Podcasting lectures: Pt 3

Well, my first lecture is on my web site. I found that I had to get the RIGHT Bluetooth adapter for my computer, one that would support a headset input (D-Link DBT-120 for about $30) and then my Bluetooth headset for my cell phone would work. But I'm not sure it kicked in as the default input for the lecture. As I stepped away from the computer the quality went down. I'll double check next time.

Some tech stuff: I used Audacity, a free download, as the software to record. I went to preferences and set it to allow export in Apple's AIFF format (16-bit worked, 32-bit did not) and then imported it into my iTunes library and converted it to MP3. Audacity has an export-to-MP3 option, but it requires additional software and I couldn't figure out how to get it/install it. So, I've got a couple of extra steps to go.

I had told students last class period I was recording and to watch the web site and several e-mailed later with disappointment that the lecture was not there.

Next step will be to create the RSS feed with Podcast Maker and get listed on Apple's Music Store. BTW, I also added art and comments and other stuff to the file while I had it in iTunes.

Podcasting lectures: Pt 2

Well my first experiment with recording lectures was not as successful as I hoped. I move around a bit during my lectures and spent a lot of time on the wrong side of the computer --away from the built-in mic--and the recording wasn't very good. I can turn the computer around next time, but I think the answer is some kind of wireless mic.

Thought I'd try something cheap and bought a Bluetooth adapter for my computer thinking I might be able to use the Bluetooth headset from my cell phone, but that didn't work. Will have to continue looking.

Podcasting lectures

Time to just get started. I'm going to start recording lectures in my mass comm class and posting them on the course web site.

I've downloaded a freeware audio recording program from the Apple site (Audacity) and created a page on the site for uploading. I'll create an RSS feed and link to iTunes later.

As far as the fear of students not attending class and listening to the lectures instead, I already award credit for attendance in class (25%) in the day class and have a mechanism for recording attendance through reading of lectures in the online class. So this should not change things.

My bigger concern is whether students will download and listen to the lectures.

Workshops

I love doing workshops at Cerritos and hope we can do more like the one we did this week on podcasting. What I'd like to do is pair with our mass communications partner, Radio-TV, to eventually sponsor monthly workshops. But that may be too ambitious, though it could be a goal to strive toward between now and 2010.

A more modest goal would be to aim for three each semester, with one of them being the SoCal and JACC state conventions, both of which count as extracurricular learning opportunities for students. We should have print, broadcast, design, new media and photo workshops. They can be hands-on or panel discussions or guest speakers.

Doing them is not that hard, and the more we do them, the better we get at doing them easily.

Blogging and Broadcasting

Wow, this is my week for workshops. Last week I did a workshop on the use of College Publisher as a web publishing tool for college papers to a small group at CSU, Long Beach; Wednesday night I attended a plagiarism and journalists workshop at CSU, Fullerton; Friday we hosted a workshop at Cerritos on podcasting; and today Susan and I went to a workshop in Beverly Hills on blogging and broadcasting sponsored by AFTRA at the Museum of Television and Radio.

The workshop turned out to be less about broadcasting and more about the world of blogging and journalism, which I liked.

As I've written in the Rethinking Journalism Education blog, I'm still not sure about this blogging thing, but I'm going to give it try ... just jump in the stream and see where it takes me..

Podcasting at Cerritos

Twenty-six media students and faculty from Cerritos and neighboring colleges and universities learned more about podcasting as a journalistic or teaching tool March 24 at Cerritos. See story and photos.

Just get started

A month ago I was at a journalism conference for faculty in Morro Bay where we discussed how to rethink the journalism curriculum for the 21st century. While continuing to focus on the basics, we were encouraged to also look at the new technologies of podcasting and blogging. While a lot of instructors were excited, a lot, especially the university instructors, were already talking about how it takes two years to think through and change curriculum. I'm not that patient.

Just get starting doing it now is more my style. The stream continues to move and you just have to jump in and get started. Don't think it through all the way. Don't wait to rewrite curriculum. Just introduce it now in the classes we've got. And then let it grow. And that's what we're going to do here.

I got back and almost immediately introduced a blogging assignment to the beginning newswriting. Then, thanks to a suggestion by Amara, we set up a podcasting workshop so we can learn more about podcasting, which I'm a little more excited about than blogging. Now that I've seen how easy it is, we'll probably introduce a podcasting assignment to the newswriting class this semester yet. And I've already started talking about podcasting and blogging in the mass comm class in various lectures. I've even played some sample podcasts. And we have plans to introduce podcasting and perhaps blogging to the newspaper classes.