Let Your Voice Be Heard! Create a Podcast to Build OER Content, Promote Your Programs, Share Your Expertise, and Contribute Your Voice
Concurrent Session 1 & 2 (combined)
Brief Abstract
In response to the 2020 Pandemic, I created a podcast to help educators new to the online modality learn how to get started through online best practices, video and tech tips, student engagement strategies, and healthy work-life balance as an online educator. Now 80+ episodes later, I'll walk you through the basic tips and tricks of getting started with your own podcast, whether to build OER content for your courses, to promote your programs, to share your own expertise, or to simply contribute your voice.
Presenters
Extended Abstract
In response to the 2020 Pandemic, I created a podcast to help educators new to the online modality learn how to get started through online best practices, video and tech tips, student engagement strategies, and healthy work-life balance as an online educator. Now 80+ episodes later, I'll walk attendees through the basic tips and tricks of getting started with a podcast, whether to build OER content for courses, to promote programs, to share expertise, or to simply contribute a voice.
The podcast featured in this workshop began in April 2020 as a solo production. The first 25 episodes were created weekly and focused on topics of interest to teachers and faculty members who were newly teaching online. Some topics included ideas about getting quality sleep while teaching online, helping students who were new to online learning, making videos for an online class, and battling imposter syndrome in an online career. Beginning with episode 26 through the present time, the podcast has been produced by our University content team, still maintaining a consistent weekly output, the same four main topics, and the same theme song.
Podcasting is an inexpensive and fun way to create open educational resources. When podcasts are created with learning in mind, educators can develop stand-alone content that students can listen to at their own convenience. Individual episodes can then be integrated into classes as "evergreen" content to be used indefinitely into the future. Podcast recordings personalize the learning experience to some degree by sharing the instructor's voice with his or her students, increasing students' "excitement, interest, enjoyment, and learning motivation" (König, 2021).
Podcasting is one less-expensive avenue to promote programs. Episodes can focus on specific programs and what listeners might gain from studying in that field or in that school's program. Episodes can introduce individual faculty members and their specialty areas, helping listeners feel connected to these professionals more personally and the program itself. Through sharing quality content about various issues, disciplines, and subjects of interest to listeners, programs get promoted along the way.
Podcasting is an avenue to share expertise in specific areas, where individuals might not normally have an outlet. While sharing and presenting to one's professional community at a conference or writing an article or book can contribute to the field, a podcast reaching potential listeners in many diverse fields all around the world. This is a great way to share one's expertise on a larger scale through simple methods.
Podcasting gives each individual a means through which to simply contribute a voice. Podcasts gain a following whether they are short or long, detailed or general, and deep or superficial. The opportunity to contribute one's thoughts, ideas, and energy to the wellbeing and learning of others empowers the individual contributor significantly. Where other avenues of promoting into leadership or rank advancing may not be available, individual contributors can find this a creative place to add their "voice," feel that they are able to make significant contributions, and keep the creative fire alive.
In this workshop, participants will learn the basics of getting started with a podcast from the idea stage through developing the first episode. Planning documents to help them build out their ideas and prepare a new podcast will be shared, with examples of equipment that can be used from the less-expensive variety through the more substantial and expensive options.
Examples will be used to illustrate potential parts of the podcast, such as selecting a theme song, narrating a short introduction and closing element, uploading to a hosting platform, and distributing to multiple media outlets such as Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Spotify, iHeart Radio, Audible, Amazon Podcasts, and other distribution channels.
Plan for interactivity:
- Attendees will receive downloadable worksheets, links, handouts. etc., and can complete these during the workshop.
- Participants will engage in dialogue with each other to flesh out potential plans.
- Interactivity will occur regularly throughout the workshop, focused on attendees needs and ideas.
What the attendees are going to learn from the presentation (the takeaways):
- Choosing a podcast purpose
- Selecting/narrowing the topic and audience
- Naming the podcast
- Choosing the format (content type, length, narration, solo/interview)
- Planning intro/outro music tracks and narration
- Creating cover art
- Selecting a hosting platform and website
- Choosing recording equipment
- Choosing audio recording software
- Processing audio files for a final MP3 or similar product
- Tips for success
- Transcription methods
- Distributing the podcast to gain a following
- Promoting the podcast for marketing a program or sharing one's voice
- Checking podcast listener statistics and other analytics
- Embedding in a course for OER content
Selected Resources Consulted include:
Aufderheide, P., Lieberman, D., Alkhallouf, A., & Ugboma, J. M. (2020). Podcasting as public media: The future of US news, public affairs, and educational podcasts. International Journal of Communication, 14, 22.
Barnes, J., Carraway, C., & Jones, S. (2021). Using lecture podcasts in the COVID‐19 transition to virtual post‐secondary education in agriculture. Natural Sciences Education, 50(2).
Costa, S. F., Costa e Silva, E., & Correia, A. (2021). Guidelines for Creating Video Podcasts in Mathematics Higher Education. International Journal for Technology in Mathematics Education, 28(2).
Cox, D. D., & McLeod, S. (2014). Social media marketing and communications strategies for school superintendents. Journal of Educational Administration.
Ferrer, I., Lorenzetti, L., & Shaw, J. (2020). Podcasting for social justice: Exploring the potential of experiential and transformative teaching and learning through social work podcasts. Social Work Education, 39(7), 849-865.
Graw, D. (2009). Using podcasts to support distance education for adult learners.
Hazlett, K. (2011). Content Rules: How to Create Killer Blogs, Podcasts, Videos, Ebooks, Webinars (and More) that Engage Customers and Ignite Your Business. Journal of Product & Brand Management.
Kaplan, H., Verma, D., & Sargsyan, Z. (2020). What traditional lectures can learn from podcasts. Journal of Graduate Medical Education, 12(3), 250-253.
König, L. (2021). Podcasts in higher education: teacher enthusiasm increases students’ excitement, interest, enjoyment, and learning motivation. Educational Studies, 47(5), 627-630.
Lee, D. (2006). marketing 101: iPod, You-pod, We-pod: Podcasting and Marketing Library Services. Library Leadership & Management, 20(4), 206-208.
Lin, S. (2012). Critical Factors in Adoption of Podcasting for Educational Uses. In CONF-IRM (p. 32).
McNamara, S. (2018). Effectiveness of podcasts as professional development for Texas special education administrators (Doctoral dissertation).