Tuesday, June 3, 2008

Listen to Your News Feeds on Mobile! Students and Current Events...Anywhere!

Jott has just added a brand new resource called Jott Feeds. It allows you to call in to Jott and listen to your favorite news feeds on your cell phone! Jott has a large list of news categories from political to financial to technology. In addition, if you cannot find your favorite feed, you can add your own. For example, I am going to be on the road tonight, but I still want the latest updates from CNN concerning the democratic race. Jott did not have CNN Politics as a feed option, so I simply created one under their Jott Feeds link. Now I can call in to Jott, ask for my "jott feeds" and say "CNN" to hear the latest update on the political race. So even if my radio does not get CNN (which I know it does not, I will be driving in the middle of radio no-where), I can call in with my cell phone.

Of course as I learned of Jott feeds, I immediately started to think of classroom applications. Here are some ideas:
1) Current Events Research
Students can learn how to use their cell phone as a resource for current news events. While it is often difficult to get students to read the paper (although they should) and some students do not have Internet at home, they could add some news-worthy feeds (NPR, CNN, Smart Money...etc) to their Jott Feeds, so they can get the latest information anytime. Students could use Jott Feeds as part of their research as long as they subscribe to legitimate news organizations, they could listen to the news and then cite the feed itself. Who says that all resources have to be in "print"?!

2) Sharing Their own Feeds
Students or Classes who have their own podcast or blog with an RSS could create a Jott Feeds of their own work to share.

3) Class Assignments/More Accessibility
Teachers who assign articles or broadcasts that have an RSS feed, could create a Jott Feed link so that their students who do not have Internet access could listen to them for homework. This would also be helpful for visually impaired students and Internet readings.

2 comments:

Ric Murry said...

Liz,

This is great! Consider too the possibility of writing a blog, including the date in the title, and using it as a personalized "homework hotline" for your class. Jott reads your entries.

Students and parents could call in and get assignments, essential question from lessons, or a daily diary of classroom happenings. Imagination is the limit here.

This is cool!

Liz Kolb, Ph.D. said...

Ric
What a fantastic idea! A homework blog that is automatically phone-ready! You should be writing this blog :-)

Liz

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