Podcasts As Elevator Speeches
June 21, 2013
To create a podcast about Social Media, I researched the definition of Social Media and made sure I was familiar with the vocabulary of the topic. I have used Social Media for years, but I wasted to make sure that I knew that I was talking about and not leaving our any important aspects unknowingly. I also researched Social Media exclusively in the context of education. I was surprised by how few articles there were so I was forced to expand my search to Social Media itself. I was delighted to find an article that discussed music education and Social Media together.
I wrote my podcasts using these article as sources. I chose to write in the first person because of the informal location of these podcasts. An elevator is an enclosed space and a mode of transportation to a final destination. Many people are distracted in an elevator by the various aspects of what will happen when the doors open. Elevators, as media outlets, are also hindered by the short period of time people are in them. Keeping all these qualities in mind, I immediately engaged my listener with a question or a reference to an unusual object, such as a dictionary to draw the audience in.
Next, I browsed for royalty free music that was also downloadable for no charge. This was a little tricky, especially when I was looking for sounds with a “news” theme. I finally found what I was looking for after two days of searching on http://www.freeplaymusic.com. I edited the downloaded mP3s into my Audacity files to create my podcast mP3s. I cut the music to fit in the first and last 5 seconds of the podcast as my introduction music and conclusion music. I also had to add fades to decrease the harsh jump from the music to the spoken voice.
What I learned from this process came primarily from the research portion of the project. I was unaware there was so little research on the impacts of social media on children. I already knew what cyber-bullying was from the deaths of teenagers and the mass media’s reports on them. Of the top five social media sites, I currently use four and primarily favor Pinterest. I knew a lot about these outlets, but not what was happening to teens who use them. I was shocked by the links to depression in children.
After reading and distilling the articles into my podcasts, I understand now why my administration has been so reluctant to allow teachers to use these sites. I was unaware of the damage that could be caused by adding to a child’s time and exploration of social media. After reflecting on these negative side affects, I am also encouraged by the attention brought to this area. I hope there is much more research on the impact of using social media in the classroom and safe techniques for integration. I was also encouraged by the research on music and social media. I would like to find more articles that discuss how music in social media is furthering sharing between people on a global scale.
Lievrouw, L. A., & Livingstone, S. (Eds.). (2002). Handbook of new media: Social shaping and consequences of ICTs. SAGE Publications Limited.
Social media. (2013). In Merriam-Webster.com.
Retrieved from http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/social media
O’Keeffe, G. S., & Clarke-Pearson, K. (2011). The impact of social media on children, adolescents, and families. Pediatrics, 127(4), 800-804.
P.Treagus. (2013, March 11). How can social media be used in education? [Web log comment]. Retrieved from: http://www.socialnomics.net/2013/03/11/how-can-social-media-be-used-in-education/
Salavuo, M. (2008). Social media as an opportunity for pedagogical change in music education. Journal of Music, Technology and Education, 1(2-3), 2-3.
Top 15 Most Popular Social Networking Sites. (2013) in eBizMBA. Retrieved from http://www.ebizmba.com/articles/social-networking-websitesPodcast: Current Issues/Challenges in Implementing Social Media in Education