WHAT IT IS:

Authentic Audience is the effort to connect student work with real audiences, especially those audiences that fit the natural context of the work students produce.

HOW IT WORKS:

Authentic audiences can be one of two main categories: active or passive.

An active audience is one that participates directly and knowingly in the process in some capacity. This can include bringing guests into the classroom to observe student work or presentations or sharing student work with those outside the classroom like friends, family, experts in the field, or other classes. The true value of an active audience is in the interaction, so consider seeking ways to encourage feedback or interaction with students.

A passive audience is an audience that may or may not be directly connected to the work being shared or even aware of it. Passive audiences usually include the use of public digital content sharing platforms like video sharing or social media. Examples might be YouTube for video sharing, Amazon for writing/book sharing, Pinterest for images of work or digital artwork sharing, Soundcloud for music or podcast sharing, and more. The value of using a passive audience is that nearly any kind of work can be shared regardless of content or format.

Examples of effective authentic audiences abound, so consider the resources below for additional ideas.