I have just created a short movie using MovieMaker, a program which I found relatively easy to use seeing I have previously made videos with this tool. Digital videos are a great tool to use in the classroom though can sometimes be time consuming to make. I believe that they could be used in many contexts. Some of the strenghts and opportunities are:
- allowing students to reflect on their work
- providing an assessment task - students may be required to apply their knowledge and include relevant findings in a video according to a unit that they have been part of
- encourages technological literacy in students
- provides a tool for communication and evaluation
- provides stimulus for visual and auditory learners
- could be used as a hook for a lesson or crafted to be an activity that poses Higher Order Thinking questions to students
- could require students to synthesise their findings by combining information and prompting decision making and planning about what is to go into the movie to gain the best possible result
Weaknesses and threats are:
- MovieMaker may be difficult to teach because of the many functions and applications available in the program
- virtually no pedagogy in some movies
- possibility of it not be utilised as a tool which can be taught through and may not have any relevance to learning (needs to be in context)
As you can see, the movie that I have create poses a variety of questions which prompt students to reflect on what they are seeing and compare their daily life with what it might be like to live in a country other than Australia. As the students see the images, they could write down dot points to answer the questions featured within the movie. A lesson could follow this which synthesises the information found through collaboration with other peers. Students could work together to find the similarities and differences between our culture and that of Asia.