By now, we have outlined key benefits of using multimedia to assist in learning. Videos are having increased use in the education process and here too, benefits are obvious. However, in recent years it seems that educators are turning to videos instead of the written word. I recall a time when it was a rare treat to learn a new topic via video. 'Schoolhouse Rock' and 'The Magic School Bus' were really beneficial in embedding the information first read about in a text book. Now it seems that video education is becoming a primary basis for learning. For example, consider the parent who turns on the newest 'Dora the Explorer' or 'Leap Frog' video in the place of reading a bedtime story. Also, consider the history teacher who shows 'Pearl Harbor' to teach the events of WWII. Furthermore, consider how deeply you understood your responsibility on the job by watching a training video in lieu of reading the manual. Do the 8 hrs of back-to-back videos shown in safe driving classes really teach much to those forced to attend?
There comes a point where we must ask ourselves are these methods alone enough to effectively educate people or are we overstretching the benefits of video education because it is perhaps easier and slightly more interesting than an hour spent reading a textbook. Can video replace the written word? Would this be an overall positive or negative thing? What would it say about our society if we were to turn to video education above reading?
Please view the following article for further insight into the use of videos in education: http://www.libraryvideo.com/articles/article13.asp .
J.,
ReplyDeleteAs a teacher, I have found that using video as a teaching tool is only as good as the pre and post work that utilizes the video experience as part of the learning process. For example, if I plan to use a video in a lesson I make it very clear to the class why we are watching it, what they should get out of it, and how they will be evaluated. For example, in English class, I have had students watch the movie Hamlet. While they watch, they have a handout of questions. I’ll stop the film to give them time to answer questions and discuss with their group. The video serves as one component in a lesson that can help those who are visual learners.
On the other hand, once a year I must sit through week long training on CPR, policy, safety, psych issues and other topics given by the Department of Corrections. Some of it is good; much of it boring. The videos are interspersed between human led classes. The video helps break up the sometimes monotonous voice of the presenter. Our safety officer also has a poorly done power point that we all look forward to only because of the bloopers he tacks on at the end of people doing stupid things.
I suppose what I am saying is video has its place!
I would have to agree with both of you. Videos can sometimes be overwhelming in a class and I tend to "check out" once the video is turned on and I get into a comfortable position in my desk. However, I have also been in the situation where I would give anything for something different in a class other than having to listen to the speaker.
ReplyDeleteHowever, during my undergraduate work, I took a class that has us (pre-service teachers) evaluate good educational video. In class we would watch videos that were HORRIBLE and some that were PHENOMENAL! We would even watch some videos that were really intersting but did not cover any of the standards that need to be covered during the semester. When taking the time as a teacher to hunt for that one video that really does enforce the material, videos do have their place in the classroom.
As a student it is nice to have the class broken up to watch videos but there is also a time and a place for them. Reading to a child or having a child read to you is more important than any video. It is all about having that balance between everything.
I don't think videos should completely replace text books. Good, educational videos can be a great supplement to text books, but teachers should not soley rely on videos as a main way of teaching a subject to students. I know, I tend to lose interest in a video in class much sooner than actually having a class discussion about something that I read in a text book. Usually after the openning credits, I tend to zone out, unless the teacher gives us a worksheet that follows along with the video that we must complete while watching the video.
ReplyDeleteI think that if videos were to completely replace textbooks, people would become lazier. It is much easier to watch a video than it is to read a textbook and interpret what you are reading. I think it is hard enough right now getting students to read, whether it is for pleasure or school work, and I think students watch enough TV in their free time. If textbooks were no more, then it would be that much harder to get students to read at all.
Can video replace the written word? Would this be an overall positive or negative thing? What would it say about our society if we were to turn to video education above reading?
ReplyDeleteVideos cannot replace the written word, however it can accomodate what is not said. Videos and other forms of learning via technology are just ample ways for children to learn using multiple resources. This option for learning can be a positive or negative thing depending on how educators use it. It is important for children, now especially, to become more familiar with technology and being able to use it, however does it yield laziness? This is questionable due to the educator who my overuse this option for education.
I'm sure this option for learning was never meant to become a negative thing, but yet an available thing as time moved on and technology progressed. How it (technology, videos, etc.) is used will effect the students way of learning if it is used above reading. Educators should not take advantage of technology, but use it as a resource.
the above comment is posted by Jessica Wade btw..I had to change my setting! lol
ReplyDeleteAs everyone's stating, video does have its place in the classroom, but by no means should it replace a textbook. I think that videos are a key supplement in subjects that you have to learn by seeing (i.e., science and health). Teachers can lecture all they want about the great white shark, but when you can actually see it shooting its entire body out of the water to catch its prey--it leaves a more lasting impression. This is similar to health topics such as alcohol/drug abuse, pregnancy, STDs and others. Teachers can lecture all they want about why we shouldn't smoke, but when we see a video about the long-term effects of smoking, the message resounds in our minds.
