Interview Podcast

For my final assignment, I chose to interview Donte McCoy, the 22-year-old program coordinator for the University of Phoenix's Asia/ Pacific division. Mr. McCoy also happens to be a technology dynamo, having built his own computer and server before even graduating high school. I sent a list of possible questions for Mr. McCoy to review before our scheduled interview. I assumed that his answers would contain points of clarification and technological jargon that I would have to decipher after the interview. To my surprise, this was not the case. Mr. McCoy explained very plainly that the most useful technologies are those that most people take for granted -- such as communications programs. In his opinion, user-friendly communication tools are indispensable to distance education because learning cannot occur if there is miscommunication on either end. I agree. After the interview, I understood why Mr. McCoy has achieved such a prestigious position at such a young age. He clearly defines his goals, has a plan for achieving them, knows the value of clarity, and communicates on a level accessible to techno-flunkies like me.

Open Written Transcript

Created at http://www.xtranormal.com 

During this process, I became intimately aware of the pitfalls of podcast technology. When I lived in Korea, I was restricted from visiting many sites originating in the U.S. because of piracy problems. For that same reason, Mr. McCoy and I were unable to take advantage of the podcast format. After two attempts, I settled for an interview via Skype. I downloaded an application which would allow me to record the conversation. Afterward, I realized that the sound was too garbled to distinguish. The poor sound quality prevented me from being able to decipher what was said. Even though I participated in the conversation, I could not recall all that was discussed. Mr. McCoy graciously emailed me a written response to the questions I previously sent. I converted that transcript into this video.

Update: Thanks to KSU Cuz for pointing this out--

"I had never heard of Microsoft Office Communicator, so I looked it up in Wikipedia (where else?). Turns out, it’s not called Communicator anymore; now it’s known as Microsoft Lync, and it’s essentially a corporate version of Windows Live Messenger"

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Microsoft_Lync


References:

Kang, H. (2012). EDACE 765: Adult Learners and Integrating Technoloty into Curriculum Fall 2012 Syllabus. (Unpublished). 

King, K. P., & Cox, T. D. (2011). The Professor's Guide to Taming Technology. Charlotte, NC: Information Age Publishing Inc.