Video for learning
The use of video in education has been on the rise in recent years. The ubiquity of mobile technology and an array of recording apps has allowed for videos to be produced, shared and accessed with ease allowing students throughout the world to take advantage of resources such as the Khan Academy to supplement their school based learning.
I have been making films and using video with students for as long as I have been teaching. As a technology integration specialist and as a filmmaker, I have had the opportunity to encourage and promote the use of video amongst teachers and students as a dynamic and powerful tool for teaching and learning. I feel great excitement working with students in these times, where handheld devices have democratised the filmmaking experience so even the youngest of learners can enjoy creating films.
There are myriad ways in which video can be used to refine skills, build confidence, present understanding or document learning. The following examples feature students students from KIS International School and from the Regent’s School, Bangkok and from my current position at Tanglin Trust School, Singapore.
Curriculum Videos, Tanglin Trust School.
Learning described by the student in a range of videos covering the curriculum in the Junior School.
Reading strategies, Tanglin Trust School, Singapore.
Video resource used for teacher training and parent information workshops.
Earth Week at Tanglin Trust School. This video was shot in Kent Ridge Park, Singapore and used to promote sustainable practises and awareness of climate change.
The Grade 5 Exhibition Students in their final year of the PYP (Grade 5) participate in a culminating project, the Grade 5 PYP Exhibition. It is not only a celebration as students move from the Primary Years Programme into the Secondary School but also a final assessment where each student is required to demonstrate engagement with the essential elements of the PYP: knowledge, concepts, skills, attitudes and action. The Exhibition complements the five Units of Inquiry which form the basis of the grade 5 curriculum. The video which heads this section and the one below present the Grade 5 Exhibition at KIS International School for 2012 and 2013.
Another use of video in school is to celebrate events and occasions. This following videos relate to the values that underpin the IB experience. ‘The PYP Attitudes‘ was created by Grade 5 students who presented the attitudes in their own way. The ‘IB Learner Profile‘ is described by students from Early Years to Grade 5. Both videos were shared with the school community during whole school (PYP, MYP and DP) assembly and then embedded in blogs and the school website for the wider school community.
Parents who missed their children taking part in the Early Years Sports day were able to watch again via the Early Years Class blog.
International Mother Tongue day was celebrated with students at the school sharing aspects of their culture
I enjoy forging links within the school community through photography and video. This video was made to celebrate The King of Thailand’s birthday with the Thai department at KIS. Both native speakers (the host country) and students learning Thai got involved.
Grade 1 created documentaries about fictitious animals they had created in a UOI concerning habitats and adaptation. In this video their animals and how they are adapted in a ‘Life on Earth’ way!
Grade 3 were considering learning styles in their UOI titled How We Learn. In this video, which was shown at a parent coffee morning, the students reflect on the unit and share a range of activities that were conducted.
Grade 4 critique a range of artistic forms in the panel show “Art Talk” a take on BBC World’s Hard Talk in this video.
In an older video from the Regent’s School, the students present ‘Books are Cool’ a video magazine to accompany the school’s ‘Book Week’.
Another important video tool is the use of screen-casting for making tutorials. This provides a wonderful record as students explain their learning to their peers or an audience. Here Maxine presents a tutorial on how to use a tool on the online art software pixlr.