Educational podcasts in MFL: What for?

 The role of podcasting in teaching to enhance students’ learning

To increase engagement and motivation towards the end of the academic year, MFL teachers can plan cultural projects about different topics. The good aspect about projects is that they will allow students to use the target language in a creative and practical way. For instance, students can research a topic, and taking advantage of their interest for this, they can make/produce a podcast. For further ideas regarding projects, you can visit my blog article about cultural projects. Click here.  

Podcasts are a series of content recorded in audio, published on the Internet and ready to be listened to, downloaded, or shared at the listener’s convenience. These can be recorded in different formats, such as interviews, conversations on a specific topic or monologues offering views and analysis on a topic.

An article published in The UNESCO Courier (2020) points out that the creation of the podcast dates back to 2004.  At that time, it was seen as a technological innovation for radio stations to time-shift shows.

It was British journalist Ben Hammersley who made up the word podcast by combining the iPod (the portable device created by Apple to allow users to download audio files) and broadcasting.

In some countries, listening to podcasts is becoming a popular activity. According to data from Statista about the weekly time spent listening to podcasts (10 hours or less), Brazil and Mexico are at the top of the list. According to the same study, in Mexico 42% of participants who took part in the study spent 10 or less hours consuming this type of content, while 5% did so for at least 11 hours. This data was analysed in the online newspaper El CEO Periodismo Digital de Negocios showing how podcasting is becoming popular in Latin America. When looking at Europe, their analysis shows Spain, the UK and France lead the countries where people listen to the most podcasts.   

 

 Benefits of podcasting for teaching and learning

Podcasting has a great potential in education and offers a variety of benefits both for teachers and for students. Teachers can record their lessons and curriculum related content, allowing students to access information anytime and anywhere. Podcasts are inclusive oral tools, as they can be used by people with visual disabilities or reading difficulties, since the information is presented orally.

An online article by UDIMA - Universidad a Distancia de Madrid (2024) points several benefits of podcasting. The following can be applied to languages.

• Listening skills development: Listening to podcasts improves listening comprehension, vocabulary, and pronunciation. Students can stop the recording and listen as many times as they need, giving them the flexibility to learn at their own pace.

 

• Reading support: Students can listen to the episodes while reading the transcript. They can also listen to audiobooks, literary discussions, and text analysis, which helps improve reading and comprehension. Furthermore, when listening to analysis of literature, they will be improving their analytical skills. This will promote critical thinking and will enrich their own ideas about various topics.

• Diversity of updated content: Podcasts address a wide range of topics. This allows students and teachers to access a variety of perspectives and knowledge that may not be available in the classroom. Furthermore, podcasts allow teachers to keep content fresh and relevant. They can add new information or adapt content, based on feedback given and on students’ changing needs.

 

• Development of creativity, communication, and group work skills: Students can create their own podcasts as creative projects. This will encourage them to carry out research, improve their witing and speaking skills as well as their multimedia content production. At the same time, podcasts encourage collaboration between students as they can work together on producing episodes. Since students must express their ideas clearly and concisely, podcasts are ideal to promote effective communication.

 

How to make a podcast

The first thing to consider when creating a podcast is to be clear about the topic students will be addressing. Once this is established, it is necessary that they research the topic, select relevant data and organise the information that is going to be included. 

It is important to write a script that specifies what students are going to say. They can prepare their voice by performing audio tests. The script should be used to guide the speaker to develop their ideas in a natural way so they should avoid reading from it, as much as possible. The speakers’ voice should sound as natural as possible, like when you are having a conversation, and this would be hard to achieve if you are just reading from your script.   

The audio should be recorded in parts. It should include a welcoming session then develop your speech and provide a conclusion. Make use of resources to spark the interest of your listeners such as music and different sound effects.

 Equipment needed

 To create a quality podcast, it is important to have the right equipment. Although it is possible to record a podcast with basic equipment, such as a microphone built into your computer, investing in quality equipment will significantly improve the quality of your audio and will help you stand out in an increasingly competitive market.

