Podcasts were very exciting to me years ago. When I first discovered them, I took a whole undergrad course from UC Berkeley on Drugs and The Human Mind and Body, for free! It was mind blowing. Now they are everywhere, available to all when mass media just doesn't seem to apply. Books are bulky and harder to read just anywhere. Television has to be watched. Bam! In comes the podcast: information while you drive, run, or work, about what YOU want to know. Ahh, refreshing.
When I research podcasts on college admissions, I am looking for a few things. These qualities stem from my gold standard in podcasts: NPR's Ask Me Another, a trivia podcast. AMA set the bar high. First, there were a high quality production that had big backing, so they were easy to listen to. They could bring in many guests, which made the show stay fresh. Their games were short and creative and my attention was held, even over the 50 minute duration. Music was spliced it to signal the beginning and end of segments, but to not split attention from the topic (trivia), music was either funny or part of the game. They got it right is so many ways. Can learning about college admissions be fun? NPR would say it can be. I think of students today and what they would want. Duration has to be an issue here - the shorter the better. Keep It Simple Stupid: KISS-the golden rule. A lunch period, the time from school's end to practice starting, a bus ride. If someone could capture the 10-15 minute periods of time students have, they have a winning segment. But let's not confuse brevity with interest. Many bits of information out there can come from a variety of sources. I know what me standing in front of my students for 15 minute would look and sound like. So in reviewing content, we need to be cognizant that it isn't some guy just reading information. I need a hook, some style, something that links the information I am hearing to something attractive so I can recall it later. These are key elements as well. In the end, a podcast is just a tool, like many others. What matters is how you use it.
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AuthorOlder blog posts were for the UCLA Ext course "Using the Internet for College Counseling" Archives
February 2023
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