(Canyon)—She’s bumped it up a notch to make her online class even more accessible for anytime, anywhere learning.
Pat Tyrer, assistant professor of English at West Texas A&M University, taught an eight-week online course this summer on American Literature and Feminism, and along with the usual online features like chat rooms and bulletin boards, she also included podcasting to enhance and support the material being taught.
“Some of the podcasts are an hour or more,” she said, “but the students can download and get additional information whenever or wherever they want.”
A podcast is simply an audio Web file. Tyrer records the material at home and then delivers the recording to Bill Clark with WTOnline, who uploads it to the Web. It is then available for her students to download for listening anytime, anywhere on their computers or portable music players.
“I’m not very talented yet at utilizing the editing software, so the recordings are very amateurish,” Tyrer said. “But the podcasts help reinforce elements taught in the course.
“Students today have so many other commitments. It’s an added value that just works well with their busy lives.”
And her students agree. Mary Alice Brittain, a graduate student in English from Amarillo, was hesitant to tackle the technology involved but got support and help from her more techno-savvy children.
“My anxiety was my intimidation,” Brittain said. “My kids helped me get started, and now I’ve found that it just fits my lifestyle. I’m very busy; this allows me to listen whenever I want with less time committed to sitting down.”
Susan Greenwald, a graduate student in English from Fritch, enjoys the human element the podcasts offer.
“I enjoy the traditional classroom, but the podcasts give me the human interaction I miss in an online class,” she said. “Plus, a person never outgrows storytime.”
Many of the podcasts involve readings Tyrer wants to share with the students and provide access to information without the expense of purchasing several additional books in order to read a single article or a few pages of theory.
“The stories just come alive when read,” Tyrer said. “It gets the students excited about the material and adds value to the course.”
This is the first time Tyrer has used a podcast for teaching, and it’s been a success with her online students.
“I’m more pleased with it than I expected to be. It’s a wonderful tool,” she said.
She is so pleased that she plans to record podcasts for her freshman composition classes this fall. The podcasts won’t be required listening, but the information will be easily accessible for students and will reinforce elements presented during lectures.
“Today’s students don’t want long lectures. It’s an audio generation now. The classroom has moved into a different environment. We must attend to a different learning style,” Tyrer said.
And that’s just what she is doing. 