By Paul McGovern
One of the most fundamentally useful of these educational technology tools is the screencast, the capture of one’s computer screen for the purpose of demonstration, communication, or evidencing of work.
In a recent blog post I talked about the use of ScreenFlow for the development of screencasts and looked at the functionality it offered for such development. In this article I want to focus on the rationale behind the development of screencasts for learning and highlight some of the ways in which I have made use of the concept to support my teaching.
I believe there are a number of reasons why screencasts are extremely effective as educational tools and I have outlined these below:
1. Time-flexible learning
2. Support Web 2.0 expectations of learners
3. Enhancement of the learning process
4. Enhancement of learning engagement
Let’s take a look at these one by one.
Time-Flexible Learning
Older students may have part time jobs meaning that much of their studies take place late in the evening, some students may appreciate the opportunity to go over taught material several times to clarify a particular concept or theory. Screencasts support this concept very effectively and I personally have had thanks from many students for providing access to lectures in screencast format, in particular in instances where, due to circumstances beyond their control, students could not attend a particular lesson.
Support Web 2.0 Expectation
A common example of this is when students are working on a group assignment or even an individual piece of work – through use of a course forum they will recommend screencasts to one another. This year I introduced a rating system within Moodle whereby support materials could be sorted depending on the student rating. Such interaction really appeals to students.
Enhancement of the Learning Process
Often in my screencasts I will introduce sections for reflection or activity; the screencast will request the student to stop the video and comment on what he has learned or attempt a problem in relation to what he has just seen. This provides a very guided mechanism for teaching, while giving the student the opportunity to apply knowledge obtained or reflect on what has just taken place. I have found this structured approach extremely useful, in particular with students that perhaps need extra focus as they learn.
Enhancement of Learning Engagement
It should be starting to become clear that screencasts offer a wealth of positive enhancements to modern learning and greatly enhance the learning process for both teacher and student. In addition to using screencasts for instructional purposes I use them extensively to provide feedback to students. I used to hate weekend marking, sitting down to perhaps 30 pieces of work to which I had to give comment on and attribute performance markers. This was particularly time consuming in my field of digital media and game design where marking often involves a range of digital assets. I had to open up files and explore them in software and make notes as I went. Now I simply launch ScreenFlow, open up students’ work, and talk and navigate my way through. No typing, no writing, no hassle. I have cut my marking time extensively and I actually have content that students cannot lose in the end.
Upon making amendments to work done, I can easily check if students have taken advice on board my making use of markers for areas I want them to improve upon within the screencast. It’s a win-win situation.
I also make use of screencasts for office hours. There are times in the week where I make myself available for contact by students through Moodle to answer any questions they might have. In the past this was a very one-dimensional process where text information was conveyed to students in response to their questions. Now students can submit screencasts to me with problems they are experiencing and I, in return, can send a screencast solution back. It’s powerful and engaging providing both parties with an easy and concise way of overcoming areas of difficulty.
In a recent meeting with a chief examination moderator of one of our exam boards I put forward the question, “Could screencasts be used to completely support evidencing of learning outcomes?” A lot of work students do with software tools require the creation of a digital diary where they record screenshots of actions done and comment on these in text – a somewhat laborious and time-consuming task. The moderator was keen to see how screencasts could be used and has agreed for them to be a suitable form of evidence for next year’s submissions. That means that students can now show evidence of learning outcomes through screencasts; they can sit down and perform tasks in Adobe Photoshop, Final Cut, After Effects, Maya or any software application and record their on-screen actions. As they do so, they can record audio comment on what they are doing and incorporate other media elements to support their evidence if so required. It’s an extremely competent and highly engaging method for documenting evidence of learning.
Students can also record evidence of research done, planning for projects, group-based activity, problem solving and many other common learning objectives effectively and intuitively through use of screencasts.
Screencasts are not just for teacher-student interaction however, they can also be used to support teacher-to-teacher communication. Often in our line of work there is a need to share lesson plans, schemes of work and approaches to assessment between colleagues. While this is entirely possible through face-to-face meetings, our busy lives and even busier schedules often leave it difficult to achieve. Communication then can take place through screencasts where we can exchange ideas, comment on student progress, showcase approaches to teaching and generally do the things that would normally require us to be present in a given location and a given time. In fact, in the next academic year I believe that we are going to use screencasts to facilitate in-house staff development where teachers will have the opportunity to learn new skills through the screencast medium.
21st Century learning is here and we as educators need to embrace it or run the risk of not fulfilling the potential of our students or, indeed, ourselves as instructors of the work force of tomorrow. Educational technology must be harnessed as a tool to enhance and evolve the educational process and screencasts are one powerful, affordable and highly effective way of doing so.