Response to the questions, "Can podcasts enhance/support your classroom instruction?
What are the benefits and barriers?”

The more I am learning about podcasts, the more I’m seeing the possibilities, especially within classroom instruction.  Some of the benefits of podcasts include their ability to engage students in accessing more information, their ability to provide a creative outlet for expressing newly gained knowledge, and their ease for being shared. 

Podcasts provide information access via computers, smartphones, and other digital devices, such as iPads and iPods.  This means that students can watch and or listen to podcasts in almost any venue and use devices with which they are comfortable.  And because of the variety of information available, the discovery of podcasts can be a personal one.  These factors increase the likelihood that the information will be retained. 

Within classrooms where students are encouraged to creatively express their learning, podcasts is a useful tool.  It gives students a variety of options for showing what they know in audio, video, or a combination of ways.  This allows for diversification of process and product. 

And lastly, another benefit is their ability to be shared.  This way not only are the students and teachers benefitting, but podcasts can be shared with the rest of the class, with the school, and even over the internet open for the world to benefit. 

These are just a few of the benefits of podcasts.  However, with all technology there are the issues that might create barriers – such as technology access, costs, and time for the teacher to learn the technology to know how to adapt their curriculum to appropriately implement this tool for purposeful incorporation.  There may also be privacy issues. 

Teachers need to fully understand and be able to manipulate the technology in order to effectively incorporate the right use of it with his/her students ensuring it is not a “novelty” or “one-time-use” activity.  They also need to ensure that the purpose of the activity is meaningful and not just a time-filler. 

As with other classroom resources, one tool doesn’t always work for all students. Some students may not prefer this method of sharing what they know and instead may prefer traditional methods.  Likewise, some parents may not wish their child’s podcast create to be shared on the public internet; but prefer it stays within the privacy of the classroom.  Teachers need to understand how to limit the access to how podcasts are shared.  These are some of the reasons podcasts can be a great tool, but the tools must be utilized and tailored to the individual students.