Horizon Report p. 14-15

Video for Teachers:

Video Script:
Over the past few years, a new trend has emerged in which students move from consumers of knowledge to producers. This trend of empowering learners goes beyond paper and pencil and embraces the digital tools that are available. Through the use of digital tools, students are creating and producing their own instructional content. Teachers are challenged to lead the way in this endeavor, and thanks to apps and programs such as Educreations, screen capturing software such as Screencastify, and web based programs like WeVideo, it is now easier than ever. There are numerous benefits for students when teachers allow this type of creating. These benefits include the ability to clarify complex subjects, it allows students to learn from their peers which can make it more applicable to life, and allows students to become masters of various types of content and subjects. Not only can it increase understanding in the classroom, but when posted to the web students can benefit from home or you can choose to share it out for students around the world. This creates great opportunities to embed other concepts such as digital citizenship, technology standards, and video production skills which will be essential for students in the future. The possibilities are endless for using this type of teaching in the classroom. Katrina Schwartz suggests not to find the brightest student, but to find the student who is most passionate about the material. It could be a student who has struggled to understand the subject. This student will make the video interesting and relevant for other students.

 Let’s take a look at the apps and programs I mentioned before. The first is an iOS app that is considered the best of the best. It will work with our school iPads. Educreations allows users to create short videos with the ability to add voice, text, pictures, and more to a whiteboard. The best part is that it has the potential to create a whole presentation with multiple whiteboard pages and allows users to share lessons and even embed them. Students would enjoy using Educreations. Another option is a screen casting tool like Screencastify. Screencastify works with our school Chromebooks as a Google extension which would allow students to share presentations, show you their work by recording on their screen, and more. Screencasting encourages students to create by adding their voice to what is on the screen. There is not a lot of editing involved in screencasting although some programs will allow users to add annotations. The final option is Wevideo. Wevideo is an online video production tool that our students can use with their Chromebook as well. Wevideo is a video editing tool in which users can add pictures and voice over to any video from any device. The free version has dynamic options, but users must have an account. A paid subscription will provide enhanced features. I have created this video presentation using Wevideo. As you can see the final product is a professional, quality look video. I hope you have enjoyed this presentation and will consider using these tools in your classroom today.