By Michele Hall, Educational Technology Development Coordinator, EDC
The educational psychologist, John Dewey, once said, “If we teach today as we taught yesterday, we rob our children of tomorrow.” In my last blog post, I wrote about my own failures at teaching today when using yesterday’s model, the lecture, and noted a few strategies and technology tools that I’ve since learned can transform a traditional lecture into an interactive one. I also promised I’d follow up with posts on four different categories of educational technology that are fairly easy to incorporate into a variety of course modes and can really boost the engagement factor. In this post, we’ll have a look at the first of the four categories: screencasting software.
Screencasting, which involves taking and narrating a digital movie of one’s computer screen, is not a new technology—it’s been around since the early ‘90s. The term “screencasting” was actually coined in the mid-2000s in response to the increasing popularity of this genre (Wikipedia). Originally, the technology was used to create demos and tutorials of software products, but by 2007, professors, such as Elaine Peterson and Sandy Winterbottom, were praising screencasting as an accessible teaching strategy, ideal for online learning. It’s only been over the past few years, though—following the rise in popularity of the tool through Khan Academy, Learnzillion, and other educational websites—that we’ve seen the rapid adoption of screencasting by higher education faculty as a way to create engaging learning experiences both inside and outside the classroom.
The benefits and uses of screencasting are numerous. In addition to being particularly useful in online courses, as Peterson and Winterbottom note, screencasting can be advantageous in blended and face-to-face courses by providing:
- Second language learners or students with a learning disability the opportunity to review lecture content at their own pace.
- A strategy for flipping your classroom in a blended course. Screencasts can teach students content online and enable them to come to class ready to apply that learning.
- The possibility of freeing up class time for new learning by using screencasts to review test questions, explain equation solutions, etc. online.
- A practical way to provide instructions on and/or demonstrate how to use software or computer applications for your course.
- An effective and personal way to assess student learning and assignments.
- Opportunities for learner reflection. Students can create their own screencasts to reflect on lesson content, practice public speaking, or track creative processes, such as brainstorming or mind mapping.
If you’re thinking of incorporating screencasting into your course, you’re in luck! Carleton offers all faculty and TAs access to a screen-recording tool called Capture (a.k.a. Camtasia Relay). You can download the software for free here; it’s also installed and ready to use in EVERY classroom on campus.
The video below offers a step-by-step walk-through of how to use Capture, and it’s screencasted via Capture so you can see the end result while you learn some tips and tricks for getting started.
Interested in learning more about Capture? Later this summer, the EDC will be hosting a roundtable of professors using the tool in unique and effective ways to facilitate teaching and learning in their classrooms. The roundtable will be followed by a workshop on how to get started using Capture in your courses. Stay tuned for details!
Do you already use capture in your courses? What tips would you offer faculty or TAs for creating engaging Capture videos?