Video Content - Management and Use

Like with any technology in a course, videos should be used with a purpose, not just for the sake of including them. Identifying the purpose of the video in your course helps ensure that the video content aligns with module-level objectives and assists students with content comprehension. If you have multiple videos that serve identical purposes, you may want to identify a single video to keep in the course so that students can focus their time on the information in one video instead of on the same information over three videos. 

Did you create the video or are you using video content from another resource? If you are using content from another resource, it is important to be aware of the copyright use and accessibility features of the video. Many instructors use publisher content, so it is important to review the quality and accessibility of content that you have not created. If you own the video, you will have the opportunity to address quality and accessibility yourself, or with the assistance of an instructional designer.

If you are using online videos, such as from YouTube, please be aware of the limitations of video use from YouTube, such as copyright, close caption accessibility needs, and the reliability (or lack of reliability) that the YouTube link witll remain stable. This is particularly true of reusing video content from semester to semester. See the topics below for more detail.

If you have not yet created your own videos in the course but plan to do so, have you decided what software you plan to use? The software you intend to use may be decided by what elements you wish to include in your video as well as your comfort level with video technology. Salisbury University provides Panopto, a lecture capture software that can be used on SU or personal computers, tablets, and phones by faculty, staff, and students alike. The software is free to use when associated with your SU account. Panopto allows for many uses such as to capture video, or capture a Powerpoint as you narrate it and/or annotate it, upload an existing video, and even add quiz questions for interactive knowledge checks as students video the video content.

You may choose to use other software that is not supported by ID&D, but that you may be more familiar with on your own device or you may also choose to record video directly within MyClasses using the Media Recorder.

If you are comfortable with video editing, you may decide to use a more advanced video editing software, such as Camtasia, which is available on all Faculty Studio computers for faculty use, or Adobe Premiere Pro (part of Adobe Creative Cloud), which is available through the Software Center or the IT HelpDesk.

Once you know what recording software you plan to use, you can create content for your course using video recording best practices. You will then want to consider where your video content will be stored and how students access the video content.

If you are creating your own video content, please be aware that there are storage limits for files in MyClasses Courses and User accounts. If you intent to include multiple large video files, you will need to use a video hosting website. You can use Panopto to upload MP4 videos that you create in other software, if you wish to host your videos online and embed them into MyClasses using this tool. If you choose to use another video hosting tool, you can link to your videos in your course as needed. However, when using a web-based cloud hosting solution, you will want to be aware of the permission settings for that site.

Okay - you have created or selected your videos, but have you decided how and where students will access them? Will they be accessed through a publisher website? Will they be included in the course itself via a link, or directly embedded on a page, surrounded by context? Have you granted viewing rights to students based on where the videos are stored (such as through Panopto, OneDrive, DropBox, Google Drive)? Being aware of your delivery and audience permissions will allow for an easy viewing experience during the course. Feel free to reach out to an instructional designer to help test your video content prior to the beginning of the semester.