I’ve listened to about a dozen podcasts now, maybe more, and it strikes me that there are a lot of bad ones out there, maybe not bad per se, but bad for pedagogical purposes. They include: NPR segments, speeches given live before an audience and recorded, and interviews by podcasters. Many of these lack the characteristics of a good pedagogical resource.
What are the characteristics that make a podcast a good pedagogical resource? I’m not entirely sure, but they should relatively short in length, for in-class use, probably no more than 5 minutes; for out of class use, probably no more than 30 minutes. The speeches I’ve listened to tend to be poor, either not adequately recorded or too much fluff or both. I suspect a well-crafted speech could be a good resource, but I haven’t heard one yet. Some NPR pieces are excellent: they consist of content that lasts, e.g. what is tax reform; others are less good: current events of a transitory nature. Good pieces should have a high signal to noise ratio; that is, not a lot of filler.
As I listen to more podcasts, I hope to get a better idea about this question. I’m looking forward to hearing some podcasts that are designed for teaching and learning.
One related question: What is it about radio that makes it a distinct and in some ways better medium than video? I know I find myself paying more attention to good radio, perhaps because I can’t see the picture.
Have you checked out IT Conversations? Some great stuff there.