As part of the #edublogclub year-long challenge to blog on education. While the official club has ended, they have shared posts to continue the journey through 2017. This week’s prompt was about a podcasts.
Rather than talk about how I used podcasts professionally or personally, I’ll admit that I’ve tried listening to podcasts and right now, it’s just not the thing that works for me. I’d rather read a blog post about a topic than listen to people talk about it just like I’d rather read a book than listen to the audio version.
The only time I have been remotely captivated by a podcast was This American Life’s Serial series seasons one and two because the topics were interesting and others had recommended I listen to it because I’m a fan of true crime. I listened to them mostly when walking the dog (I need music when I’m exercising) or doing the housework, but just like listening to an audiobook while driving, I’m often distracted and then realize I’ve missed a chunk of the clip and need to go back.
That’s not to say I won’t go back and try podcasts at another time, like I did with Twitter when it first came out, but for now, it doesn’t fit my needs and lifestyle. Sorry to disappoint but you won’t find the next great recommendation for a podcast here because I’ve deleted Stitcher from my phone and haven’t listened to one since Fall 2014 when I still wasn’t sure whether Adnan Syed killed his teen girlfriend or not.
Readers Be Advised 
Kathleen
November 25, 2017 at 2:33 am
How frustrating was Serial? I was hooked to keep listening expecting a big resolution!
I’m a big fan of podcasts! I find them a great way to learn for the time poor. For example, if I have an interest in reading a non-fiction book but don’t really have time to read it, I’ll listen to an interview with the author (or a few interviews) to get the key messages.
I mostly use podcasts for directly learning about something or exploring a topic. Occasionally I feel like something lighter and will just listen to an interview with a celebrity or interesting everyday person.
Like you, I like music for serious exercise but I love podcasts for a walk or jog etc. Or for driving but I usually have kids in the backseat so don’t get to indulge!
Okay, so it seems like maybe I should have written my own blog post about podcasts! 🙂
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Polly Farrington
December 11, 2017 at 5:17 am
I’m a podcast-a-holic. Helps that I don’t have kids at home, so I can listen while I cook or do chores. We have much better meals when I have podcasts to catch up on. 🙂 Have to admit that my favorites are british gardening shows though. A few education faves include Cult of Pedagogy, 10 minute teacher, Google Teacher Tribe.
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Alicia Abdul
December 11, 2017 at 8:57 am
Have you always enjoyed podcasts since their inception or were you later to the game? What makes them so appealing? Is there a specific format that you like, a length that you like? What do you use to stack up your podcasts?
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Polly Farrington
December 12, 2017 at 1:25 am
Good questions! I had to think about the progression. It started with books-on-tape in the 90’s…. It was a great way for me to multitask when I was making baskets (for craft shows – in a prior life!) Then when I started teaching workshops in far flung places, I’d listen to books and podcasts when they became popular. Hearing people’s voices, their personalities, the conversations – I enjoy that better than reading blog posts. I use the iTunes podcast app on my iPad and Pocket Cast app on androids. As to length,having lots of podcasts of different lengths makes it easy to fill whatever time I might have.
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