Using Podcasts for Language Teaching

FEYZA SUNÇA
Dec 28, 2022
4 min read

There has been a considerable worldwide increase in podcasting and podcast format especially since 2020 and the numbers are growing day by day. According to the statistics, currently there are over 2.4 million podcasts and 66 million episodes. As of November 2022, there are 383.7 million global listeners of podcasts. It is predicted that by the end of 2023, there will be around 464.7 million podcast listeners and the number is expected to reach 504.9 million by 2024. Another interesting statistics is that the majority of podcast listeners are between the ages 13 and 17.

“According to a study among Spotify users, respondents aged 13 to 17 years old were the fastest growing podcast audience in 2022. They indeed discovered 11 percent more podcast shows in comparison to the previous year, while 25 to 34 years old discovered two percent more shows during the same period of time.” (statista.com)

ree — Image retrieved from demandsage.com

What is a Podcast?

The term "Podcast" is actually derived from the words "iPod" and "Broadcast". With a simple and brief definition, a podcast is an audio broadcast about a particular topic or theme. The reason that the term is linked with the iPod name was because people used to download internet radio broadcast files via a program called iPodder and listen to them on their iPod devices. It is also worth mentioning that today the top podcast streaming apps are Apple Podcasts and Spotify.

The themes and topics of podcasts are varied and you can find a podcast on almost everything including music, travel, history, art, finance, politics, sports, psychology, food, technology, literature education, language and much more.

Podcasts in Language Classrooms

As there is a strong shift to technology in classrooms, teachers make use of any technology they can bring. It is important to know the trends and inclination in order to catch the attention and curiosity of students. As mentioned earlier, teenagers are fans of podcasts so why not use this technology in classrooms? As learning occurs in real-life environments with authentic materials, it would be a great idea to use podcasts in language teaching. With the help of podcasts, students will receive clear input in a meaningful context, which helps them produce output.

Podcasts offer a wide range of topics in the English language (also in other languages) and teachers can provide students with a particular topic or themes especially designed for language learners at any level. Additionally, it will enrich students' cultural perception. While listening to a podcast, students will be able to form a frame of the culture of people of that target language. Depending on the context, they will experience different language forms like formal language, interview, daily language, conversation between friends or family, news and more. Also, students can follow their individual pace as they can always re-listen or slow down if they experience any trouble while listening.

Podcast Tech is Pretty Simple and Free

Another greatest thing about podcasts is you do not need hi-tech equipment or advanced tools for podcasts. All you need is a computer and speakers. Most podcasts can be downloaded for free through Itunes and numerous other web pages. Also, you do not need a broad memory or disk as average podcast file size is rather small. Apart from computers, students can use their mobile phones or devices to listen to podcasts. Once you download a podcast, you do not need to have an active internet connection to listen. In this sense, podcasts support mobility at its best and accompany you no matter where you are or what you are doing. Students can listen to podcasts while traveling, driving, riding, walking, running and during any possible activity. Moreover, as a teacher, you can also create podcasts, broadcast them and make some extra money!

How to Use Podcasts in Language Classrooms?

There are various ways to use podcasts in foreign language classrooms. The first and the basic usage is using podcasts as authentic listening materials in a realistic context. As a teacher, you can choose (or better to let the students choose) the most appropriate topic, short story or theme and bring it to the classroom. You can create many group activities depending on the topic. For example, the groups may take some notes while listening to a podcast and you may create a group discussion on the subject whether they support the idea or not. Another one is that you can let the students talk about the context after they have listened to a podcast. Where might the event be taking place? Who might be the people in the podcast? etc. If the podcast is a short story, then you can pause it in the middle and make students work in small groups to complete the story.

A creative idea might be to listen to an interview and analyze it first and then to ask students to choose someone around them to conduct an interview. Naturally, the person they would choose should be someone who is speaking the target language. They can also introduce a friend, their family, school, a project and record it. Through these activities, they will learn how to prepare interview questions and they will improve their speaking and listening skills. As expected, they will make mistakes and have to record and listen again and again so the activity will enhance both of these skills within a meaningful context. Also, they will improve self-monitoring abilities and help them gradually become autonomous learners.

As a teacher, you can also freely record podcasts and broadcast them. You can create an account in various free podcast broadcasting websites or apps, and share your recordings with your students. You can even include them in your episodes and record together! All you need is a phone as a recording tool.