Effective Video

You've certainly experienced online video of varying quality before, so one important approach to understanding effective video in your course is to consider your own experience: looking back on your experience—or taking some time to investigate online videos about an area of your discipline or otherwise of interest—what characterizes a good video, one you remember and might go back to (or recommend to others)? What typifies video you won't return to or didn't finish? And consider those things in light of the reality that some of your students might not be as enthusiastic about the course content as you are your disciplinary interests or personal pursuits.

That said, there are some proven practices for video in online courses.

Proven Practices

Chunking

If you take nothing else away from this discussion, remember this: keep it short! Research on nearly 7 million video sessions Links to an external site. shows that videos under 6 minutes long were watched completely by nearly 100% of students, but the drop-off is steep: at 9-12 minutes, engagement was approximately 50%, and at 12-40 minutes, just 20%! If you need more time, short videos interspersed with other activities is clearly your best option.

Create and Use a Script

This can seem awkward at first, but using a script has numerous benefits: it helps keep your videos on-target and of predictable length, and provides a document you can share with students to increase accessibility. It's not necessary to stick to a script word-by-word, but impromptu lecturing or even working from bullet points is less likely to result in effective video.

Be Yourself

It might seem strange to recommend using a script and being yourself, but these two important aspects do not need to be in opposition. Your goal here is to connect with students and share your knowledge and passion, not create a professional documentary. Be yourself on video just as you are in person!

Equipment, Lighting and Sound

Good video can be made using any tools and technology at your disposal. Content is king and queen. But try to use the best equipment you have access to. And don't forget to pay attention to lighting (in particular, avoid backlighting!) and sound (using a headset, earphones, or a separate microphone is usually preferable).

Create Active Learning Experiences

The Effective Educational Videos Links to an external site. article from Vanderbilt Center for Teaching and Learning contains a wealth of great information about creating educational video that works, but one key takeaway is to think about course videos as being part of active learning experiences. If you have time and technical know-how, this can mean making the video itself interactive, but there are ways to contextualize and use the video as part of a learning sequence that can have the same effect.