Filming your lectures and not decreasing class attendance are two concepts you would not expect to see coupled together. Students are notorious for using any excuse to miss class, and having your lectures recorded to watch from the comfort of bed is a great one. However recording lectures does not have be the end of class attendance. Rather if you use recordings to compliment in-class lectures than video can be a remarkable learning tool.
Why film lectures?
The short answer is to support students’ learning. By filming your lectures you allow students to have 24 hour access to teaching, allowing them to take an active role in their education. Students can then make up for missed lectures, incomplete notes, or revisit lectures they didn’t fully understand the first time. Some lectures can be challenging and providing students with the opportunity to revisit the lecture can be immensely beneficial.
Through filming your lecture you give students the opportunity to be fully engaged with the in-person lecture since they know that they can take detailed notes in a second recorded viewing. This would be particularly beneficial for students without English as their first language. Filming your lectures gives students the freedom and flexibility to learn at the pace that works best for them.
Does filming lectures only benefit students?
The benefits of filming lectures do not solely belong to students. Filming lectures allows faculty to view a wide range of lectures from other faculty members or guest lecturers. This gives them the opportunity to access best practices, share theirs, and learn from others.
Lecturers also have the opportunity to review student usage of their filmed lectures. So they can identify which videos have been most viewed which gives lecturers valuable information about their students’ learning. They can then use this information to adapt and improve their lecture content and delivery.
But why video instead of another medium?
Video communicates, connects, and engages with audiences in a way that text and images cannot. Where images and text can oversimplify complex concepts, video allows you to address complex concepts as if you were in the room teaching the student one-on-one.
Video not only quickly connects and engages with audiences, but it promotes better visualisation, recognition, and identification. All this can result in a richer student understanding.
Filming your lectures not only benefits students but faculty as well. It makes your lectures accessible at all times to your entire student base and colleagues regardless of location. Filming your lectures can be a great resource full of benefits, all you need to do is start.
For more information on how to best film your lectures contact us, Kartoffel Films, at mash@kartoffelfilms.com
