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Launching "Science Cast"

I'm a little concerned by the word, "pilot."

I'm in the midst of ramping up my students for 5 solid weeks of self-directed learning related to climate change. Uncharacteristically, I cleared the proposal with my principal and the science curriculum director before going forward with the plan. I was given "permission" to pilot this program.

Despite all the recent "21st Century Skills" and "self-directed learners" talk around school, the standard-driven CAPT (our state standardized test) reigns supreme. My 9th grade Integrated Science class has a rather extensive list of content standards I'm supposed to cover. I know my 5-week self-directed unit won't cover as many official standards as 5-weeks spent teaching a traditional curriculum.

I'm attempting to more efficiently use class time by exporting some of the content delivery outside the classroom. I saw a video some time ago about chemistry teachers who did something similar, and was recently reminded of the video by a tweet from Ben Grey.

After playing with several options of how to record & publish the video podcasts (I found Wes Fryer's recent posts on LectureCasting very helpful), I created a new subdomain (http://sciencecast.benwildeboer.com), recorded video through UStream using CamTwist, then published the podcast to a WordPress blog & uploaded the video to Vimeo as a redundancy backup. I've submitted my podcast to iTunes so the video will be viewable on students' mobile devices1.

A few observations about the process:

  • It took longer to prepare, record, edit, and post than I would like. I know it'll get faster the more experience I have, but I'm not sure I have the time to do this for every section.
  • There were lots of failures. I can't tell you how many times I had to sit down and work through some issue I was having.
  • The end result is pretty boring. Some students said they parts of it funny or interesting, but I think they were just being nice. To be fair, it'd be boring in class, as well, right?

The first episode (The Periodic Table [& valence electrons]) is below. What do you think? Is this worth the effort?

The Periodic Table (and valence electrons) from Mr. Wildeboer on Vimeo.

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  1. Update: The podcast has now been approved and is available on iTunes. I'm waiting to hear back from iTunes about its approval.       [↩]
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My podcast list

Podcasts are amazing. I listen to them when I do the dishes, when I'm driving by myself in the car, when I'm going for a run, and pretty much any time when I'm doing mindless work. I've come to rely on podcasts quite a bit for my entertainment/learning/information. I've found that since I've started using podcasts (as opposed to simply listening to the radio) I'm consuming more far more information than I ever did previously.

I often find so much valuable (or at least interesting) information through listening to my podcasts, allow me share my current subscriptions. I recommend all of them. If you have a favorite podcast that isn't on my list, feel free to throw it in the comments. I'm all for more quality shows.

Education

  • Bit by Bit (SEEDlings): Bob Sprankle, Alice Barr, and Cheryl Oaks (all from Maine) meet weekly, generally with a different special guest each episode, to discuss education and education technology. Usually includes good discussion of educational uses of technology and they share lots of potential tools to use in the classroom. (~1 hr.; posts weekly)
  • EdTech Posse: Rob Wall, Rick Schwier, Heather Ross, Alec Couros, and Dean Shareski get together to discuss "learning, education, teaching and technology." I've only caught one episode so far, but I really enjoyed it. The hosts of the show are all involved in teacher education, which brings a different perspective to the discussion. Perhaps it's a little more academic, but it's not presented in a way that was off-putting or ivory tower-ish. (~1 hr.; posts now and then)
  • Moving at the Speed of Creativity: Wes Fryer creates this podcast, which frequently features recorded sessions from education conferences around the world. Sometimes the sessions aren't of great interest to me and I skip them, but I've heard many very interesting and thought provoking presentations through this podcast. (time varies, usu. < 1 hr.; posts at least once/week)
  • The Practical Principals: This currently sits as my favorite education-related podcast- which is odd since it's aimed more towards the principal crowd than the teachers. Scott Elias and Melinda Miller star as the Practical Principals relaying advice and tools to maintain your sanity. They're personable, funny, and extremely knowledgeable. It's a must suscribe. (~1 hr.; posts monthly-ish)
  • Always On: I actually haven't listened to an episode of this podcast; though it comes highly recommended from Scott Elias (of the Practical Principals). The most recent episode is on my iPod but I just recently subscribed and haven't gotten to it yet.

