Using the teaching workshop, we have created a lesson about the topic “Earth Under Pressure” for 10th graders. In the lesson the pupils made podcasts, discussing questions related to the topic. We made them make a podcast, because it can be interesting for the pupils and a creative way to start off the conversations in the class. Unfortunately, we just had one podcast station with microphones and headsets, which caused only one group to be able to use this because of the time frame. As a second option, the other pupils had to use Creaza on an iPad. Most of the pupils succeeded using Creaza, but two of the groups had some technical issues, which caused them to not be able to finish their podcasts.
Our lesson targeted the pupils’ speech and vocabulary. They also had to practice having a conversation with others, and come up with follow up questions in english. Podcasts give the learner the opportunity to practice both speech and pronunciation. By having conversations on different subjects on a podcast will the students become quite aware of their language. Also the possibility for acquiring new words and mastering their speech level opens as they spend time reflecting on what they have been saying.
After this lesson we expected the pupils to be able to reflect on questions we gave them related to climate, and communicate with each other in english. Related to the learning outcomes, podcasts were a useful tool in the terms that the pupils might get motivated to speak because they knew they were being recorded. As a teacher you also have the ability to listen to the pupils’ work when using a podcast, compared to the traditional teaching.
There were many pupils in our lesson, but luckily we had many rooms they could use, which were beneficial when making podcasts. As mentioned earlier, some of the pupils experienced a technical issue during our session. Different recordings overlapped one another after being paused in Creaza, which resulted in disturbing noises and a small amount of content. Because we did not know the pupils from before, we did not know if they had used Creaza AudioEditor before.
The lesson plan worked well, but it could have been better if we had a longer lesson, where the pupils could do their own research before recording a podcast. It would also give us time to explain the program Creaza AudioEditor, which would have helped us with the technical issues we experienced. We would have liked for everyone to be able to try out the podcast station at the teaching workshop, as it makes it more authentic and interesting for the pupils. This lesson can be used in the classrooms outside the teaching workshop if the schools have the acquired equipment such as iPad, Chromebooks or a podcast station with microphones. Using podcasts in the classroom will hopefully make the lessons more interesting for the pupils, and gives you multiple benefits as a teacher. When the pupils are making podcasts, you are able to hear what they have recorded and how they pronounce their words.