Berkley High School Students Develop Podcast Shows, Present to Panel of Judges

On Monday and Tuesday February 24-25, Berkley High School students in Intro to Podcasting used the skills they’ve learned to create their own podcast show. Their first step was to create a presentation that pitches their show idea to an audience. Authentic audiences are essential to Disciplinary Literacy and this project was the perfect opportunity for students to present to people other than their peers.

The panel of judges consisted of Jamarr Armstrong, Berkley Schools Digital Media Specialist, Jacqueline Terbrack, BHS Media Specialist, Brittney Vaughn, Berkley Schools Secondary Instructional Coach, Jennifer Bell, Speech Pathologist  and Caitlin Drinkard, BHS Counselor. At the end of their presentations, the panel shared feedback to the students on their presentation, episode ideas and design of the logo. 

Teacher Natalie Ford shared, “Giving students an opportunity to get feedback on a project is essential to project-based learning. Students will take the feedback they get from the judges and make real changes to their work.”

After the panel presentations were completed, students reflected on the process of creating something meaningful to them, which involved presenting to a panel, finding their niche and audience, as well as learning in a project-based environment. When asked, "What did you learn about the process of making a podcast?" and "What did you learn about yourself as a learner?" students shared the following:

• "I’ve learned that it’s important to connect with listeners and know my audience. Also, quality trumps quantity and content matters." – Freshman Brody Maddin
• "That creating a podcast isn’t just recording yourself talking, there's prep involved." – Sophomore Cooper Demorest
• "I learned a lot of things that I wouldn't know about the background of podcasting if I hadn't taken the class." – Freshman Landon Smith
• "I learned that putting my original ideas down helps me learn how to make them even better and what works and what doesn’t work." – Freshman Lily Applebaum

Congratulations to the following students for putting their ideas out into the world and presenting to an outside panel of judges: 

• The Tea on DEI: Unfiltered Teens Talk on Justice and Policy hosted by Allana Wong, Dallas Turner and Paris Brigham
• Beyond the Bell: 3 Freshmen Explore Life After High School hosted by Jordan Marx, Ries Tuttle and Sawyer Rhodes
• Teen Talk with Lily Applebaum
• Within These Walls: Student Opinions of Berkley High School hosted by Brody Maddin and Jonah Sterling
• All About Da Bears: Big News in Berkley Athletics hosted by Cooper Demorest
• Ravaging with the Raptors Radio hosted by Julian Rumsey
• One Book, One Week hosted by Landen Smith