Video Roulette
Making a Deceptively Complex Undertaking
Easier for Faculty and More Useful for
Students
Robert Zotti
Assistant Dean, WebCampus
Stevens Institute of Technology
rzotti@stevens.edu
Agenda
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Intro
A Matter of Preference
Video Cost vs. Quality
Questions to Answer
One Approach: an Academic Recording Studio
Copyright 2015 by R. Zotti
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WebCampus Operations Fact Sheet
• Began operations in 2000
• Online Offerings
– 19 Masters degrees
– 60 Graduate certificates
– 275 online courses
• 102 for Howe School of Technology Management
• 135 for Schaefer School of Engineering & Science
• 38 for School of Systems & Enterprises
• 140 online instructors
• Winner of 5 USDLA and 2 Sloan-C Awards
2013
2011
2010
2008
2007
2005
2003
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Spring 2015 Enrollment Map
Factoids
- 1507 students have completed 8 or more online classes
- Ten students have taken 20 or more online students since 2006
- One student attended 28 online courses from 2006 – 2014
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Online Videos
Changing how students learn (and teachers teach)
"My students don't seem to
be taking notes as much as
they used to, because they
can replay the lecture. They
no longer need notes as a
record-keeping tool... I've
found that I'm adjusting my
lecture style, spending less
time on the stuff they can get
online.“
-Campus Technology Magazine (June 2011)
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Comments from end-of-course surveys
(Fall 2014)
What students liked
What students didn’t like
“I liked that there were many different
resources used to teach us: pre-recorded
videos, textbook, the discussion board,
live conferences.” (CM course)
“The video should be updated, the
previous one is not so clear.” (CS course)
“It was great to have the video lectures!”
(CS course)
“It would be nice to have weekly recorded
lectures, if possible.”
“Videos posted by professor are
definitely helpful.”
“The technology used to produce the
online recordings should be consistent
across the board so that all online courses
are taught with the same quality.”
“The material was really interesting and
will be beneficial to me in the future!”
“Improve the Video and audio and make it
simple.” (CM course)
“…the video postings were most useful
and very helpful. It was easy to rewind
and skip forward. The size made each
piece manageable to fit into a busy
schedule.” (MGT course)
“Would be good, if the professor provided
videos.” (CS course)
“I think professor should update some of
the old videos.” (CS course)
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More comments from end-of-course serveys
(Fall 2014)
What students didn’t like
“A video exercise with Wireshark or some other network tool would have been great to
see.” (EE course)
“Video lectures presenting the material (theorems and examples) is a must with such
difficult material.” (EE course)
“Reading materials can be replaced by video lectures.” (MGT course)
“Maybe there can be an introduction video showing how to use the PTC site.” (ME
course)
“…presentations were not accompanied by video or audio lectures.” (ME course)
“I was expecting video conference and other forms of communication other than e-mail
and Moodle.” (ME course)
“Need more examples of how to do homework and exam questions - a video or two of
how to do them would help.” (ME course)
“The video lectures had some technical issues.” (SYS course)
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Trade-offs:
Cost (or production time) vs. Quality
Interactive videos (Ex:
embedded quizzes)
Post-production extras
Lectures, possible re-use
Quick, one-off jobs
(Ex: Homework Q/A)
Copyright 2015 by R. Zotti
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Video Quality Continuum
Copyright 2015 by R. Zotti
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Questions to Ask Before Starting…
• What kind of videos
do I want for class?
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Lecture videos?
Demonstration videos?
Interview videos?
Q/A videos?
• How long should my
videos be?
• How many videos
do I need?
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One per module?
One per week?
One per chapter?
One for the mid-term or
final? Or…
– Just one?
• How long will I use
my videos?
– 5 minutes?
– 10 minutes?
– 60 minutes?
Copyright 2015 by R. Zotti
– Just for this one class
– Two or three semesters
– Three or more
semesters
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Other Questions to Ask
• How do others in my
school create videos?
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Use own resources?
Use IT’s resources?
Outsource?
A combination of the
above?
• Will I need to
update my videos?
– No?
– Yes, but rarely?
– Yes, regularly?
• What video quality is required?
– Basic (ex: webcam videos, most web conferencing
recordings)
– Medium (Ex: reasonable cameras, mini-recording studios)
– High (Ex: intermediate recording studios)
– Very high (Ex: “showcase” videos)
Copyright 2015 by R. Zotti
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You Created Videos
Now What?
• Are the video links
easy to find in
your class?
• Do you refer to
your videos in
your syllabus?
• Are you able to
track the use of
your videos?
• Do your students
find your videos
useful?
• Does your department encourage the
sharing of videos across courses?
Copyright 2015 by R. Zotti
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Recording Facilities Example
Podcasting Studio
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Altorfer 501 Smart Classroom
Lecture Capture & Live Streaming
Hybrid Classes
Faculty Training
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Production Basics – Selecting a Layout
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Faculty Adoption of Video
• For people to try, it must be easy
• To get them to come back, it must be good.
Copyright 2015 by R. Zotti
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Post-production: Different Approaches
• What exactly do you want your video to look like?
Copyright 2015 by R. Zotti
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Documentation for your Video Systems
Available online at:
http://www.webcampus.stevens.edu/uploadedFiles/Multimedia/Podcast_FINAL.pdf
http://www.webcampus.stevens.edu/uploadedFiles/040_WebCampus_Resources/_related/Stevens%20Web%20Conference%20brochure_FINAL%20Revised.pdf
Copyright 2015 by R. Zotti
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Americans With Disabilities Act
• Closed Captioning needed for videos
• The Good News
– It’s not as hard as you might think
– It’s not as costly as you might think (per video)
– It can make your course better
• (Hint: think “Transcripts”)
• The Bad News
– Costs grow in direct proportion to the number of
videos you have
– It’s time (for your school) to get started now
Copyright 2015 by R. Zotti
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Some Research about Videos
• Borup, Jered, West, Richard E., Graham, Charles R. (2012).
“Improving online social presence through asynchronous
video.”
– Strategies to promote social presence
• Instructors used videos to teach initial classes
• Students replied with videos of their own
• Caspi, Avner, Gorsky, Paul, and Privman, Meira. (2005).
"Viewing comprehension: Students' learning preferences
and strategies when studying from video.”
– Advantages for some were disadvantages for others
– “…most students tried to study from video as if it was a book.”
– Frequent use of “fast forward” and “rewind” was difficult
• Listening, watching, and note-taking led to cognitive overloads
Copyright 2015 by R. Zotti
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Final Word…
• It’s not hard to make a video, but….
• It takes a lot of time and thought to make a
good video
Copyright 2015 by R. Zotti
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Your Turn
• Fill out the questionnaire
• Compare with your colleagues
• What did you find?
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