Promoting engagement and motivation for distance learners through podcasting

E-learning and blended approaches facilitate timely communication between students' peers, community and instructors, and provide resources to allow for independent learning. The use of podcasting technology holds particular promise for the creation of learning settings that can interest and motivate learners and support their engagement, while at the same time addressing the motivational elements of effective learning. This paper reports on an initiative in which university students undertaking an information technology subject listened to podcasts comprising supplementary audio material structured as short, talkback-radio style segments. The podcasts were created by a group of volunteer students, with minimal instructor intervention in the process. Using a theoretical framework underpinned by motivational theory, the study analysed responses to a survey investigating student listeners' perceptions of podcasting, and found that engagement was enhanced when participants received and listened to the podcasts.