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U N I V E R S I T Y O F P I T T S B U R G H |
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A newsletter devoted to the support of teaching and learning at the University of Pittsburgh |
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U N I V E R S I T Y O F P I T T S B U R G H |
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A newsletter devoted to the support of teaching and learning at the University of Pittsburgh |
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Replacing Face-to-Face Lectures with Podcasts in an Online Course
By Jody Baker, PittOnline When I was preparing to teach my first online class last fall, Media and Consumer Culture, I decided to use podcasts to deliver my lectures in order to accomplish two goals: make difficult theoretical concepts accessible and demonstrate their application to the analysis of print and television ads. Before I could actually create the podcasts, though, I worked on revising my syllabus. An instructional designer at CIDDE helped me to discern ways that students tend to perceive an online course. As a result, I developed consistent categories and navigational patterns and revised information on my syllabus to ensure clear and explicit policies, requirements, and learning objectives. Most modules have at least two 10–15 minute lectures: the first discusses theory; the second enacts that theory as I perform analysis on a single ad or series of ads. Although I initially assumed these would closely replicate my classroom lectures, I quickly realized that I needed to go back to square one; I felt as I did just out of grad school—unsure, struggling to find my voice and to create a performance persona all over again. Podcasting presents both pedagogical and technical challenges. As I tried to recreate the multi-media environment that has been so successful in the face-to-face classroom, I learned that podcast lectures cannot duplicate the classroom experience. If the classroom is defined as community, podcasting, in my counter-intuitive experience, creates intimacy. While I do at times use my podium voice, I typically fall into a quiet, conversational tone as if I were talking to a single student in a small space—a pod. My use of headphones while editing and my assumption that students listen and watch lectures on their iPods adds to this effect. (My students are required to have iTunes software so they have the choice to return to the lecture page each week as new lectures are uploaded or let iTunes download the lectures for them.) I often feel as if I hold office hours with every student rather than speak to a group. Furthermore, there are no shortcuts to the recording and editing processes, only trade-offs. In my experience, lectures written for the classroom must be reworked for recording. A well-written lecture can be recorded in real time and edited in a few minutes, taking out the “ums,” “ahs” and gaffes. Flying solo without notes takes more time to record and more time to edit. I must decide for each lecture whether to spend time with my word processor or with recording and editing audio files.
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A newsletter devoted to the support of teaching and learning at the University of Pittsburgh |
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