Audio Notes

September 5, 2007
I already posted some of the highlights from the Audio presentation (see September 19 post), but here are the rest of my notes:

Audio as an Instructional Media
Elementary
•Cassette Tapes - self & teacher assessment
•Microphone - on computers and digital recorders - presentation, comprehension
•Whisper Phones - self assessment
•Telephone - phone interviews with experts, conference calls
•Audio Enhancement - microphones & speakers - enhance teacher & student voices
•Firevox - plu-in from Firefox - reads texts to students from internet sites
•iTunes - download & upload music & podcasts
•GarageBand
•Audacity - audio editing - free dowload

Secondary
•Streaming audio & video files - comprehension, historical context
•Music - cultural & historical understanding
•Podcasts - Story Telling, tone, expression, focus on content, “window” to the school for parents and community
•Downloading Digital Audio - reliable, affordable, convenient
•Text-to-speech Programs: KidPix, Hyperstudio, Storybook Weaver, KidWorkds
•Web Links:
Justice Talking
National Public Radio
Voice of America Broadcasts - different languages and english learning links
Teaching American History Lectures
Library of Congress
This Day in History
American Life Histories
Radio Diaries
This American Life
Youth Speaks
Youth Radio
Room 208 (now 209) Podcasts
Mayberryonline.org Podcasts
shiporsheep.com - ELLs
Randall’s Cyber Listening Lab

Advantages
•Listening occurs all day
•Readily Available
•Inexpensive
•Reproducible
•Adds verbal to text aiding learning
•Provides Current Information
•Free Access to Archived audio files
•Good for Foreign Language & ELLs
•Stimulating
•Repeatable
•Portable
•Facilitates Lesson Preparation
•Selections are easy to locate
•Resistant to damage

Limitations
•Copyright Concerns
•Doesn’t Monitor Attention - hearing vs. listening
•Difficulty in pacing - not easily adjusted for different learners
•Need for digital software and equipment
•Fixed Sequence - esp. w/ audio cassettes
•Difficulty in locating segment - esp. w/ audio cassettes
•Potential for accidental erasure or deletion

“The Long Tale” - look online for it - written about how digital music available on iTunes has allowed for the audio files to stay around forever because you don’t need to have shelf space - same with NetFlix, online books, etc.