Science

  • 60-Second Science: A quick bite of recent news in science. (60 seconds; posts weekdays)
  • 60-Second Earth: Same idea as 60-Second Science, but with a focus on Earth Science. (60 seconds; posts weekly)
  • Bytesize Science: Put out by the American Chemical Society, this podcast is a fairly recent addition for me. Each episode focuses on one topic; going over scientific information in a way suitable for middle and high school students. I haven't used this in my class yet, but it would be appropriate for such use. (~5 min.; posts every couple weeks)
  • Krulwich on Science: Long-time science correspondent Robert Krulwich explains recent scientific discoveries and science and current events in an accessible and interesting way. I found this podcast through my exposure to RadioLab, which Robert Krulwich co-hosts (see below). (5-8 min.; posts weekly)
  • NOVA | PBS: The podcast for the PBS television show. Includes interviews and information that relates to the topic of the TV (though you don't need to watch the show to enjoy the podcast). (~10 min.; posts weekly)
  • Quirks & Quarks: A CBC-radio show where the host (Bob McDonald) interviews guests about current events in science. You can subscribe the show split into its segments or all together. I personally like the segments, but the option is nice too. (1 hr.; posts weekly)
  • RadioLab: Favorite. show. evar. Each show focuses on one idea (i.e. morality, sleep, stress) and investigates it from a variety of angles. Amazingly well produced, interesting, and easy to understand. Hosts Jad Abumrad and Robert Krulwich have great rapport and make the show auditorially stimulating. It's so good I have every RadioLab show permanently saved to my .mp3 player. All other podcasts get deleted after one listen. Download them all. You won't be sorry. (1 hr., weekly during the season)
  • Science Friday: Ira Flatow hosts this call-in current events in science show every Friday afternoon. I love the show but never can stick out 2 hours in front of a radio. The podcasts downloads each segment individually. I enjoy getting it broken down into smaller parts so I don't feel like I have to sit down for 2 hours to listen to the show in its entirety. The show also has it's own twitter profile: @scifri (2 hrs.; posts weekly)
  • Science Talk (SciAm): Host Steve Mirsky discusses recent events in science, often through interviewing scientists or recording presentations. (1 hr.; posts weekly)

Other

  • Baseball History Podcast: A homey yet well done podcast that showcases the biography of one player each week. Includes Hall of Famers, Negro Leaguers, and some other lesser known players. It's an entertaining and informative rundown of that players career. Excellent for me since I like baseball, yet my baseball knowledge pre-1988 is pretty limited. (~7 to 15 min.; posts weekly)
  • Car Talk: The NPR Saturday morning call-in radio show. It's funny, entertaining, and informative. If I'm behind in my podcasts I'll skip this one, but that's only happened once or twice in the last six months. (1 hr.; posts weekly)
  • Planet Money: I believe Clay Burell pointed me towards Planet Money back in September or October when the financial crisis really started to gather steam. The hosts of Planet Money make it their goal to explain the complex happenings of the financial world in simple and entertaining ways. I definitely understand the financial crisis waaaay better than I ever would've without this podcast. (~20 min.; posts Mon-Wed-Fri)
  • Sports with Frank Deford: The popular sports writer pontificates on various subjects of sport. Quick and interesting. Frank Deford has the honor of being one of the very few "famous" people I've actually met. He was giving a talk at my college and came into one of my classes to answer some questions. (~5 min.; posts weekly).
  • This American Life: An award-winning radio show which brings different stories around a single topic each week. Generally very interesting and well produced. It's one of the podcasts I look forward to listening to the most each week. (1 hr.; posts weekly)

If you have a podcast you look forward to every time you turn on your iPod, please let me know what it is, even if it doesn't fall in the science or education categories.