10 Trending Podcasts For High School Students

People can find opportunities to learn if they have the desire to do so. The internet has made diverse learning methods accessible to everyone. Today, you don’t need to rely on conventional methods to learn something new. You have aural, visual, physical, and other methods to help you learn better. An interesting way of gathering knowledge in today’s times is by listening to podcasts. 

A Podcast is a digital audio file that you can listen to. You don’t have to be glued to a chair to learn something through a podcast. You can hear it while taking a walk, doing chores, or riding the bus to school. 

Podcasts are getting increasingly popular among students. A survey conducted by Statista reports that almost 50% of American teenagers within the age group of 13 – 17 years listened to a podcast in 2020. This shows students’ inclination toward podcasts. Luckily, there are a good number of podcasts with educational value that students can listen to in their free time.

10 Useful Podcasts for High School Students

1. Inside the Admissions Office

This podcast is a good resource for high school students as it covers topics related to admission tips, how to write a personal statement, internships, recommendation letters, and more. These can help you during college admissions in the next phase of life. The host interviews former admissions officers who give you their expert advice on how high school students can prepare themselves before applying to various colleges. A piece of sound advice can help you crack the admissions process and get entry to your choice of college.

2. Teacher Answers

Through this podcast, host Sam Griffin, a veteran high school science and math teacher, takes up queries of high school students and discusses them in a practical and helpful way. The podcast aims to help students, parents, and teachers understand what goes on within the minds of high school students and the reasons behind their actions. Teacher Answers currently has three seasons, and each episode ranges between 20- 30 minutes, some even longer. Anyone can ask a question related to high school through its website and expect an answer in future podcasts. 

3. Duolingo Podcasts

Are you having a tough time learning Spanish or French at school? Fret not, as Duolingo podcasts can support you in enhancing your language skills. Duolingo has two separate podcasts for Spanish and French. The episodes recite fascinating, easy-to-understand short stories in the language. There is an English translation to support those who find it hard to understand a few lines. Making sense of what is said and responding appropriately is important. Hence, Duolingo podcasts are great for building listening comprehension. 15 -20 minutes a day is all you need to brush up your skills in Spanish or French.  

4. Ted Talks Daily

TED is well-known for bringing experts and individuals of exceptional caliber on stage to give a talk on the latest and most interesting subjects. Though it is great to watch their videos and acquire plenty of knowledge, it is not always possible to sit on the computer and go through long videos. The TED Talks Daily podcast was created to bring new and old TED Talks as audio files. A new episode is released every weekday to give you your dose of information. Host Elise Hu covers a broad range of topics, so you always have something new to look forward to.

5. Stuff You Missed in History Class

Hosts and creators Tracy V. Wilson and Holly Frey bring you a series of podcasts covering interesting historical information that was probably not covered in your history lessons. Students interested in learning about historical events and their related information may enjoy these short episodes. Topics like the invention of a dishwasher, polio – the disease, shipwreck stories, etc., are covered during their podcast session. And the best part of listening to this podcast is that the hosts are quite regular at posting content for their listeners. So, you will always have something to listen to!

6. 60 Seconds Science

Another valuable podcast for high school students is 60 Seconds Science by Scientific American. It covers topics related to science and its recent developments. The subjects are discussed by leading science journalists in the industry. The podcast has around 500 episodes, each talking about noteworthy scientific information. They share fascinating information every week on their podcast for their listeners. If you are someone who is also interested in collecting in-depth knowledge on science topics, you can head on to their Science Talk podcast, which has longer episodes for interested audiences.

7. That High School Life

The voice you will hear on “That High School Life” podcast is that of the host, Joe Ticar, who plays the role of a vice principal, guidance counselor, and IB Diploma Programme Coordinator at a school in Germany. Along with him, you will also hear students, teachers, and professionals talking about different topics related to high school. You can expect episodes of varying lengths. Some can be as short as 8 minutes, while some can stretch to around 40 minutes. Listen to this podcast if you feel like listening to something that you can relate to and that lets you appreciate the numerous adventures of high school life.

8. Overheard at National Geographic

Overheard is an award-winning podcast by National Geographic. Peter Gwin, editor for National Geographic, and Amy Briggs, executive editor of “National Geographic History” magazine co-host this podcast. Each week they are accompanied by people like scientists, explorers, or photographers. Through their weekly episodes, they take you on a journey to explore fascinating subjects related to geography, wildlife, the underwater world, history, climatic phenomena, and others. National Geographic is known for delivering valuable information to its audience, and its podcast is yet another way to satiate the curiosity of people around the world.

9. Grammar Girl 

Produced and hosted by Mignon Fogarty, the Grammar Girl podcast was launched in 2006. Ever since the host is bringing useful English grammar lessons for her subscribers. The podcast has won awards for being the best education podcast in past years. The short and impactful lessons are great for improving your English language. Having knowledge of correct grammar usage is essential for high school students. So, going through these podcasts in your free time can help you brush up your language skills. You can also find Grammar Girl on YouTube for their educational content. 

10. To Fluency

Host Jack started this podcast to help students and grown-ups improve their English. It might seem similar to the podcast mentioned above, but actually, it is not. Besides covering lessons on grammar and vocabulary, To Fluency also helps improve your speaking and listening. Their popular Real English Conversation Lessons are a nice way to get better at listening and using the right words when speaking. If you are someone who is more comfortable watching videos rather than listening to a podcast, you can visit their YouTube channel to get access to their English lessons. 

Wrapping up

The podcasting industry is growing by the day. Numerous people have started creating podcasts as they are a convenient, easy, and trendy tool for sharing information and learning something new. Podcast platforms like Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and Google Podcasts, have plenty of selections belonging to different genres. A quick search can help you find something that interests you. 

Podcasts give high school students an opportunity to fight their boredom or shift their focus from studies to something light yet informative. So, pick your choice from our list of best-suited podcasts for high schoolers, and have fun learning!