YouTubing Too?

Entertainment weekly stated that YouTube has been, “providing a safe home for piano-playing cats, celeb goof-ups and overzealous lip-synchers since 2005” and thank goodness it does!  You can’t help but love YouTube, where else can you spend endless hours searching out videos on how to charge your ipod using Gatorade and an onion (link) or of Pachelbel’s Canon played on electric guitar (link)!  I have learned so much from YouTube...too bad it’s nothing useful (...don’t bother with the ipod charging thing – trust me)!  Other than time wasting...I mean occupying...I’ve really never investigated YouTube.   I guess one can assume that if there are all these useless videos on YouTube, there must be an equal number of useful ones...right??

YouTube is a user-generated video sharing site – anyone (with internet access) can post (virtually) any video providing it’s under 10 minutes in length and it’s not copyrighted (or at least you say it isn’t).  Videos are only removed for inappropriate content when other YouTube users alert the company and an employee views the material and agrees that it is offensive.  Some videos are restricted to those over 18 (or those stating that they are) due to “mature” content.  According to Wikipedia, 100 million videos are being uploaded to YouTube each day, thus videos are available on virtually any topic. 

Born-Again YouTube Virgin: Learning about YouTube & Posting my First Video:

As I mentioned, I’m not new to using YouTube, so I’ll consider myself a “Born Again YouTube Virgin” as I intend to begin using YouTube for productive (professional and personal) purposes.  Looking at YouTube from this new perspective opened my eyes to the possibilities of this ever popular site. 

The site itself is fairly basic and I didn’t need to spend much time learning how to use it.  You simply type in your search terms and YouTube finds related videos.  Being the teacher/TL I am, I typed in “children’s book trailers” and got 7 pages of videos to choose from.  Once I clicked on the book trailer I wanted to view, I could watch it and see a list of other videos related to it – simple!  Uploading videos is just as easy; all you have to do is log into your YouTube account and choose from a few options regarding privacy etc., find your video on your computer, and upload!  In regards to safety, I learned that users can choose to broadcast their videos either publically or privately and can choose whether or not to allow comments or ratings on their videos.

Fellow classmate Metthea and I decided to try our hands at creating and posting a video on YouTube.  The process was an interesting one.  We spent the majority of our time planning the “script”, “content” and “set” (movie vocab used very lightly) and actually not much time filming the video.  The discussions we had about what to include in the film were very interesting.  I can see that asking students to create videos to upload (which have to be short in length) challenges them to include only the most pertinent information, a skill that is hard to teach and even harder to learn.  Most likely, our video won’t be viewed by many (sure not to be a viral hit!), but I can see how excited kids would be about the possibility of others watching their videos – this is bound to be huge motivation!  (Truth be told, the fact that others can search out and view our video isn’t motivation for us!!!)

So...without further a due...here is our masterpiece (please remember we are teachers NOT actors)...

YouTool? Using YouTube Productively in my Personal Life & Learning:

As I’ve already mentioned, I love searching YouTube for outlandish videos...who doesn’t?  What I’ve got to get into the habit of doing is using YouTube in my personal life for productive endeavours...

I love to cook and as a result have been having an affair with the Food Network for the past 8 years or so.  In my quest to find useful YouTube videos I started by searching for video tutorials on stuffing a turkey, something I'll need to know for next weekend.  Well...Move over Food Network – YouTube is some stiff competition!  I found way more videos on stuffing birds than I’ll ever need!  I’m beginning to see that YouTube is the video version of Google, just search it and you’ll get it!  In the past week I’ve looked up videos on the following topics:

            -installing flashing (we’re at the end of a reno)

-virtual tour of Chatham, MA (just got back from a lovely trip there and wanted to reminisce)

-fence styles (landscaping dreams)

-how to get rid of wasp nests (we are overrun at the moment)

The professional learning potential of YouTube and video sharing as a whole is HUGE.  Numerous videos are available to view on teaching ideas, techniques and theories.  I was pleased to find a bunch of video lectures by Will Richardson discussing the Read/Write web in relation to education (link) on YouTube.  In his book, “Blogs, Wiki’s, Podcasts” Richardson discusses TeacherTube, a YouTube-like video sharing site exclusively for educators and students – useful in schools where YouTube access is blocked.  In schools where YouTube access is not blocked, teachers can join the YouTube K12 Education group (link) which provides a safe place for searching out and posting education related videos.  It is helpful to know that there are large yet safe video sharing sites which are sure to come in handy especially when kids are searching out and posting their own videos.

