Video in the Classroom...

The first video I want to talk about isn't necessarily online (for free anyways), but is an excellent resource to use in the Phys Ed curriculum. The title is talhotblond. This is a documentary about an online relationship that turns into a love triangle between two coworkers and a female (aka talhotblond). It ends up taking a turn for the worse and there are life changing events that occur. I can't say too much more without spoiling it for anyone who has not seen it.

I would use this video for the Healthy Relationships unit. After the video is done, students would fill out a questionnaire regarding what happened in the video in regards to healthy relationships and effective communication. Then, as a class, discuss what may have been different if certain scenarios played out differently. 

The second video I would use is an episode of Seinfeld. It is episode 9 of season 2 titled "The Deal." It is an episode that deals with a relationship between two friends (Jerry and Elaine) and how they want to be able to keep their friendship the same, but become sexually active with each other. It goes through them talking about it, Jerry talking to one of his friends (George) about it, and then other issues that arise from it. 

This video would be used again in the Phys Ed curriculum under the Healthy Relationships unit. 

I believe video can be a very useful tool in the classroom for both the teacher and the students. It can benefit the students by giving them options for presentations. Some students may not be able to speak extremely well in front of their peers, so instead of 'embarrassing themselves' they can make a recording prior to that day and present the video instead. It can also give students a look at a topic from different perspectives which will increase the chance of them understanding the concept being taught.

Teachers can also benefit from video because it decreases the time they actually have to teach. Just making sure you are actually reading this :) ! But on a more serious note, teachers can make a concept stick with their students that much more by incorporating  multimedia into their lessons. It will keep the students more engaged and they will be able to focus better. 

I think students making their own videos is a great idea, however putting them online (ie YouTube) is a different story. I would not personally put any videos created in my classroom onto YouTube unless it was a private account where only the students' parents were able to see it. It would be much safer to have a password protected website to post videos to if I was wanting to share them with parents.