FIU Online’s monthly Faculty Webinar series explores relevant instructional strategies and effective ways to use technology in an online classroom. The recent Re-Imagining Video Lectures for Impactful Learning Experiences webinar offered a crash course on PlayPosit, a powerful tool for adding interactivity to video presentations. It includes how-tos on developing interactive videos for asynchronous and synchronous instruction, constructing formative assessments, and creating immersive learning experiences using discussion forums and embedded activities.
Instant Replay: Re-Imagining Video Lectures for Impactful Learning Experiences
Presenter Maikel Alendy, FIU Online’s Learning Design Innovation Manager, showcased utilizing PlayPosit in your course. If you missed this webinar, you can watch the recording or read some key takeaways below.
Video is Truly Impactful
Have you ever thought about why certain scenes in films are memorable? In the webinar, Maikel Alendy shared how watching the late ‘90s film “She’s All That” impacted what he thought social life in high school should be, and what he wanted to get out of his own experience.
This impact, Alendy explained, is a result of the power of video content. From the very beginning of filmmaking, video formats have been used for instructional content. But despite the many years that have passed since their introduction, videos have remained fundamentally the same in educational settings. That is not a drawback; video in learning works because of its simplicity.
Here are three key reasons video learning works:
- Deep Encoding- Learners have better memory recall when video content supplements learning material.
- Personalized Learning- Videos can appeal to nostalgia and cultural references that can create a personalized connection to learning content.
- Contextualizing- Video can help contextualize very complicated concepts.
Despite these positive attributes, some aspects of video learning always need work. For instance, are students even watching the videos, especially those in asynchronous environments? Real student understanding of the content is a more fundamental concern. Luckily, PlayPosit is a tool that can help address these concerns.
What is PlayPosit?
PlayPosit is an educational tool that adds interaction to video content. It is a web-based platform that features an intuitive interface to make the creation of interactive videos quick and easy. Instructors can use various types of videos with the tool, including content from YouTube and Zoom. In addition, there is the option to type in the URL of a video found on the web. The ability for FIU instructors to upload videos is forthcoming as well.
Once you apply a video to the PlayPosit platform, it becomes what’s called a “bulb.”
PlayPosit features eight different types of interaction, including:
- Multiple Choice
- Check All
- Fill in the Blank
- Poll
- Free Response
- Discussion
- Pause
- Web Embed
PlayPosit integrates with Canvas, meaning it can sync grades with the Canvas Gradebook. The tool auto-grades three of the interaction types (Multiple Choice, Check All, and Fill in The Blank). In contrast, free response and discussions can be graded manually. The Pause and Web Embed interactions are called Annotations, a means of providing additional information during a video. Instructors can find information about the different question types on the PlayPosit website.
Might As Well Jump
PlayPosit capabilities are numerous; but, how does it relate to the two issues mentioned above? How can we be sure students are engaging with the video content? In addition, how can we ensure the video content is actually teaching students? Therefore, to address these concerns, PlayPosit offers additional features that maximize its suite of interactions.
PlayPosit collects many more analytics then grades to truly give an instructor insight into the efficacy of video content and student performance. These metrics allow instructors to see how long a student watched a bulb; individual responses to each interaction within the bulb; and how many attempts at each bulb interaction. Instructors can collect this data to see not just any one student’s attempts, but to assess how a group of students performs on a particular interaction.
In other words, these are powerful tools that will provide answers to questions of instructional efficacy. It can determine if students are working with a video and paying attention, and to a point, if a video or interaction is effective. In addition, PlayPosit provides a means for personalized learning that can respond to student performance and comprehension.
PlayPosit has an option when creating an interaction to include “jumps.” A jump is basically a link that can take the student to a different part of the video. Instructors can construct a PlayPosit interaction so that a wrong answer will include immediate constructive feedback, as well as a “jump” to the portion of the video covering the incorrectly answered information. At the same time, instructors can program a “jump” into an evaluative pre-video question to move students past information they already know.
It’s Your Thing
PlayPosit bulbs are highly customizable to get the learning experience desired. You can restrict rewinding, skipping, fast forwarding, and retaking questions/interactions. Multiple videos can be incorporated into one bulb. When combined with something like the “jump” feature, it can lead to a learning experience that wouldn’t be possible by simply embedding a video.
Students have access to many of these features, too. You can incorporate a discussion forum right into a video, requiring students to comment and respond to their peers as they watch a video. Students have access to many of the same embed features as the instructor, so their responses can take the form of text, images, or their own video content.
Using PlayPosit: What’s Next?
Above all, the benefits of visual learning are proven. Similarly, PlayPosit provides the means of re-imagining video lectures to make these essential video learning resources more vital and effective for your students. This webinar and recap article barely scratch the surface of all the ways PlayPosit could be used in your course.
So how do you get started with PlayPosit? The great news is it is already installed in your Canvas course. Please reach out through canvas.FIU.edu/support to open a ticket for a consultation on getting started with PlayPosit.