Educational video series are typically designed to appeal to a specific learning audience. Often, these videos support their own curriculum and offer additional materials - like workbooks or websites. Some educational programs are more narrowly focused and present information on specific topics, and they are designed to complement an existing curriculum. The primary purpose of all of the educational video series, however, is to deliver instructional content. As a result, they typically present and reinforce their own set of learning goals. These underlying goals may, in fact, coincide with your own - or they may not exactly match your instructional needs or approach.
A few examples of this genre include:
Documentaries are another valuable educational resource. While documentaries are meant to inform the viewing audience and represent historical and present-day events and situations, they do not resemble educational video series because they usually do not encompass complete (or partial) curricula. Their primary purpose does not revolve around the delivery of instruction. One of the positive aspects of introducing a documentary into your learning environment is that you can build lesson plans around it or use it to support your existing curriculum.
A few examples of this genre include:
Commercial films can also support your lesson planning. You may feel that commercial films do not suit your instructional purposes because most are designed to entertain rather than "educate". Although most commercial films are not explicitly educational, you can draw on a film's content (its context, plot, characters, and so forth) to support the activities you design and the issues you would like your learners to explore.
The following website provides extensive listings of commercial films:
Do not discount the possibility of building television programs into your learning activities. Like documentaries and commercial films, television programs often allow you more freedom to shape your lesson plans - because they may not assert a particular educational agenda. In addition, many television shows (news programs, for example) are shorter than documentaries and commercial films. Brevity could be an advantage if your time with learners is limited.
PBS Online offers a TV resource for instructors at:
http://www.pbs.org/teachersource/tvteachers.htm
This website provides a listing of upcoming PBS programs and access to an instructional newsletter. It also offers a collection of hints and resources to teachers who want to use videos in lesson plans.
A few examples of this genre include:
You can introduce video into your curricula in yet another way - by supporting learners' use of video technology in your classroom. In this way, students learn how to use a video camera, and the video products they create may serve as learning tools and/or resources for future classes. This approach to video integration may seem more challenging because it requires additional equipment as well as an instructor experienced enough with the technology to help students operate it. The benefits can be significant, however. Learners can develop new and valuable skills and pursue their studies through a new medium.
For more information on using a video camera in your classroom, you might want to consult the following Prentice Hall publication:
You might also want to consider using videotape to expand your perspective on your teaching practices. Setting up a video camera in your classroom and recording your teaching environment may help you reflect on your approach to instruction. Videotaping could become a valuable tool in your own professional development.
The following articles were published by The Derek Bok Center for Teaching and Learning at Harvard University. These articles target teaching fellows at the university who are interested in critically engaging their teaching strategies. While the professionals at the Derek Bok Center work with teaching fellows and provide commentary on their instructional approaches, you might want to adapt this model to your context and perhaps encourage colleagues to review tapes with you.
If you are feeling especially ambitious, you might want to consider integrating digitized video into your lesson plans. Digitized video is a method of storing video information in a computer data file so that it can be played back on a computer using video playback software. Several different encoding methods exist - not all of them are compatible with one another. Software packages like Adobe Premiere will enable you to work with learners to create digitized video clips online.
Many of the genres listed above overlap -- for example, educational video series, documentaries and feature films frequently appear on television, and many television programs are available in a videotape format. Again, the categories listed above are general. They are designed to help you consider your options with respect to video integration.
Please note that many video programs (like the ones referenced above) are available at your local video rental store or library. If you are interested in beginning or adding to a video collection at your organization, PBS and other production companies offer catalogs that contain videos available for purchase.
The following list outlines various video presentation models. It is possible to use the same video in a number of different ways. The way you use a video in your classroom depends on your learners' needs and your goals for a particular lesson. You may decide to show a full-length video to your learners and build activities around this experience. Or, you may decide to isolate clips from a video and focus learning activities around these excerpts. Below, you will find a few general applications - which can apply to virtually any context.
In general, it is a good idea to open and close all video-related lesson plans with "before and after" activities. Learners' experiences will be greatly enriched if video-viewing is buttressed by meaningful and appropriate activities. Ideally, you should bookend the formats suggested below with "before" and "after" activities.