What if learning could be as simple a playing with coloured blocks? What if learning could take place anywhere, anytime, with moving pieces, with a focus and re-focus on what one really wants?
Nothing particularly new in that thought. However, reinforcing this notion of learning autonomy to students is can be done differently and more dynamically.
One of my favourite tools for learning autonomy is interactive videos. These can used in the classroom by students individually or in pairs, for self-study, for online teaching/learning, and for blended courses. Educanon, now Playposit,
has been a calling port for me to create interactive videos, as it is simple for students and educators to use. Here you can find an example of how I have used it in a lesson.
Nevertheless, as with all digital tools and platforms, some disappear after a while; either they are discontinued or after using the free version, they suddenly end that option and to continue using them, teachers/students must pay for their service.
On another note, the choice of tools depends on the individual educator and his/her own teaching context, i.e. what is most appropriate for what they are teaching and their students' needs and interests. For some, there may no immediate reason to choose to use Playposit instead of Edpuzzle ; in the end, at least for me, it is a personal choice.
With that in mind, I'd like to point out some other alternatives which I find of interest for learning and may offer some kind of backup if a particular tool becomes discontinued (e.g. Zaption). Two creators of interactive videos which have caught my attention are H5P and Vizia.
With both H5P and Vizia, (example of Vizia on the left) you can include different kinds of viewing activities, such as adding polls, quizzes with short answers and multiple choice) as well as embed the videos.
H5P offers even more features such as
memory games and highlighting words - excellent for language classes and revising concepts.
Below (at the end of this blog post) is an example of a quiz with H5P and here you can find tutorials which guide you with how to best create these interactive videos as well as an author guide.
Wirewax is a different kind of interactive video platform, but one that could be used by students for different kinds of projects.
What other interactive video tools can you recommend?
Videos for Learning and Revising
Life, Light, Action! Videos for Storytelling
A Wealth of Videos for Classrooms