As a person who likes and enjoys technology, I would definitely help this teacher start up a podcast, with the emphasis being on start a podcast. I see my role as an instructor who will guide this teacher in creating his first podcast. I would help him download all the necessary software, and let him know about all of the additional things like headset/microphone, etc that will need to be purchased. This teacher would have to know that there is a certain amount of time that has to be devoted to creating and posting the podcasts. If his podcasts become popular and then the teacher and class do not continue to create new podcasts, podfading may occur as stated in the Library 2.0 text. It is imperative that the teacher knows that I am not his podcast coordinator, I am a resource and willing to help him get started. Taking on the instructor role is the best approach because as a media specialist I would have many other instructional and program tasks to do, and can not become the person in charge of all the podcasts. I think that podcasts are tools that all content areas can benefit from and will therefore conduct several in-services or professional seminars about podcasts. These seminars can be in podcast or vodcast format so that teachers can see what the end result would look like.
Monday, October 13, 2008
Podcast-Mitchell
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11 comments:
Malena,
I agree with your statement that you made about not being the instructor for the podcast. If you assume the role as the instructor, you would be taking on all the podcasts in the school, which you would not have time to do. I agree that the media specialist role in the podcast should be facilitator. If the teacher needs help with the podcast, then you could definitely help with any questions that may arise in the creation of the podcasts. It is up to the teacher to let the students know what would be involved in the podcasts, how much time and effort it would take to create the first podcast and then keep up with the podcasts by creating more podcasts. I like your idea of letting the teacher know ahead of time about podfading and why that may occur. Your approach is an honest approach to the teacher and lets him know how you fit into the podcast idea for the school. I know sometimes teachers have great ideas for starting something new in the school and then they expect the leader to do everything. If you tell them that you will help, but that you are not going to lead, then that teacher will know it is their project and not yours. As I stated, I like your honest approach to the podcast project.
Yes! The teachers ultimately must be the ones who make podcasting work in their classrooms. The LMS wears far too many hats to become the "Podcasting Queen" (or King). In-services on podcasting would hopefully interest teachers and would help in creating a community of informed educators who could them assist one another in their pursuits, so that you would not be the "go to" for every question.
I agree that the SLMS should be a resource aid rather than the "work horse" for teachers and based on a casual search I did just today, there is so much information out there and so many tools already in place for teachers to create and use podcasts in their classrooms, that it may be a bit of a notion if the SLMS is even solicited for help concerning creating podcasts.
I too agree that the media specialist is a resource in creating podcasts, not the coordinator. As a first year media specialist, I can tell you that I am wearing several hats and there are many different jobs that I do. I want to be helpful to those who need assistance, but I want to do my job well. When one person becomes known as the "guru," then a lot of responsibility falls on that person. It would be to the advantage of the media specialist and others to take professional development courses on podcasting so that many would be familiar and comfortable with the process.
Getting teachers to understand the role a media specialist can be challenging. Being a facilitator and resource for students and teachers is our main job. I love your idea of putting together an in-service about podcasting and showing how the teachers could use it in their classrooms. Through my mentor and school experience I've seen how a good idea can spread like wildfire. If you help one teacher begin their podcasts, many others may follow. You definitely don't want to be the one overseeing all of that, so passing the torch of knowledge would be key!
I love love love your idea about using a podcast to teach the staff about podcasts! Do you mind if I steal it? What a fantastic idea. Now, I'm really excited. Also, you make a great point about not becoming the podcast coordinator. I have a tendency to always asy, "yes," whenever anyone asks me to do something. However, you make a valid statement about having other instructional and program things to do. I could easily get overwhelmed if podcast coordinator was thrust upon me. Great job.
Mitchell,
I love the fact that you see yourself as not only a media specialist bit also as an instructor. I also think that in this situation you could also volunteer to teach the class on pod casting to students. Walking them through the entire process, from begging a pod cast, finding the required information and images and putting it all together. This would be collaboration at its best. The word would probably get out and more teachers would begin to seek out help and begin implementing pod casting into their lessons.
Malena,
This podcasting is familiar to me, but I must admit that I truly support the fact that we should offer assistance/collaborate with the teachers about podcasting for the classrooms assignments. We are all in a learning environment so it would be imperative for the teachers to understand the process and how to incorporate this technology into their lesson plans. I am currently in a position where the media specialist is the "go to" person for many of the technolgy questions although this area is outsourced by a different company. The media specialist should be in the position to assist, but not control the podcasting projects as a whole. I've always liked the idea of sharing ideas. Who knows, the teacher could offer a great idea for the media specialist to implement in the media center.
I agree that the LMS should only be the resource for helping start up the podcasting and not be the one in charge. Although I think a team approach is good when you are just starting out. When you use the team approach, hopefully that teacher will assist you in teaching other teachers about the podcasts. This is going to be good tool in the future and we all need to become familiar with its use. As the LMS it should be our responsibility to keep everyone informed on the latest greatest.
I agree with you that managing his podcasts is not within your realm of responsibility. However, what you may want to consider is managing or hosting the web space in which the teacher’s podcasts are being published. Would you make him responsible for finding his own server space to put the podcasts on the internet, or would you make his and other teachers’ sites link up to the school or media center’s site? Either way you may have to or want to provide some extra support to ensure that the podcasts are successfully published on the internet and can actually be viewed or heard. I agree fully that media specialists have a lot on their plate, but if you let the teachers kind of run on their own after the initial phase, there is a greater likelihood of podfading or loss of interest. A media specialist would have to be motivated to increase the use of new technology and approaches to really have this type of program succeed beyond initial hype. This situation with podcasting brings up the tough decisions that media specialists often have to make. When they have a full plate, they have to prioritize and decide what they will pursue and what may be less important.
Hi Malena -
I concur with your keyword, "start". While I do see this as a rapport building opportunity, I certainly do not ever want a staff member to feel I am willing to do their jobs for them. As such, the role of an instructor who collaborates is a title I feel suits me best.
One other point you made resonates with me as well, time. As media specialists (future), we cannot devote an inordinate amount of time to any one task. It is the instructors responsibility to research and take as much initiative as possible before embarking upon this collaborative journey.
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