Get Connected - Fall 2007 - (Page 14)

FROM THE CTO Digital Video-on-Demand Brings Learning to Life “Nothing Helps Students ‘See’ Like Video” Says Bedford County, TN, Teachers Many of our readers will remember, as I do, the “film strip days” of school. Every so often when I was in school, the teacher would bring out a film projector, give an introduction to what we were about to see, the lights would go out, and the film would roll! I loved those films, and I watched and listened with rapt attention. It was a welcome change of pace, a break from the chalkboard and lectures, a chance to get outside the confines of the classroom, if only in my mind. And if I remember correctly, rarely did the teacher have to scold anyone for not paying attention. That’s the kind of effect those films had on us, as outdated and cinematographically unimpressive as they almost certainly must have been. With the advent of educational digital video -on-demand, provided by resources such as Discovery Education streaming (formerly unitedstreaming) and TeacherTube.com, how much better are today’s classroom video days? To tell you the truth, just like those long-ago film strip days of my youth, I just can’t see the downside. Hard to argue with cheap, easy & convenient Scheduling isn’t an issue because there are unlimited “copies” of each title for streaming. No real technological expertise is required; it’s as easy as watching a video on YouTube —which even my very non-technical mother can do (and does). And finally, the only equipment that’s absolutely essential is a computer with Internet connectivity. If a teacher can get his or her hands on a projector, then the entire class can watch. If that’s not possible, then smaller groups of students can take turns gathering around a computer monitor or laptop while the others are engaged in different activities. Kristie Caldwell, a fourth-grade teacher at Thomas School in Tennessee’s Bedford County School District, has been using Discovery Education streaming for five years to enhance the impact of her teaching “because it is so easy to bring it to life when you have a video on what you’re talking about … or when there’s nothing in the textbook on the subject.” Usually she has prepared beforehand to incorporate a specific video into her lesson. A few times she has even used video on the fly. Recently her class was learning about the Wright Brothers, and “they were so into it in the reading story” that she logged onto her computer at once to see if she could quickly find a video on the first flight. “I immediately found a great cartoon that fourth graders could understand. Right there, the entire story in video form, and they loved it. It was so cool.” Basically, it’s NetFlix “Watch Now” for teachers: Browse, click, watch. All the timely, relevant, educational visual content you could possibly want. How often does a new way to make life a little easier for teachers come along? Reach ‘em where they live The peer-posted videos on TeacherTube. com are absolutely free and at the service of anyone with an Internet connection. And access to Discovery Education streaming’s 5,000 professionally produced, full-length videos (and assignment builders, quizzes, writing prompts and other pedagogical support resources) is incredibly cost-effective. Depending on a school’s or district’s population, annual subscriptions start at $1,495 per site. Unlike hard-copy video libraries of those old film strips, VHS tapes or CDs, videoson-demand are just that: always available. There’s no cumbersome, time-consuming process for storing, delivering, retrieving and cataloging titles as is the case when your school or district offers its own collection. Bob Collie Senior VP of Technology/CTO, ENA As you probably already know, you as a teacher are competing for minds that have 14

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of Get Connected - Fall 2007

Get Connected - Fall 2007 NSBA Social Networking Study A Letter From the President Network Services for Libraries 25th Annual TETC Conference Partnership for 21st Century Skills E-mail Archiving Social Networking 101 Ramp Up for E-Rate Season News From HECC Notes From the CTO

Get Connected - Fall 2007

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