Students share voices during podcasts
RUSSELLVILLE — Russellville Middle School students in the “Intro to Innovations” class learned audio editing,script writing and public speaking while producing podcasts that emphasized the importance of teamwork.
Twenty-four students participated in the project, forming podcast groups that produced 10 episodes altogether, according to Lauren Archer, library media specialist.
Five podcast projects received placements during the “Celebration of Learning” event to conclude the project.
“Mysteries of the Appalachian Mountains,” a podcast exploring Appalachian stories, myths and cryptids, earned first place.
“Fossil Files” focused on dinosaurs and fossils, placed second.
“One Small Step for Man, One Giant Lie” about moon landing conspiracy theories, placed third.
Students in the “Symbols of History” group discussed monuments including the Statue of Liberty and the Eiffel Tower, earning fourth place.
“Best Sports Strategies,” featuring interviews about athletics and coaching strategies, placed fifth.
The class researched topics, wrote scripts, recorded and edited audio, created original music, and designed branding materials before publishing episodes through the Podbean platform.
Students also created original cover art, commercials and brand guides for their productions, selecting colors, fonts and other visual elements to shape the identity of each podcast, Archer said.
Groups used programs such as GarageBand while learning the technical and collaborative sides of production.
Archer said students quickly discovered podcasting involved far more than simply recording audio.
“It prepares them for organizing their thoughts, learning to speak eloquently, working in a somewhat professional environment and working with a team,” she said.
Archer said team leaders interviewed classmates for production roles at the beginning of the class and helped build the podcast groups. Students then worked in assigned roles throughout the project, including leadership positions.
Students published their podcasts on Spotify, Amazon Music, Apple Podcasts and YouTube.
“They took a lot of pride in knowing people outside the classroom would hear their work, and I’m so proud of all they have accomplished,” Archer said.
