Culture from the perspective of a 7th grade social studies student...

Do you think that it would be better if there was only one world culture?

Yeah a little, but it would be kind of weird.

  CEP 800 - Podcast assignment (JGer) by Jger
Royalty Free Music by Kevin MacLeod (Kool Kats) http://incompetech.com/m/c/royalty-free/index.html?keywords=007&Search=Search


Reflection of What I Learned

I really enjoyed this project because it allowed me to gauge student understanding of a subject holistically without interruption. Under normal circumstances, I would have jumped in to correct many of the errors of fact that the student mentioned. However, after lots of reflection I don't know if this is always best practice.

I intend on playing parts of the interview back to the student for purposes of self critiquing (not only on the content, but speaking skills as well). So much can be learned by interacting with recorded works of yourself and I believe the student will benefit from this rare opportunity.

The actual finished product itself can serve as a great "pre-test" of a subject that we have only begun to study in my world studies course. It was amazing to sit back and listen to this interview in the editing process because I kept noticing new things that the student said that I had missed in the live conversation. After about 6 or 7 listens, I started to gain a clear understanding of the "lense" through which this student views the concept of culture. I can now better expand on his prior knowledge, fill in the gaps in knowledge that he lacks, and correct any inaccuracies that he has on the subject; just by simply listening a few additional times.

In the future, I may wish to alter the format to a complete student led production. Podcasts force students to think critically about a subject in order for the final product to be concise and entertaining. Mastery of content will be needed for a student led production and I like that innate accountability that arises naturally with the format.

Incorporating student blogs would make it interactive, offering praise and critique alike.

Requiring students to make updates/revisions as their opinions change would help to correct inaccuracies in understanding as their thinking evolved.