Screencasts

                              Shhhh.... I'm Screencasting!    

                        Teaching with Screen-recording :) 

          Screencasts have been a new addition to our teaching toolbox due to the pandemic. Screencasting allows teachers to display their computer screen to their classes by recording the instruction and having students watch the lesson this way. In the screencasting, you are able to give student instructions for a particular assignment or online activity. This video media helps support learning when students are working asynchronously and synchronously. These screencasts are useful if the teacher is out and wants to give students extra support in their absence by creating a screencast video that explains the expectations of the lesson/assignment.  

The following two sites are used to create screencasts:

1. Screencastify

Easy screen-recording tool facilitates outside-the-box instruction

Teachers and students alike can use Screencastify to make screen capturing simple and stress-free. The available options — recording, editing, and assigning — find a wonderful mix between being useful and not being overbearing. Screencastify might become a cornerstone tool that drives everything from instruction to feedback to professional development to assessment in a classroom if all three are used well. All of Screencastify's tools are user-friendly and plainly designed to be so, and they're more dependable than those of some of its competitors. The editing tool, in particular, works in a manner that other screencasting programs don't, and it comes with essential features like a blur tool for privacy protection. With the inclusion of the Submit tool, having students create and send back screencasts has never been easier. The key to success will be finding the perfect blend of premium features.

https://www.screencastify.com/

Paid plans (starting at $29 per year for educators and $49 per year for everyone else) release the five-minute cap and allow for unlimited Submit assignments (among other things).

Video Using Screencastify (Quizizz.com-Internet Day Vocabulary Review) link: https://watch.screencastify.com/v/xtEY5oB2doS8Kf7O2M5w

*You are even able to create interactive questions to go along with the recorded visual media. 

Internet Vocabulary Quiz:  

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1lr8sSNEeWxA8F_-gh3V1OPUmVNsFfhaX/view?usp=sharing 

2. Screencast-O-Matic

Create and edit sophisticated screencasts without breaking the bank

The depth of Screencast-O-Matic sets it apart from other screencasting software. There are more capabilities and functionality for creating videos, not only recordings, whether for educational or presentation and assessment reasons. Students may truly produce their own videos with Screencast-O-Matic, allowing them to demonstrate what they know while also making thoughtful edits and alterations for clarity, correctness, and audience involvement. Before uploading, students can use Screencast-O-editing Matic's tools to trim, merge, or add to videos, as well as add overlays, arrows, captions, and more. 

Even if you don't want to explore all of the tool's functions, simple features like the screenshot tool might help you make rapid assessments. It's simple to take a fast screenshot or capture an unedited screen recording, which might be useful for checking student progress on an essay, report, or word problem.

The main disadvantage of Screencast-O-Matic is that using some of the capabilities takes time and patience, and it's not as straightforward and intuitive as competitors. While the editing program has a lot of options, it can be annoying at times. It finds an uneasy mix between simplicity and intricacy at moments, falling short of either expectation. However, if you put in the effort to work through these peculiarities, the videos you can create with Screencast-O-Matic will well outstrip those created with other technologies. 

https://screencast-o-matic.com/

Teachers and students can make screen recordings and conduct basic editing with the free plan. The free recordings are limited to 15 minutes (in contrast to Screencastify's five-minute limit), although they do come with a watermark. Paid subscriptions unlock a slew of advanced video-editing features, including sketching, green screens, and blurring. A useful automated speech-to-text captioning capability is also included.

Video Using Screencast O'Matic (Google Slides Presentation) link: 

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1-kbwySvPeP_yfG_gkM9sNKurNFOuFn2V/view?usp=sharing 

Team Screencastify:

The screencast website creator I favored is screencastify. It was just easier to use and I have prior experience with using this application for my classes during the pandemic, especially when many students were working virtually from home. What I wasn’t able to show my student in person, I was able to create videos of how to access certain websites or how to work on certain assignments with the visual guidance of the video. The only con is you are limited to only 5 minutes of recording time with the free version . I can see myself using Screenomatic when needing to have more recording time of at least 15 minutes. 

Teaching with Screencasts

There are many ways we can use screencasting in our teaching.

Here are just a few ideas to get you thinking:

• Answer a question
• Record a lecture
• Give feedback on students’ work
• Demo how to use an application
• Build a course trailer

Sources: 

https://www.commonsense.org/education/website/screencastify

https://www.commonsense.org/education/website/screencast-o-matic

https://screencast-o-matic.com/

https://www.screencastify.com/

https://www.commonsense.org/education/articles/the-best-screencasting-tools-for-classrooms

https://teachinginhighered.com/2018/03/13/screencast-your-teaching/