THE CTE QUARTERLY | Issue 8
Faculty Spotlight
Doug and Holly Wendel
We know you’ve seen the annual advertisements about the Florida Today
Corporate 5k run. Did you know who actually organizes the Eastern
Florida State College team? Doug and Holly Wendel have been the team
leaders for the past five years! Holly has participated in a number of spirit
triathlons across the state, and the couple takes part in 5K’s almost every
weekend. When they saw an opportunity to get together with co-workers
for a great cause that involved 5K’s they thought it was the best of both
worlds! They both agree that meeting co-workers from all campuses,
departments and years of experience to run or walk, enjoy live music and
(of course) the free beer makes the annual event even more special.
TECH TIPS WITH T3
The Power of Podcasts In and Out of
the Classroom
By Andrew Dutra, Ph.D.
We all know that most students spend
a large amount of time checking
social media and watching videos on
their cell phones. This can be very
frustrating when trying to ensure
effective classroom instruction, but
the utilization of podcasts can bridge
the gap between the digital world and
critical course content. A podcast is
a digital audio file of varying length
available through various Internet
servers/apps (e.g., Apple Podcasts,
Stitcher Radio, Google Podcasts and
Spotify, just to name a few). Podcasts
span a myriad of topics ranging from
comedy to sports to academics.
YouTube videos are great, but a
student must be focusing intently
on the video. Solely comprised of
audio, podcasts can be enjoyed at any
time. They do not limit students to
staring at their screens to assimilate
the necessary content. The freedom
to podcast on their own schedule
gives students the power and ability
to learn and listen at their own
individual pace and convenience.
In the classroom, podcasts provide
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instructors with the opportunity to
expose students to real-world events
on topics relevant to course content.
For example, an oceanography
instructor can assign students to listen
to a firsthand account of the discovery
of the Titanic from Robert Ballard
on the National Geographic podcast
channel, or an American history
instructor could share a podcast
about how former President Nixon
had millions of dollars in campaign
funds stolen from the Western White
House in Southern California on the
Crime Beat podcast channel. From an
assignment/assessment perspective,
a mock podcast audio file could be
submitted by students to allow them
the ability to express themselves on
a topic of their choice from a recent
lesson. All in all, there is no shortage
of relevant and interesting content in
the podcast world that might interest
a student. (Note: Be sure to preview
all assigned student podcasts, as some
may contain language or content
that could be viewed as offensive or
unprofessional.)