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I’ve been spending some travelling time thinking about engagement of students with video content. I have written previously about accessing educational videos on mobile devices during such time. But one drawback I have found is the dropping out of the mobile signal during a 20 minute video. Then I got to thinking, is this really the sort of video length to be watching when accessing via a mobile on the move? If you are on the bus, train or tube for half an hour then maybe. If you’re a student and have five or 10 minutes to kill walking across campus, or waiting for a lecture to start then probably not. Also, I’m personally finding that five minute chunks of video makes the content really accessible.
I thought back to the GALT Event in March and TED-Ed introduced by Mel Lindley. I’ve started watching (or rather listening to and semi-watching) these ‘bite-sized’ ‘info-nuggets’ and I’m liking them. Maybe it’s just the way I am, but I find it a really useful information access process. I’m often wanting to follow up (and do when I have time later) on the material I’ve just seen or heard. So in that respect it is certainly working for me.
Considering this approach I was reminded of the concept of microfilms that I read about in Sept 2013 that is very popular in Asia. These are very short films that people watch on their mobile phones whilst commuting. There is a whole industry of creative people developing around this concept. The barriers to entering the production side of microfilms is also very low. Maybe we’ll see more educational microfilms being created. Possibly this is something to try getting students involved in.
What are your thoughts? How do you like to access information on the move? What is the ideal length of an information video? Leave us a comment.
Microfilm Links:
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