Edubeacon

Transferring to a new school this year has meant abandoning the relaxing 7 minute drive through scenic hilly back roads for a 25 minute hike down the freeway but it’s not all bad, it provides me with the opportunity to catch up on some of the wealth of podcasts loaded on my iTouch.   I only tap into a sample of the learning and discussion available which, for ease of access, I download via iTunes.  It’s a form of professional learning I’d recommend to anybody at any stage of your learning journey.  Here is a sample of my favourites:

Ed Tech Crew – A weekly podcast by local Victorian educators Daryl Branson and Tony Richards. Now up to number 114, the longevity of this podcast is a reflection of its professional quality that’s presented in a relaxed style.   Content:  technology in education news, 1:1 computing, news and resources with a community of listeners.  Duration: 1 hour.

Teachers, teaching teachers – Educators Paul Allison, Susan Ettenheim and others have presented this webcast since 2006.  Hosted on the EdTechTalk channel of the World Bridges Network, it introduces  best practice, research, classroom activities and technology integration.  Duration: 1 hour.  This is only one of the 14 education podcasts on the EdTechTalk channel.

Bit by Bit – Presented by Bob Sprankle, Cheryl Oakes and Alice Barr from Maine, USA, this is another podcast on the EdTechTalk channel that I wouldn’t miss.  Promoted as ‘a place for thoughts, discoveries, links, and tips’, I enjoy the feedback from conferences, the discussion and exploration of ideas from these three educators and their guests.  Their inclusion of student involvement from time to time also provides interesting insight.  Duration: 1 hour.

EdTechRoundup – A weekly British podcast presented by Doug Belshaw, Dai Barnes and others.  Discussion on this podcast usually relates fairly directly to classroom issues and experiences.  It always provides a range of perspectives and good discussion on the obstacles that can be encountered depending on the setup of you school network and resources.  it provides insight into the British education environment.  Duration: 1 hour.

The Teacher’s Podcast – Presented by teacher educators Mark Gura and Dr Kathy King this weekly podcast is a discussion between the presenters of news, research and technology integration practice.  As experienced educators, they provide valuable information and ideas that can be applied directly to the classroom.  Guest interviews explore issues and applications making for an informative session.  Duration: 1 hour

The Library Gang 2.0 – This is a monthly round-table podcast hosted by Richard Wallis, and others from a pool of regulars.  It provides a lively discussion on the state of libraries, cataloguing and the influence of players such as Google on the traditional role of the library.  It can be technical in nature but provides insight into the trends in library practice worldwide.  Duration: 1 hour.

Infopeople Project. I like the common sense discussion on the George and Joan- Thinking Out Loud component of this project.  It’s relatively new and is directed to public library staff in California specifically but is good listening for all of us in libraries.  Michael Cart’s discussion of books and writing is also good listening.  A little irregular in production, this is settling into a fortnightly listen.  Duration: 30 minutes approx.

I’m also a great fan of Leo Laporte and his stable of TWIT shows including This Week in Tech, This Week in Google,  Net@Night and MacBreakWeekly.  They’re technology related and provide the stories behind much of what we hear in the news relating to social media and its players.

Finally, some more good value and a great place to start are:  ABC Radio,  BBC Digital Planet, Ed Tech Chicks,  and Always On

This is just a guide for getting started that won’t suit everybody but if you’ve got an iPod, iTouch or any sort of mp3 player, it’s a very easy professional learning on the go.