Educational screen & audio-visual guide (c1956-1971])

3. Science students could profit from listening to the National Bureau of Standards transmitters in Washington, D. C, which broadcast extremely accurate time signals, radio frequencies and musical pitches. These standards can be heard throughout the day and throughout the world. Frequencies of 2.5, 5 and 10 megacycles are most commonly used. Canada also broadcasts standard time signals. 4. Some communications receivers have a longwave band below the 550 KC end of the broadcast band. This band is primarily used for air navigation beacons and airport approach patterns (the A-N range stations). The beacons are identified constantly by Morse code and the airports' A or N signal is frequently interrupted by the field identification in slow speed Morse code. Weather information is often given at quarter of and quarter past each hour and more frequently during unusual weather. The passage of a hurricane is an exciting event to listen to. 5. For students interested in travel, it is possible to tune the airport control centers not only for nearby places but for distant ones too. It is not unusual to hear Gander, Newfoundland and Shannon, Ireland, talking to transatlantic planes. Surprising extremes of weather are often reported only a few kilocycles apr.rt. 6. There are countless radio amateurs or "hams" talking to each other on shortwave. Their descriptions of remote people and places might be useful. Some of the pathetic attempts to explain America to foreign amateurs might be well worth discussing. Students might try making believe that they are trying to explain America to another country. JY^osT school systems already have an FM tuner and rooftop antenna. Some of these are not very good for receiving weak or distant stations. A yagi antenna can be installed for much improved reception from one direction and a rotator can be installed to get weak stations from different directions. Extremely sensitive FM tuners are now available and good FM reception over a hundred miles is not unusual. Educational stations will be glad to send advance program listings. Many central sound systems are located in busy, cramped or otherwise inappropriate quarters that severely limit the local production of radio-type programs in the school. Two possibilities for improvement can be explored. Another room near to the console can be fixed up for a studio by installing appropriate furnishings, sound conditioning ( a rug and draperies will do wonders), microphone and loudspeaker lines, etc. Oftentimes a conference room, store room, health room, etc., is strategically located and not needed for its intended purpose full time. A suitable studio room at some distance from the console can be equipped with a good recorder and programs can be recorded and played from the console. A professional tape recorder will do much better than the typical classroom recorder for this purix)se. Some central sound systems already have audio lines running from some remote rooms to the console so that programs can originate from these rooms and go out to anv other rooms. Usuallv a talkback line and ear phones are also necessary in order to use this arrangement efficiently. Some additional equipment may be needed to do advanced programming. A communications receiver and professional recorder have already been mentioned. A simple telephone system allows communication with a remote production room. Earphones at the console permit the operator to listen to the actual program going to the rooms without disturbing anyone or involving the feedback or squealing that often occurs when a microphone and loudspeaker are used in the same room. A transcription player will make it possible to use the 16-inch, 33V3 rpm recordings of educational material from radio stations, libraries, state audiovisual centers and foreign government agencies. If only an automatic record player is included with the console, a good manual player, or better still, two manual players, will make better record programs possibe. Duplication of typical record sequences and other radio effects will also require a separate small cueing amplifier that can be switched or connected to various audio sources to set up or cue subsequent materials. Earphones or a small loudspeaker can be connected to the cueing amplifier. Changes indicated can be made by technically minded students or teachers or they can be done by a local radio station employee or contracted to a local sound company such as the one that originally installed the central sound system. Changes can be made gradually as more complex equipment is needed for more complex programming. Commercial radio was largely forgotten by tht public when television boomed. It has now been rediscovered and found capable of doing many desirable things at a fraction of television costs. School; also neglected radio possibilities when television be came available to a few schools. Schools should neglec radio no longer. They can get tremendous educationa benefits by putting existing equipment to work ant supplementing it with other equipment as the neet develops. i Some of the uses expounded in this article involv' i only making audio materials originated outside th school available to students in the school. ( Most com mercial and educational stations will be happy to ma program schedules.) This means that radio is pr marily a listening experience. There is plenty of ev dence that students do not know how to listen ei f ectively. They can be taught to give their full attei tion, to listen for key ideas, to take brief notes, to cha lenge and question ideas, etc. The first step ofte is to prove to students that they missed much of whs was presented. Other uses of closed circuit radio involve the pn duction of simulated radio programs. Some studen remain only listeners, but some become deeply i volved in the production of the programs. A stude;. is usually prompted to learn much about the perso or the idea that he is going to imitate or discuss. I shares his research, re-creation, dramatization or in tation with his peers. It is an exciting way to mal' people, ideas, places and cultures come to life. And most schools have the equipment— availab and idle. 492 Educational Screen and Audiovisual Guide — September, 19