Adding audio to online courses
Mary Noggle, Teacher
Instructional Designer, Online Writing Center
Caldwell Community College and Technical Institute
Hudson, NC
Twenty-one million Americans can’t read at all, forty-five are marginally illiterate and one-fifth of high school graduates can’t read their diplomas. -- Department of Justice (1993).
An alarming number of Americans cannot or do not read well enough to function successfully in online settings requiring intensive reading. This connected generation of non-readers is, however, plugged in and in tune to sound. With iPods and smartphones having both visual cues and accompanying audio messages, students expect no less from their online courses. Presenting course material solely in written form, then, becomes problematic. Students want to hear and be heard. Unfortunately, a disconnect often exists among the voices of instructors and students in online courses. Given this situation, how can educators better structure online learning environments to meet the needs of today’s learners? Although the majority of communication in these courses is written, the use of verbal communication is needed to facilitate learning and make a closer connection with students. Sound advice suggests online courses must present material with multimedia components.
Oral introductions of course material as well as specific modules can give an overview of topics and emphasize major points that students often overlook in text. Recorded personal introductions is also a way for instructors and students to become better acquainted with each other. While commercial applications such as Wimba tools allow instructors and students to record within the course management system, Audacity provides free audio recording. The record, pause, and play controls are relatively simple for the novice recorder. Once the audio files are recorded, they can be exported as Mp3 files and embedded into courses.
With a sense of playfulness, instructors can create Voki avatars, have them talk, and embed the characters into course (or social networking) pages. Vokis can be embedded for announcements or directives in assignments to help guide those students with reading problems.
The use of Voicethread discussion boards will further reach this generation of collaborative learners. The threads can be used to narrate and comment orally on documents, slides, and video clips. Instructors as well as students can also create and share audio presentations through the application.
Using Audacity, instructors can record lectures to accompany written descriptions. These explanatory notes can be in the form of voice-overs for PowerPoint slides or screen-captured demonstrations.
A variety of audio resources are also available on the web. Organizations such as Librivox and NPR have streaming and downloadable audio files with associated transcripts for educational use. At the end of this article, also find a list of recommended tools to create your own audio material. For examples of types of audio available, see the file Resources for audio in online courses.
Providing feedback on assignments to students proves challenging in online environments. Students often do not understand the written comments. To meet this challenge, instructors can again use Audacity to record and send audio files through a course management system or email. These oral comments often supplement reading cues.
Voice of the skeptic
As an English instructor, I was hesitant to use audio in my online classes for several reasons. I did not feel comfortable with the seemingly complicated applications. Honestly, I also felt so overwhelmed with daily planning and grading that the added chore of recording seemed not worth the trouble. I simply didn’t have time, or so I thought. I was aware of the need to verbalize feedback, and friends had encouraged me to use audio comments, but adding yet another task to an already difficult grading regimen seemed daunting. I was spending at least thirty minutes per essay and formatting audio files was more time than I could fathom.
I soon realized that recording audio feedback was actually less time consuming than marking comments in text, and the results were much more effective. Using Audacity, I could now record suggestions for improvement in less than 10 minutes. The types of errors I marked became apparent to me. Whereas corrections to theme, thesis, organization, and support were simple to verbalize, marking these types of comments was laborious in writing. I also began to notice that students’ errors were decreasing on succeeding assignments because students better understood the suggested corrections.
Now my courses are filled with verbal expression. My Voki avatar introduces the course and instructs students how to get started. Students participate in voice thread discussions. They access professionally recorded files as well as my own oral directives. With each major work, students receive my verbalized comments and are benefiting form the multimedia format. Adding audio just makes sense.
Suggested Tools to Create Your Own Audio
Although a variety of tools exist for recording audio, consider the following equipment:
1) Headset - Headsets are inexpensive and provide good quality recordings. These devices use standard plugs for microphone and headsets. Some headsets are available with USB connectivity. Personal preference will dictate which headset will best serve your needs. Headsets eliminate feedback problems as well as minimize room noise. I recommend purchasing a Logitech Headset
3) Digital Voice Recorder - An assortment of voice recorders are available. Olympus, Sony, and Samsung, among other companies, manufacture relatively inexpensive handheld devices with USB interface. The gadgets record sound as WAV or MP3 files. Many MP3 players and smart phones also have recording capabilities. I recommend the following:
3) Webcam - This camera that connects to your computer generally has a built-in microphone for recording. The device can be used for video conferencing or to record images and sound for presentations. I recommend the following:
Syndicate