Perhaps the most powerful aspect of professional learning on YouTube and other similar sites is the ability to share.  Teachers/TL’s and other educators are constantly adding video content to these sites providing up-to-the-minute resources.  Conversely, we can add content and share our ideas, joining the discussion.  Like all Web 2.0 tools, video sharing allows us to dialogue with others around the world – no longer are we bound by our physical geography. 

YouTeach? YouTube, Teaching & Learning:

While YouTube is very easy to use and filled with millions of resources, the teacher in me is still a bit apprehensive about the safety of searching and posting videos on it.  In their article, “Avoiding the Digital Abyss: Getting Started in the Classroom with YouTube, Digital Storytelling and Blogs,” (link) Mullen and Wedwick stated that inappropriate content will not go away from YouTube (or the web for that matter), so we as teachers/TL’s need to teach students how to use the site in an appropriate and safe manner.  I totally agree with this thinking, however am still a tad nervous to “take the leap”.  I have to remember that all internet tools have to be used with safety in mind, and students need to understand the boundaries and why they are established.  While I was exploring YouTube, I came across this Internet safety video produced by YouTube which would be great to share with students.

How can Video Sharing be employed at School?  This is the easy part of my post to write, I feel really inspired and am bursting with ideas...Knowing that there is so much information available through video sharing sites such as YouTube means that the possibilities are truly endless...  I see using video sharing as two-fold.  Firstly, you can search out information and secondly you can create and share information.  I believe the latter to be more challenging and most rewarding.  I read an article in the School Library Journal titled, “YouTube Comes to the Classroom”, (link) and a very valuable point is made in it:

"YouTube provides a platform for students to be content creators, not just content viewers. Just knowing that someone out there is listening is enough motivation for them to speak out. It is our job to help students discover their voice. While YouTube does contain inappropriate material, it also offers real gems for educators.”

Here are some of my thoughts as to how video sharing can be used in schools:

As a Teacher/Teacher-Librarian:

-Obtaining videos related to curriculum content
(The obvious use of YouTube, not to be overlooked.  There are many short and sweet videos for all levels of learners on every topic.)

-Showing and/or creating book trailers
(See some examples here.)

-Showing students’ videos on library skills/etiquette etc.
(Kids get tired of listening to adults about rules!  See a good etiquette video for young students here.)

-Read.Flip.Win-type Contests
(Inspired by this article in School Library Journal (link) where students read books and create video trailers/reviews to be entered in a contest.)

-Author interviews and “guest” readings
(YouTube is packed with clips of our favourite authors reading and talking about their books, which is a great (free!) way for students to get to know their favourite authors.  Watch Robert Munsch read a story here.)

-Showing advertisements to introduce the topics of marketing/bias/subliminal messaging etc.
(These themes are so important to discuss with students.  TV ads are a great place to start.)

-Use campaign videos to compliment government studies
(Depending on the grade, you could use the campaign videos differently.  Older kids could discuss point-of-view and bias after viewing a few clips.)

-Vlogging
(Blogs aren't just text anymore, have kids create their own online television program!  This is especially powerful for kids who struggle with typed/written output.)

-Students create videos to promote a cause they are passionate about
(At the middle school I worked at in 2008-2009 the kids made this video and ended up winning $50,000 in an eco contest for their efforts! GO ROMS GO!)

As a School Leader:
-Email links to interesting videos to colleagues
(Obvious, but so easy to do!  There are many videos which can be used for professional development)

-Create videos demonstrating using Web 2.0 tools with students
(Perhaps you need to “convince” a few teachers in your school to get on board with the Web 2.0 world...make a video showing what you’re doing with some other classes to help them get a better understanding.)

-Create video tutorials for students and teachers on using the library, technology or ?
(Having a collection of easily accessible video tutorials can save everyone time and frustration.)

-Promote your school to the world!
(Take the time to document the great things that are going on at your school, create short videos and share the world.)

So there you have it!  The sky’s the limit when it comes to video sharing.  Whether I want to learn a new cooking technique; tweak my pedagogy; find videos on topics I’m currently teaching; share my students’ work; share my ideas or just waste some time, YouTube and other video sharing sites can help me out.  Now that my work here is done, we could all use a little librarian laugh...Enjoy this YouTube favourite...