Mostly Pros and a Couple Cons to Audio and Video Technology In the Classroom

Hey everyone. Today I’m going to be discussing the Pros and Cons to Audio and Video Podcasts. I’m very pro on this topic as I use it a lot in my own classroom, so I’ll make a valiant effort to look at the cons as honestly as possible. (Though I can tell you, they will NOT outweigh the pros.)

In considering some pros for podcasting, the ease of someone getting a podcast is great. Being able to subscribe, as King & Cox describe through the Juarez scenario, allowing the listener to simply subscribe, then everytime they open iTunes it updates is definitely easy and a great way to stay up to date with the things you’re interested in (2011, p. 35). The historical reenactment idea that they suggested for podcasts allowing students to act out an interview with a famous scientist or historical figure was also super entertaining and I will definitely throw that idea out there with my fellow teachers for a project we do with our fourth graders (King & Cox, 2011, p. 42-43). We do a living museum project already and integrating it with technology would just make it more fun and enriching for our classroom.

Pros for AAC would include using it specifically for online classes. I love how Dr. Kang sends media files explaining our grades. That has been engaging from my perspective. You don’t have to take my word for it though, because King & Cox share a study that shared that, “researchers found that graduate online learners thought audio was far better than text-based in conveying nuance and helping students retain and apply course content” (2011, p. 58). They also discuss the concept of social presence and how that is improved through AAC (King & Cox, 2011, p. 58).

Finally, I’ll give some pros for video development and instructional use. From my personal experience, I couldn’t have gotten my degree from K-State without the option of attending my face to face courses through Zoom. The video-conferencing software of Zoom has allowed me to be a part of in person lectures from 3 hours away. The book discusses this as well, but it doesn’t explain how important it has been for me to be able to attend K-State instead of attending KU Edwards for my marriage’s sake (the hubs hates KU). While I find it to be a pro, one study I was reading had participants who were pretty critical of things professors did during video conferencing that had students leaving with a more negative experience. The study suggested “that higher education teachers and researchers who communicate in distance settings could usefully research the communication skills and behaviours of presenters to make the most from new technologies” (Shephard & Knightbridge, 2011, 231-235).

On top of that, I love creating video tutorials for my students when they are doing homework. It allows parents to see what we’re doing, while helping my students to remember what we went over in class. That translates well to adult learning as well. I had a professor that once did a mid-course evaluation and her class had been entirely online and super boring. I suggested she add videos, and she took that suggestion to heart. She made review videos that walked us through how to study for our final that truly helped me engage better in the content and successfully helped me ace the final. The book also suggested using video conferencing with experts, which I thought was a great idea. “Expert guests can now conveniently visit, individually or as part of a panel. Your distance guest could also provide a virtual tour of their lab or site for a campus-based classroom” (King & Cox, 2011, p. 73).

I could continue with the pros, but I think it’s time to get into some cons. In both the podcasting and the video development chapters intellectual property issues came up. One thing that you have to be very careful with is dealing with that issue. “In the digital world, intellectual property and copyright are moving targets as they constantly change to keep up with new technologies and issues” (King & Cox, 2011, p. 84). Knowing how to lead your students to correctly cite and make sure they have permission for using material is key. “Providing a list of resources and agreement to follow legitimate practices will safeguard the instructor’s responsibility as well” (King & Cox, 2011, p. 47). I felt that was good advice and the book even has some good resources.

Other cons that were mentioned and that I have experienced are the time it takes to create a video. You have to do the prep work, then you record. If you’re like me, that recording can take many takes before you finally like your product, then you might need to edit. All in all it’s very time consuming. The product is there to stay, however, and you can use it again with future students, so you can weigh that as a con, but also as a pro in the future.

So, as you can see there are a ton of pros and few cons. As I said, I am pretty biased, but I do believe technology can truly enhance learning for all ages. Podcasts, AAC, videos and narrated digital presentations are all great resources that could be used in any classroom and make a positive difference.

References:

King, K. & Cox, T. (2011). The professor’s guide to taming technology. Charlotte, NC: Information Age Publishing.

Shephard, K., & Knightbridge, K. (2011). Exploring presentation styles in higher education teaching and research situations: Distance and face-to-face. Open Learning, 26(3), 223-236.