Using the Podcast to Teach Irish Traditional Music
Using the Podcast to Teach Irish Traditional Music
Martin Dowling
School of Music and Sonic Arts
I was intrigued when the “Media Enhanced Learning Special Interest Group” came to Queen’s in January 2010 to run an event entitled “Podcasting for Pedagogic Purposes.” I teach modules on the history and practice of Irish traditional music on the BMus degree in the School of Music and Sonic Arts. In these modules students engage with a vast repertoire of traditional music, and develop analytical and critical listening and writing skills as they come to an appreciation of style and historical context. One aspect of that context is the entire history of recorded media, from 18th and 19thcentury broadsides and printed collections, to the successive generations of sound recording technologies (from the wax cylinder, to the 78 rpm disc, to later vinyl formats, to the CD and other less resilient digital formats), up to the contemporary virtualized and socialised digital media. Like so many other spheres of cultural life, traditional Irish music is being transformed by You Tube, iTunes, Facebook, miniaturized recording and playback devices, and by information rich websites such as thesession.org, mudcat.org, and numerous archives rapidly digitizing and uploading the printed and sonic past. I routinely draw on this material and these media in lecture presentations and tutorial discussions. I wanted to know what more could be done within this digital environment to enhance student learning and satisfaction. Like most, I had a habit of passively consuming podcasts without considering their possible uses in the module learning environment.
The event, which was followed up by a useful online course delivered by Queen’s CED on “Using Audio to Enhance Teaching and Learning,” provided all I needed and more. Educational podcasting is growing in popularity, and there are useful examples of innovative practice in virtually every academic discipline. The short audio podcast, designed to converge with other module resources, can enhance the learning experience in a variety of ways. It can provide context and structure or, alternatively, enriching case studies or exploration of specific problems. The format is best used to punctuate, condense, and repackage module content and disseminate it in a restyled mode, rather than to substitute for the lecture or reading. The technical aspects of making a podcast are surprisingly straightforward, even for those who are not used to the sound recording and mixing environment. A laptop with a microphone and an afternoon familiarising yourself with freely downloadable software for recording and mixing are all that you need. There is plenty good advice on podcast design, and a worldwide web full of examples of good practice. Dealing with the time constraint of five to fifteens minutes is a challenge. The benefits of the podcast are heightened by serialisation, and consistency of style and design are important across the series. In my experience, strong podcasts begin with a punchy opening that provokes, invites, or challenges the listener (about contested issues, sources, specific problems), continue with some context for that opening invitation, and then incorporate multiple voices (in dialogue or offering alternative perspectives) as the content develops.
Lecturers, who, like me, are relatively fresh from PGCHET training, understand the importance of breaking the old habit of monopolising content delivery and expecting students to sit back and passively consume. Yet the repertoire of techniques for liberating the “active learner” in the classroom is, in my experience, a stale one. Students are in danger of what might be called death-by-breakout-session—pairing up with a partner today, and working in a team tomorrow, week in and week out. Having got a taste of this podcasting business, it occurred to me almost immediately that the podcast might be even more effective if the students themselves created and shared podcasts relating to module learning outcomes. In MUS2069 Irish Music: Origins and Trajectories students sit a final exam (70% of assessment) and submit a research project (30% of assessment). Traditionally the project has been a 3,000 word research essay on a subject related to the historical learning outcomes of the module, to be agreed with the convenor. In the last two years, I have offered a 10-15 minute podcast with a shorter write-up as an option. In the write-up underpinning the podcast, students are given the opportunity to demonstrate that they have conducted research commensurate with the full research essay, as well as reflecting on their engagement with the literature on podcast design and the particular problems they faced. The option is underpinned by tutorials in podcast design and students “pitching” their ideas to the lecturer and each other.
Because of the wealth of audio content in the module, and the facility of most of the students for performance and recording techniques, the podcast is has been a popular and appropriate choice. The best work has featured the student’s own instrumental or vocal performance, and/or judiciously sampled and discussed music from relevant discographies. It has been enriching for me to open up this new form of assessment and witness students grapple with the different challenges of condensation and presentation posed by of the podcast format. It is not every student’s choice, and that too is appropriate. Indeed I am delighted that a minority are firmly committed to the more traditional written research project. It may not suit every module, but in my experience the podcast has widened the palette of music students by offering a new format for thinking, reflecting, and presenting their research.
Further Information
Media Enhanced Learning SIG: http://ppp.chester.ac.uk/index.php?title=Main_Page
100 Ideas for Podcasting: http://ppp.chester.ac.uk/index.php?title=100%2B_ideas_for_Podcasting
Apple on podcasting: http://www.apple.com/education/podcasting/ and http://www.apple.com/itunes/podcasts/specs.html
Podcasting at the University of Wisconsin: http://engage.wisc.edu/podcasting/
published in the Centre for Education Development's newsletter "Reflections" of June 2011
