Teaching and learning problem/challenge?

We needed to provide our students with a short weekly introduction to course unit content which would be accessible, flexible and personal.

What was the solution?

We created a weekly VoiceThread in Blackboard. Each VoiceThread was focused on a simplified PowerPoint that introduced the subject content for the week. The VoiceThread included short video files of the tutor speaking, with one video file for each PowerPoint slide. The video introductions were carefully focused on individual slides, and delivered in accessible language.

Crucially, the tutor videos were not ‘scripted’ and purposefully informal (including gestures and occasional humour) so to avoid the ‘talking head’ phenomenon. The students could, at a time of their choosing, view the VoiceThread at their own pace, viewing the slides and videos in linear sequence, or return to particular slides/videos.

How successful was the solution?

In their interaction with the course unit tutors, and in the end-of semester Unit Surveys, the students indicated that they enjoyed watching the VoiceThreads. They said it gave them an accessible (easy) introduction to the week’s topic, they valued the ability to watch individual slides/videos again (without having to search through a single massive video file) and they also liked the unscripted nature of the videos, which made the tutor more of an individual/real person.

See it in action in this video:

School: Environment, Education and Development

Discipline: Language Learning (TESOL)

Academics: Juup Stelma and Nahielly Palacios

Course: EDUC70091 Psychology of Language Learning

Cohort Size: 135

Themes: Teaching Ideas, Enhancing learning with technology

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