I teach college-level courses in computers, mathematics and business. When I'm teaching, there are many times when I might use a video to show my students how to solve problems. Videos are great because students can download them, follow along and take notes. For my classes, I often link students to already existing videos. Existing videos are a great option because sometimes, I just don't have the time to make them myself.
So, if you are teaching a subject where videos could really help illustrate a concept or demonstrate homework assignments, consider using videos for your class. Luckily for educators, there are tons of video out there for downloading. So, no matter what subject you teach, there is bound to be a video(s) out there that could be used in your class.
Just from my experiences, I follow the tips below when looking for videos:
* Use videos to supplement NOT replace lesson material.
In other words, I wouldn't just link students to a video and then "call it a day". Instead, the video would accompany other resources for the lesson or would be an extra resource.
* Choose video sources very carefully.
While I'm sure that video creators mean well in creating their videos, I've found that some videos are not really suitable for educational environments. This may be due to the use of inappropriate content, profanity or just that the presenter's style is not as professional.
* Look for series or entire sets of videos.
I love this because then you can use multiple videos from the same set for your class. Also, choosing from an entire set of videos is than having to search just for one video at a time.
* Look for videos with transcripts.
A transcript for students to read along with is great. You don't always find videos with this addition because it is extra work to make a transcript. Actually, I love transcripts and prefer videos with them because I can read the transcript quickly to make sure the video is okay to use.
* Use videos that are short. (no more than 4-5 minutes)
I find that students don't want to sit for long periods of time watching a video. It's just boring. Of course, this does depend on the subject matter. If I want students to see a longer video, I break it up in the assignment and may only have them watch a portion and then complete an activity.
Some popular video sharing sites for education are: (search for your topic)
EduTube (www.edutube.org)
Teacher Tube (www.teachertube.com/)
YouTube for Teachers (www.youtube.com/user/teachers)
Vimeo (www.vimeo.com)
Documentary Films (www.freedocumentary.tv/)
Internet Archive (https://archive.org/details/movies)
Some really nice subject-based video sites are: (many of these sites such as Discovery are massive, so search "educational videos")
Online Math Learning, (www.onlinemathlearning.com)
Khan Academy (www.khanacademy.com)
Math TV (www.mathtv.com/)
Next Vista (www.nextvista.org/)
PBS Learning Media (http://www.pbslearningmedia.org/)
Discovery Channel (www.discovery.com)
Art Babble (www.artbabble.org)
C-Span Video (www.c-spanvideo.org)
BBC Active Video Learning (http://www.bbcactivevideoforlearning.com/1/Home.aspx)
*For a more comprehensive list that is broken into topics, I've recently been working from an extraordinary list of 100 best video sites compiled by the folks at Edudemic:
http://www.edudemic.com/best-video-sites-for-teachers/
