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PODCASTING
&
EFL
Jennifer MacDonald
http://www.jennifermacdonald.ca
Table of contents
1.Introduction.............................................................................4
2.Lesson Plans..........................................................................5
Intro to Radio........................................................................7
http://www.voanews.com/learningenglish/home/
BBC Podcasts
http://www.bbc.co.uk/podcasts
CBC Podcasts
http://www.cbc.ca/podcasting/
ABC Podcasts
http://www.abc.net.au/services/podcasting/
Voice of Russia
New out of Russia, in English
http://english.ruvr.ru/radio/
Radio Sweden
News out of Sweden, in English
http://sverigesradio.se/rs/english/
Intro to Radio
3) Explain to the class that most radio programming falls into the fol-
lowing categories. Go over what these categories mean and entail.
Ask students if they can think of any programming, be it local or in-
ternational, that doesn't fall into these categories.
Music
News, Information or Documentary
Commercial
Drama or Fiction
4) Tell students they will now listen to a variety of radio programs and
podcasts from around the world. They should listen and match what
they hear with the category of content.
If the level of the group is lower, create and hand out a Student sheet.
This sheet would give the names of programs the students are about to
hear, and students simply have to match the sample heard to the pro-
gram name. Before listening, give students time to try to guess what
category of programming each show is, taking clues from the title.
7) Pair work or small group work. Put students into small groups and
have them compare and contrast different types of media. For ex-
ample: compare the pros and cons of radio/podcasts vs. CD's or
radio/podcasts versus television. Groups then present their lists to the
class.
This lesson is broken down into two lessons: the first focusing on the
content and structure of radio news bulletins, the second on the style
of radio news writing.
Lesson 1: Content and Structure: Introducing the 5W's and the Inver-
ted Pyramid
1) Tell students they are going to hear a radio segment and they must
listen and say what type of content it is. Elicit program types covered
in the "Intro to Radio" lesson.
4) Tell the class they're going to be learning about radio news bullet-
ins. In small groups, have students discuss the following questions.
Possibilities:
What is the purpose of newscasts? To clearly communicate informa-
tion that can affect people's lives.
What kind of information do we consider news? Politics, disasters,
sports, entertainment, developments in science, technology and health,
business, phenomena that can effect the lives of many people. Recent
events.
Who decides what is news?
Is news different in different places?
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Have groups report their findings to the class. Go over related vocab-
ulary: story, announcement, event, announcer, presenter, breaking
news, etc.
5) Pass out Student's Sheet. Go over the 5 W's (who, what, when,
where, why), what they are, giving examples if needed, stressing that
the 5W's of any story must be mentioned in the first two sentences of
the news bulletin.
7) Mention that a news bulletin can include more information than just
the 5W's. There are always more details and information related to
the event that people may be interested in. Though this is important, it
comes after the 5W's in the news bulletin.
9) Explain to student they are going to hear another new bulletin, this
one longer. Ask them to take notes on the 5w's and then what further
information they hear.
Draw students' attention to the fact that the extra information included
in news bulletins often involves comments from people involved in or
affected by the news being reported. This first-hand information con-
veys the piece of news more directly and credibly, and brings the
listener into the story.
P O D C A S T I N G & E F L
11) Ask students to listen a second time, for whether the comments are
direct, indirect, or both.
11) Scripts of the news bulletins can be distributed for further analys-
is, vocabulary study, pronunciation practice, a final listen, etc.
12) Optional activity for more advanced groups. Have students com-
pare a "real" newscast, such as that used for activity 2, to the "easy
English" newscasts used in activity 6. Ask them to listen for differ-
ences in content, style and delivery.
P O D C A S T I N G & E F L
2) Ask the class how they think announcers reading news bulletins re-
member everything they have to say?
Explain that some radio programs are scripted, and others are impro-
vised. There is lots of variation, both in style and content.
3) Hand out News Lesson #2 - Student's sheet. Explain that today stu-
dents are going to learn how to write a radio script.
Go over the rules for radio news script writing, giving examples.
Rules can be adjusted to students' level. For example, one rule not in-
cluded is that radio scripts should generally be written in the active
voice. Subordinate clauses should be avoided. A discussion on re-
gister, formal vs. informal language could also be relevant.
Have pairs report their findings to the whole class. Go over how these
mistakes could be repaired.
The source article for this activity is yours to decide. Something ori-
ginally written for print and from the students' L1 is ideal, especially
in an EFL environment. This way students have to think about both
content and style. If the article is in English and written for print and
is quite simple to begin with, students could easily fall into copying
the article without putting much though into it.
Intro to Audacity
1) Play students some examples of edited sound files (radio ads, ed-
ited sentences, sped up voices, voices with effects). Begin a general
discussion on how these files were made, the process of recording,
editing and mixing. Ask if anyone has used sound editing software
before. Explain that we're going to be using a free, open-source sound
editor called Audacity.
Go over with the group the meanings of the main headings: Record-
ing, Editing, Effects, Import and Export.
Then, using their own words, make a summary of what kinds of things
Audacity can do to sound.
Student Worksheets
Writing a script
Most radio news programs are scripted. The announcers don't have to
memorize all the information they read, they work from a script. This
is a text they read on the air. A script is different than a novel or book.
It is made to be read out loud.
XXXX - Pope Benedict XVI joined U.S. President Barack Obama and
Queen Elizabeth II on Friday by launching his own YouTube channel,
the latest Vatican effort to reach out to the digital generation.
5) Introduce yourself and your radio station at the beginning and end.
Read this radio script. Does it follow the rules? Re-write this script.
YOUR TURN!
Step 1: Read the article. Take note of the 5Ws. Take note of extra
information and details you'd like to include in your bulletin. Take
note of any comments you would like to include.
Step 3: It's important to read your script out loud for two reasons. The
first is to make sure your script is no longer than 30 seconds. The
second is to makes sure it is easily readable, and there are no difficult
to pronounce words. Read it to a classmate and make sure it is the
right length, easy to pronounce, and that your message is clear.
P O D C A S T I N G & E F L
Waveform Worksheet
• A waveform is a visual representation of sound.
• Waveforms show us the volume of the sound.
• Waveforms show us the quality or type of sound.
• Waveforms show us the time and duration of sound.
How long is the sound file? Find the time indicator and circle it and
mark it with the work time.
At what time is the loudest sound? Circle it and mark it with the word
loud.
Circle a moment of silence in the sound file and mark it with the word
silence.
Circle the tool you would use to zoom in on a sound. Mark it with the
word zoom.
Circle the tool you would use to select a section of sound. Mark it
with the word select.
Circle the record, pause and play buttons. Mark them with their
names.
Circle the menu item where you think you would go to change the
pitch or tone or to make the recorded sound sound funny. Mark it
with the word pitch.
Circle the menu area where you would go to "undo" a mistake you've
made. Mark it with undo.
P O D C A S T I N G & E F L