It is possible to produce a podcast using a mobile phone with a good microphone to record the audio. Then, students can download a free audio editor such as Audacity, https://www.audacityteam.org/  to edit and enhance their audio tracks. Free royalty music to make the podcast more engaging can be found in YouTube, Studio, Audio Library session. 

 

 Here is a list of the items you need to record a podcast effectively and more professional.

• A computer or recorder: To record your voice and edit your podcast, you need a computer or a recording device. Make sure you have enough storage space to store your audio files, you may also need an external hard drive, or cloud storage for your content. You can also record your podcast using your phone. 
  

• A microphone: A good microphone is key to ensuring that your audio is clear and crisp. There are many options available, from tablet microphones to handheld microphones. Chose the one that best suits your needs and budget. Nowadays mobile phones have good quality microphones incorporated.

• Headphones: Wireless headphones will allow you to listen to and monitor your recordings without being tied to a cable. This is especially useful when you are recording in noisy places. 
  

• An audio recording and editing program: There are many audio recording and editing programs available, such as Audacity. You can download it for free and it is very user friendly. Choose the one that is best for you and your specific goals.   
  

• A sound card: Depending on the microphone you have chosen; you may need an adapter or sound card to connect your microphone to your computer. Bear in mind all of these aspects when choosing your equipment. 
  

• A platform to publish and share your podcast: Spotify for Podcasters is a completely free service. You can upload your podcast, distribute it to major listening apps, Apple Podcast, and Google Podcasts. If you have a YouTube channel, you can upload your podcast to YouTube.  To listen to my podcast about Chronicle of a Death Foretold in Spanish click here.

To conclude, podcasts play an important role in teaching and enhance students’ learning. Schools and teachers can produce podcasts to communicate with parents, providing information about school events, educational trips, and other resources so podcasts can be an effective way to involve parents in their children’s education.

Bibliography

 

·         UNESCO Courier. "El Podcast: La Radio Reinventada." Available at: https://courier.unesco.org/es/articles/el-podcast-la-radio-reinventada  

·         Gobierno de México. "El Papel del Podcast en la Educación." Available at: https://www.gob.mx/aprendemx/articulos/el-papel-del-podcast-en-la-educacion?idiom=es  

·         Radios Libres. "Capítulo 1: ¿Qué es un Podcast?" Available at: https://radioslibres.net/capitulo-1-que-es-un-podcast/  

·         Tec de Monterrey. "Cinco Beneficios de los Podcasts en la Educación." Available at: https://observatorio.tec.mx/edu-news/cinco-beneficios-podcasts-educacion/  

·         Gobierno de México. "El Podcast como Herramienta Educativa para la Planeación Escolar." Available at: https://www.gob.mx/aprendemx/prensa/el-podcast-como-herramienta-educativa-para-la-planeacion-escolar?idiom=es  

·         Reading Rockets. "Benefits of Using Podcasts in the Classroom." Available at: https://www.readingrockets.org/topics/comprehension/articles/benefits-using-podcasts-classroom  

·         The Podcast Host. "Podcasting in Education: A Niche Case Study." Available at: https://www.thepodcasthost.com/niche-case-study/podcasting-in-education/  

·         Maher Palenque, S. (2016) "The Power of Podcasting: Perspectives on Pedagogy." Journal of Instructional Research, 5. Available at: https://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/EJ1127626.pdf  

·         Springer Nature. (2023) "The Use of Podcasts for Language Learning: A Systematic Review of Literature." Smart Learning Environments. Available at: https://slejournal.springeropen.com/articles/10.1186/s40561-023-00241-1  

·         Ramirez, M.G. "The Use of Podcasts for Language Learning: A Systematic Review of Literature." International Journal of English Language Studies. Available at: file:///C:/Users/Isabel7420/Downloads/The_Use_of_Podcasts_for_Language_Learning_A_System.pdf  

·         UDIMA. "Uso del Podcast en la Educación." Available at: https://www.udima.es/es/uso-del-podcast-en-la-educacion.html  

·          RTVC. "¿Qué es un Podcast?" Available at: https://www.rtvc.gov.co/noticia/que-es-un-podcast