Well, I successfully completed my first podcasting assignment. I used Apple's GarageBand software which overall I found very user-friendly. Since I don't have a Mac, I used the free download, Audacity, to record my audio on my PC and saved the files as mp3s. I found images that tied into my audio using Google Images and saved these files as well. Importing the media into Garageband was easy once I got the audio into Itunes and images into iPhoto. Garageband has its own "Jingles" and sound effects as well, making it possible to incorporate a variety of different types of audio and play them simultaneously.
The most tedious part of creating the podcast was arranging the images and voice tracks so that they flowed and were timed appropriately. I hit some bumps along the way in this process. One problem was that I saved my information to the desktop as I went. When my computer unexpectedly shutdown, I faced the realization that I had lost my entire podcast and has to start all over again. Luckily for me, I had saved my audio and images ahead of time so it was much easier to put it back together. Secondly, I had problems previewing my podcast as I went along and had to troubleshoot to find a solution to this problem. Luckily there are some great resources out there for Garageband support and troubleshooting.
The final product is one that, though far from perfect, I think is a good start as my first podcasting attempt. Check it out on Youtube - Oceans of the World podcast. I am open to suggestions for improvement so let me know what you think!
I can see how podcasts are great tools to use in the classroom or for homework assignments. They are short and engaging, giving students a different way to learn as opposed to the usual pencil and paper type assignments. I think with older students, creating podcasts would be an extremely valuable learning experience for students to show their understanding of a particular topic. I hope to use them in my teaching in the future and I know the more I practice creating them, the easier and less time consuming they will be!
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