Episode 4 of the 1619 podcast discusses the impact of race on access to quality healthcare. In the podcast, we hear the voices of the podcast creator Nikole Hannah-Jones, her interview with expert Jeneen Interlandi, and archived recordings from historical interviews. The episode begins with Hannah-Jones telling a story from her personal history that has a deep connection to the discussion topic. This establishes a context for the historical and political discussion that follows. During this, the podcast blends expert commentary with first-person accounts and interviews to tell the story of how race has impacted access to adequate healthcare. The podcast closes with the reading of a short narrative piece from Ghanian-American Novelist Yaa Gyasi. By incorporating various modes of spoken word and storytelling like interviews, fictional and nonfictional, narratives, and historical recordings, the podcast is able to tell an important truth about how the country has failed Black Americans.
I use podcasts with my Emergent Bilingual high school students. In an English language development classroom, there are many benefits to incorporating podcasts into teaching and learning activities. Podcasts can support EBs in developing listening and speaking skills, provide foundational or background information on new topics, and provide a real-world context for new topics and vocabulary. When I do incorporate podcasts, I provide different scaffolds to support learners at different stages of English language development. Some of those scaffolds include providing complete transcripts or cloze versions of transcripts, pre-teaching vocabulary, activating prior knowledge, listening guides, note catchers, and visual supports. I use podcasts to support the comprehension and analysis of class texts but also as the class text. I think podcasts are a great tool in education. Depending on the pod, they are scripted to an extent while maintaining a conversational authenticity that is lost in other media. I find some students struggle with the audio-only format so I often accompany listening with a task that supports active listening or present the pod in chunks with activities woven in.
Here are some podcasts I’ve used in my teaching:
Hi Bridget! Wow, I am so excited to hear that you have successfully implemented podcasts with your EBs! As we progressed in the TESOL cohort, I continually became more curious about best practices for MLLs and am always looking for new ways to engage and provide opportunities for them to interact.
ReplyDeleteI agree that podcasting provides a great opportunity for MLLs to practice their conversational listening and speaking skills.... Good tips for engaging more visual learners. Thanks for sharing.