Rome Reporter

What drives people to explore? A group of 6th graders at River Trail Middle School recently set out to answer that question in the school's "podcast project."

Shannon Chatmon

The program is the brainchild of ELA teacher Shannon Chatmon. At the start of each ELA unit, Chatmon gives students an "essential question." It's their job to focus on the question throughout the unit and brainstorm to collaborate on an answer. Students then share their thoughts in a loosely scripted podcast.

You can find "Chatmon's Crea8tive Crew" on Spotify - and these students are proving themselves to be confident content creators.

Chatmon says she was inspired to start the project because of her love of podcasts and podcasting.

She helped create the National Podcast Project, with the focus of showing educators "how podcasting can be great instructional technology."

Judson Kidd, a former social studies teacher and current administrative assistant at River Trail MS, agrees. Kidd says COVID-19 forced teachers to come up with new ways to reinvent the wheel and get our kids engaged.

"Projects like this are much more applicable to students and students are more drawn to opportunities like this," Kidd says.

The podcasts are recorded in River Trail's media center, with the help of the school's CTAE Audio/Video class. River Trail offers a year-long high school credit course in audio production or A/V.

Along with giving every student a forum to share an informed opinion, "Chatmon's Crea8tive Crew" opens doors to possibilities long after graduation.

Kidd says, "The CTAE A/V class really started to set the precedent for kids getting interested in technology and this possibly being a career path for them."

As an educator, Kidd says his goal is to make learning applicable and relevant.

"This is the type of learning that needs to start taking place," he says.

Kidd says understanding information in each unit is important, but tools like podcasts emphasize the skill set along with that.

"It adheres to my personal philosophy of getting the kids ready for the world today," he says.

As River Trail students explore the world of podcasting, all sorts of new doors are opening for them - and for educators, too

Original source can be found here.