The “Perfect” Instructional Video

Before clicking play on this video,

Activity: Download this video’s guiding questions, below. Then answer the associated questions as you watch the video. You can also download the guiding questions for the entire series in the pane on the right side of this webpage.

Activity: please take a moment to think about what topic, what learning objective, you want your next instructional video to cover. Write down that learning objective.

Having watched the video and written down a learning objective,

Activity: Consider what visuals will help bring your content to life for your students. No need to write them down, yet. Just start thinking . . . then move on to the next video, Production Quality.

Your instructional video doesn’t have to be complex or beautiful compared to others to be effective, but your video moves closer and closer to a perfect instructional tool as it incorporates more characteristics that are proven to aid engagement and learning. This video explores what aspects of Production Quality you can easily incorporate into your instructional videos. After watching, be sure to do the reflection & activities below it.

Activity: Download this video’s guiding questions, below. Then answer the associated questions as you watch the video.

Fantastic! You’ve now got some insights into how you can easily add some modest production value to your instructional video.

Reflection: As an instructor, you know that reflection allows students to process what they’ve learned. Consider taking a moment to complete this sample Google form to help you reflect. (Google Forms are an easy way to create short reflections, surveys, quizzes, and more.)

Activity: Next, if you haven’t already, re-visit your filming location. Determine if you have adequate lighting and if there are any visual or audio distractions in your filming environment. Adjust as necessary.

Activity: Finally, write down what visual images are most important for your topic, and brainstorm ways to get those visuals into your video.

For instructional videos, often an amazing “less” is often more valuable than an un-engaging “more.”   This next video mines some research that reinforces the  importance of keeping your videos short and focused.

Activity: Download this video’s guiding questions, below. Then answer the associated questions as you watch the video.

Reflection/Activity: The above video was hosted in Panopto. If you were logged into Carleton’s Panopto account, you’d have been prompted to take a short quiz directly in the video. Many Lecture Capture systems offer this feature: quizzes to be built directly into the video player. That feature alone encourages greater engagement in your video lectures. For those of you not logged in to Panopto, below is the same quiz through a WordPress form. (Assessments will be discussed further in “Assessing, not Assuming.”)

Next up, feel free to move on to Illustrating with Sound to learn how the effective use of audio can increase engagement and retention.

We learn best when audio and video complement each other. This next video explores the most effective ways to incorporate graphics and audio into your instructional videos.

Activity: Download this video’s guiding questions, below. Then answer the associated questions as you watch the video.

Reflection/Activity:

OK, here’s a link to one more Google Form. (It’s only three questions.) This reflection demonstrates a way to check for understanding BEFORE your students start a project.

Signaling draws attention to the most essential aspects of your content. It is a key factor to consider when trying to keep students focused on your learning objectives.

Activity: Download this video’s guiding questions, below. Then answer the associated questions as you watch the video.

Reflection/Activity: Let’s try one more quiz. You can add them within videos, using Google Forms, within your LMS, and lots of other ways. We’ll dig into more assessment strategies in the video Assess, Don’t Assume.

Next up, feel free to move on to Active Learning with a Passive Medium for insights on making your videos a more active learning experience.

Watching videos is generally seen as a passive activity, and we know that passive viewing is not how students learn best. Students need to be actively engaged by your video. One method is to provide Guided Questions. Another is by incorporating questions within the video or your LMS. Here’s some great insight into ways you can keep your students actively engaged with your instructional videos.

Activity: Download this video’s guiding questions, below. Then answer the associated questions as you watch the video.

Reflection/Activity: The above video was, again, hosted in Panopto. If you were logged into Carleton’s Panopto account, you’d have been prompted to take two short quizzes directly in the video. (If not, they’re listed in the Guiding Questions document.) Either way, consider sharing one of your planned Active Learning Strategies, below! (If you’re still hunting for ideas, read the Need More Active Learning Ideas links, below the question.)

Need More Active Learning Ideas? Emily A. Moore from Texas State Technical College offers some in Faculty Focus: “Simple Techniques for Applying Active Learning Strategies to Online Course Videos“. Emily Whenman from NuReva, a video conferencing hardware company compiled “15 Active Learning Activities to Energize Your Next College Class“, which can be implemented when teaching either face-to-face or online.

Conveying sincerity, being engaging, and personalizing your delivery (or faking it well) can improve students perception of you as an instructor . . . and your instructional videos. Here are some ways you can personalize your on-camera delivery.

Activity: Download this video’s guiding questions, below. Then answer the associated questions as you watch the video.

Reflection/Activity: Quizzes and questionnaires are functional ways to asses, but they’re not always the best way. This time, I’d like to see YOUR Personalization Principle in action! Please take a moment to frame and light yourself–eyes looking right into the camera–and then snap a picture of you . . . just being you. Remember: imagine the camera is a gem of a friend whom you’re happy to see! Then upload the picture using this Dropbox File Request Link. It’s almost as easy as using the dropbox feature in your LMS!

Students are more likely to be engaged and perform better if they know there will be some kind of associated assessment. You’ll also know whether or not they’re learning the material. It’s not unlike the process of turning a lump of coal into a diamond.

Activity: Download this video’s guiding questions, below. Then answer the associated questions as you watch the video.

Reflection/Activity: Your final activity is to pull all of this together into your own Perfect Instructional Video. Your video will apply traits discussed here, like Production Quality, Duration, Signaling Strategies, Active Learning, Assessment, and More. If this were a formal class, we’d review scripts, rough edits, and final videos while giving constructive feedback along the way. And, while I’d love to see each and every instructional video, learning objective, and assessment you come up with, it’s more important that your students see it and are engaged by YOUR Perfect Instrucational Videos. So, start digging into it. I’m confident you’ll unearth countless diamonds.