#mediarts

This article highlights the many benefits associated with introducing video-making projects into the classroom. As Morgan notes, videos are powerfully motivating and engaging, especially as youth are increasingly being surrounded by visual images and using video as a means of expression.

Through the process of video production, students get to develop their multimodal literacy, meaning they can use various representational forms to make meaning. By making videos, students can also learn about the subject they are documenting and use their final products to demonstrate their knowledge. In addition to this, students get the opportunity to think critically and use their problem-solving skills, learn about the ethical implications of creating a video, express themselves creatively, and engage in reading, writing, speaking, teamwork and organisation.

The article then outlines several types of video products that students can make, including documentaries, interviews and news reports. Morgan also concludes by iterating that the equipment needed for these types of productions are becoming more user-friendly and less expensive.

I found this article quite inspiring and can see many links to the Australian Curriculum. I particularly liked the idea of tapping into students’ interests and allowing them to learn in a different way – creating a video could even be an effective assessment piece. In this regard, creating videos can help students learn about all aspects of the Curriculum, from Mathematics and English to Science and the Humanities. For example, in EDUC7565 in Semester 1, one of our assessment pieces was to create an educational video about a Mathematics topic. This involved not only using technology such as our phones and Windows Movie Maker, but also forced us to think about the content in great depth. Why can’t students do the same? By stepping students through the video production process, the teacher would also be able to make links to the Media Arts component of the Curriculum.

Morgan, H. (2013). Technology in the classroom: Creating videos can lead students to many academic benefits. Childhood Education, 89(1), 51-53. doi: 10.1080/00094056.2013.757534