ReplyDeleteI do not think video is replacing written word but at times it enhances it. United Streaming offers so many great educational videos I show my kindergarteners. Granted, there are certain times when a movie would not make sense in the content being taught, but a lot of videos can be used throughout the year. I love intorducing new topics using movies and then trying out the experiments and examples given in the movie in the classroom.
ReplyDeleteI am curious though about the impact of computers over the use of paper and pencil. Students come to school with basic computer skills and lack handwriting skills. We now have a paperless classroom, each student has a laptop instead and no paper is ever dispensed. Is this going to have negative effects in the long run?
I too have used United Streaming in my classroom. When teaching debate class or psychology, nothing illustrates a concept more clearly than video. Watching old films of Presidential debates, mishaps of their campaigns, and made-for-the-theatre propaganda are valuable tools towards enhancing student learning. Seeing a You Tube clip of psychological theory and test results from real experiments brings psychology to life. Although I agree, and am somewhat dismayed with, earlier posting warnings of 'students checking out,' I cannot teach without the use of video. Many of my contemporaries show far less footage in class than I do. And yes, not all of my students care to stayed tuned while the films plays, but student retention of major concepts grows significantly after viewing a portrayal in the classroom. I too use a video handout guide for every film. Not only do the questions reinforce the objectives, they hold the student responsible for the content.
ReplyDeleteIt is worth mentioning that my students read a lot! From the textbook to journal writings, published articles, excerpts from published texts, my students complain constantly about all of the stuff that is handed out and covered in class. "Why can't we do something fun, like watch a movie" is a call I often hear. Video is looked upon as a treat. I relish the fact that they are begging for a change of medium, even when the content is so rich. Let us not forget the visual learners in the room who benefit from the change of tempo.
I do not see video replacing the textbookd or any good book for that matter. But let us be realistic, without video, teachers would be hard pressed to provide vivid examples to reinforce or demonstrate very complex theories and concepts. Relaying personal anecdotes of the 'good ol' days' when persons of the forgotten past performed feats of grandeur is still the fastest way to loose an audience. Bring on the movie!
Oops! I forgot to log out of my wife's google page and mine back in before posting. For this evening, Emmett will go by Emily.
ReplyDeleteThanks,
Emmett (aka Emily)
I think that many of the responses that I am reading are perhaps colored by the lens that many of you are educators and your posts are framed with respect to your desire to not lose sight of the fact that children still need to learn to read. Speaking for many of us adults on the other hand, let me just say that we emphatically love well produced video and it can certainly stand alone and equal or better the effectiveness of written educational materials for a multitude of purposes. The annual inservices that all of us in healthcare have to endure on such subjects as fire and electrical safety, hand washing, human rights and CPR (to name but a few) are infinitely more accessible via live video demonstration than they used to be within a large, dust caked manual. Now, work aside, I love to read as much as the next person, perhaps more so (or not) since my BA was in Literature, and, as an example, have read several great books on the Civil War but I am not sure if any of them are comparable to Ken Burns' documentary for the sheer depth and breadth of what digital rhetoric can bring to the educator's table (though I highly recommend Battle Cry of Freedom as the best one volume treatment and an enthralling read).
ReplyDeleteThinking back to k-12, I did NOT like reading at all. I did, however, love watching the discovery channel and the history channel. I primarily learned via visuals. In the classroom, I would need to watch the teacher speak to be able to remember what he/she said. Now, I have more experience and a basis to relate topics to, so when reading I remember based on what I already knew before reading it. I do nothing but read now and I love it. I had never thought about why my opinion had changed, but it all makes sense now. Happy reading!
ReplyDeleteHaving a degree in Media Arts and Design with a concentration in Digital Video, I have learned that good video is usually not possible without good writing. The written word not only gives directors a reference for their scenes and gives actors lines, but before a video is even produced, the written word gives inspiration. I have found in my own experience that reading forces me to imagine, to be creative with the ideas that are expressed on the page. Reading can help people develop their own unique interpretations, which is a valuable skill to have in any area of life. Without the ability to mentally conceptualize things that cannot be seen, an ability the the written word demands, then video could not exist.
ReplyDeleteI must say, though, I love good video. The emotional responses that it can create and the ideas that it can express through a variety of elements leaves only "the real thing" to be desired. I think that it would be very unfortunate if the written word or video replaced the other as a form of instruction.
For me personally, I hope video instruction does not replace the written word, unless I am learning something that will be done with my hands - then I am a visual person. For topics such as history, social studies, etc - a video never held my attention, I have too short of an attention span. Reading forces me to focus on the task at hand. True, it is harder (for me) to read rather than watch, but depending on the subject, it is also more beneficial. For example, watching a tutorial on a new software application is fine, but watching a film on the highlights of the Civil War would do me no good.
ReplyDeleteI don't think by any means that video will replace written word. I think the reason why so many educators turn to video is because it is a lot more interested than reading chapter after chapter. Video is a great way to show content in a more entertaining way than a book. Video isn't always good though, there are some videos out there that are more boring than just reading the textbook.
ReplyDeleteIf video replaced written word that would be horrible. There would be a world full of illiterate people. I think that video should only be used as an aide more learning, not a way to replace it.