Podcasting

Learn how to make a Podcast

In education, podcasting in it's simplest form is recording an audio file. The big question is how can we get students recording in our classrooms?

Examples of Podcasting in Education:

  1. Single Experience: This is a digital recording that may be used for a project. The audience is limited to the group members and the teacher. This type of podcast is typically submitted to a teacher through an mp3 or wav file.

  2. Classroom Experience: This is a digital recording that targets a small group audience such as a class or grade level. Often, the class is broken into small groups with each group representing a different but relatable topic (i.e., America in the 1920s). This type of podcast can be hosted on a platform such as YouTube as a part of a YouTube Channel or playlist. The teacher could use these podcasts for group learning in a gallery walk or a scaffolded assignment.

  3. Club Experience: This is a series of digital recordings that have a large target audience and a single theme. You may try this type of podcast if you are in a school club or tv production class. This type of podcast typically has a RSS feed and is found on platforms such as iTunes, Google Play, and/or Spotify.

Now that we have a general understanding of what a podcast is and what it looks like. Let’s take a look at the 5 simple steps for student podcasting with minimal equipment.

Examples of Student Podcasting Projects

Step 1: Planning

The planning of the podcast is the key to success. Planning doesn’t mean scripting out each sentence word-for-word. Podcasts are meant to be informal and entertaining. Check out the resources "Podcast Storyboard" for a simplistic planning guide for students and the "Student Podcast Planning Guide" which breaks down the planning of a student podcast into 8 categories.

Category #1: Focus

Category #2: Roles

Category #3: Interviews

Category #4: Segments

Category #5: Audio (Music)

Category #6: Introduction

Category #7: Conclusion

Category #8: Outline

Step 2: Equipment

For teachers, the best budget is a free budget so here are a few free scenarios where you can podcast using equipment that you (or your students) may already have access to.

Chromebook Tools

Phone Recording Favorite Apps:

Voice Recorder by Quality Apps (Android)

Easy Voice Recorder (Android)

iTalk Recorder (Apple)

Voice Memos (Apple)

Step 3: Recording and Step 4: Editing

Recording and Editing a podcast can be a relatively easy, especially with the vast amount of tools available. Here are some of our recommended tools!

Vocaroo is a platform -based audio recorder. No account is needed and you can download your audio file as a WAV file when done.

Twisted Wave is an audio editor that allows you to edit audio files up to 5 minutes in length!

WeVideo is a multi-tool that allows you to record and edit audio!

Step 5: Publishing

Publishing to YouTube

Publishing a podcast simply refers to the method by which you make it publicly available. This can be done in a variety of ways, so let’s start with the simplest one: YouTube. This is free and requires the least amount of effort and background knowledge. The only hurdle is that your podcast audio needs to be converted to a video format before it can be posted on YouTube. Programs like WeVideo will also allow you to combine your pre-recorded podcast audio with images of your choosing, creating a video that can be posted to YouTube

Uploading a YouTube Video to New Google Sites

Once the podcast is uploaded to YouTube, the next step is putting the podcast onto a New Google Sites Webpage. This is a very simple process. Watch the video for step-by-step instructions!