It seems that at least in the school where I teach, using mobile phones in the classroom is a newer concept. I contacted multiple teaching colleagues before finally getting a positive response from Brynne (not her real name), a middle school language arts teacher.
Just this past school year, Brynne allowed students to use cell phones to create podcasts in lieu of traditional book reports. Many students opted to simply use their school laptops and headset microphones to record themselves speaking (our cyber school provides both of these items to all enroll students). However, a few more adventurous and tech-savvy middle schoolers opted to use their cell phones to record their book reviews and literary analyses of their class novel.
Our school technology policy states that students are not allowed to download software applications to their school laptops. Also, teachers are asked to only recommend external websites outside our school learning management system (LMS) that have been reviewed by our curriculum department and added to the "approved list of external websites." Furthermore, while our school provides a tech support helpline that students and parents can call when they have technical difficulties, the tech support representatives are not able to offer their support for external websites or the standard software and programs that the school installed on their laptops. This means that while students are welcome to try new apps and websites, they do so at their own risk.
Brynne explained that a particular student had asked her about using iPadio to record and post his podcast, rather than using the Sound Recorder program on his computer. Brynne, who is extremely supportive of students showing creativity and trying new things, agreed to allow the student to use this site to record his podcast about the novel and then send her the link to his published podcast. Soon, she said, word spread to a few other students who also wanted to try it out.
Students had the option to call a phone number and enter a PIN in order to make sure their podcast wound up on their channel. They could set up their channel and access their profile and settings either on the computer or through an app on their cell phones. Voice recordings were made through a phone call.
Brynne felt that the process went smoothly for most of the students who tried this method. She didn't face many challenges. While she technically couldn't promote the website without first getting approval, students asking to use a particular site that they had discovered on their own was not against any rules. One issue was the fact that school tech support was not able to assist students with this website, and since Brynne wasn't familiar with it herself, she couldn't either. However, most kids were able to figure it out on their own or get help from their classmates who were more comfortable using it. She didn't receive much feedback from parents about using iPadio to record podcasts, probably because of the time of year when students were creating this project (during state testing). One student wanted to use iPadio but didn't have her own cell phone. However, the student had an iPod Touch, which allowed her to download the iPadio app for free.
Overall, Brynne said that she felt the students who used their cell phones to create podcasts really enjoyed the experience. She said the student who initially asked about doing it told her he felt like a "talk show host." She said that she would allow students to do similar projects in the future, but she would want to be "better versed" in the apps or websites that students are using so that she could offer more assistance. She wasn't surprised that students picked up how to use the technology quickly, but she still wants to make sure she knows what students are getting into. She also felt that some of the shyer students sounded more confident on their podcast recordings than they normally did speaking or presenting "live." She liked giving the students the option of using cell phones, but she said she is cautious of promoting the idea to her entire class at this point simply because not all students have cell phones or have access to a parent or sibling's cell phone.
Since I couldn't find any other educators I know who have used cell phones with students, I was interested to hear about Brynne's experience. I think the part that was most exciting to me was that students who are typically shy about presenting in person or live over the internet during our synchronous lessons might feel more comfortable pre-recording their voices. This could be a great way to encourage my less outgoing students to literally share their voices with the class. Since I unfortunately couldn't find any colleagues with a more extensive experience using cell phones in the classroom, I'd like to do more research and see how else they can be used. There are so many apps available, many of them perfect for students! I've seen many "Best iPad Apps for Teachers" pins on Pinterest, but the best one I've found yet is this one. I'm looking to explore it further and hopefully find some great apps I can recommend to parents who are lucky enough to have iPads at home!
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