State, U. of Wisconsin
RSS information
http://www.apple.com/rss/
iTunes U
http://www.apple.com/education/solutions/itunes_u/
iTunes U provides free, user friendly 24/7 hosting for
universities who want to make lectures, interviews and other
educational content audio or video content available to the public and
for use on portable and hand-held devices. Essentially, this involves
setting up a customized portion of the iTunes Music Store to distribute
course materials.
Through iTunes U, users can download content to their Macs or PCs
regardless of their location. They can then listen to and view content
on their Mac or PC or transfer that content to iPod for listening or
viewing on the go.
Apple will give Participating colleges software tools that will
make it easy for professors or students to upload content to iTunes.
The actual files will be stored on Apple's servers, but college
administrators will have control over file access. Colleges will be
able to integrate the system with their existing network software so
that students can log into the iTunes store using their campus user
ID's and passwords.
iTunes U sets educational content free by delivering the best solution
for the distribution of content that can be accessed by an iPod. And
iTunes U complements other higher education online learning systems,
leveraging existing investments in technology infrastructures. Making
it all work together is seamless, thanks to Apple’s unmatched hardware
and software integration and innovative management tools.
offers one-click support for transferring content to iPod
Instructors can post and change content on their own with relative ease
and with little or no impact on the IT department, allowing students to
upload their own content to share with professors or with the class.
All content is stored in an Apple-hosted repository that you can
browse, search and configure to provide open or secure access as needed.
5. Contact
with FL podcasters through the ACTFL program and beyond
Here are the sessions apart from this one at ACTFL which deal with
podcasting:
•Podcasting/Videocasting In The Foreign Language Classroom: How To Make
It Happen
11/16/2006 1:00:00 PM - 4:00:00 PM Convention Center, 108
Students and teachers will become and are becoming more and more
portable and mobile learners. This workshop addresses how
podcasting and
videocasting can help students and teachers discover, promote and
engage in the learning of the languages they are studying and
teaching.
Participants will spend time making and producing short and practical
podcasts/videocasts.
Tony Spanos, Weber State University Presenter(s):
TechnologySponsor(s): ACTFL
Applicable Level(s): Community College,Govt/Adult Ed,High School,Higher
Ed,Teacher Ed General
Applicable Language(s): All
•PodCasting and VideoCasting in Language Learning
11/18/2006 4:15:00 PM - 5:30:00 PM Convention Center, 107
Mr. Shinagawa has been experimenting with various methods to
incorporate Podcasting in language teaching. He has experimented
with using podcasting for vocabulary learning, conjugation
practice, grammar explanations etc.. The newest development of
iPod usage is videocasting where a video is podcasted. This
new technology will be discussed in the presentation
Satoru Shinagawa, University of Hawaii, Kapiolani Community College
Presenter(s):
Keiko Schneider, Southern Methodist University
TechnologySponsor(s): NCJLT
Applicable Level(s): All Higher Education
Applicable Language(s): Japanese
•Tuning in to iTunes, iPods, Podcasting, Audacity, CPS and Other
Technological Tools to Motivate Language Learning
11/18/2006 1:15:00 PM - 2:30:00 PM Convention Center, 103
This session will provide a sample of various technologically-based
tools and software such as iTunes, iPods, podcasting, Audacity, CPS
and online materials that may be used to enhance language
learning at the high school and college level. While Spanish
examples will be provided, the ideas can be applied to other
foreign languages.
Dolly J. Young, University of Tennessee Presenter(s):
Val Causevic, University of Tennessee
Maria Rodriquez, University of Tennessee
Perla Zamitiz, University of Tennessee
TechnologySponsor(s): TFLTA
Applicable Level(s): High School, Higher Ed General
Applicable Language(s): Spanish
Beyond, ACTFL, track podcasting relevant to our profession through:
PODCASTING FOR FOREIGN-LANGUAGE Education
http://www.utm.edu/staff/globeg/flpodcasting.html
My notes for this are online, and can
be accessed through this site.