LEARNING
connections
Multidisciplinary 30, 39 • Social Studies 32 • Science 34 • Mathematics 36 • English Language Arts 38
Lights, Camera, Learning!
By Glen Bull and Lynn Bell
ISTOCKPHOTO.COM/SIMON2579
Media underwent a transformation from analog to digital
formats during the transition
from the 20th to the 21st century. In
fact, this year the analog broadcasting
network in the United States is being
replaced by a digital system. This tipping point is a cultural shift as well as
a technological transition.
Older analog technologies were
relatively fixed and unchangeable.
Celluloid film was revised by cutting
and physically resplicing the pieces in
a different order. The process for editing an analog videotape was almost
as cumbersome. Once revised, it was
necessary to make physical copies to
disseminate the revisions.
In contrast, digital video is easy to
revise and disseminate. From 1948 to
2008, NBC, ABC, and CBS broadcast
more than a million hours of programming. In the past six months,
individuals posted more than a million hours of original video on You-Tube alone—more than the networks
broadcast in the previous 60 years
combined.
Social studies. Today, digital video is
taking its place alongside other forms
of historical artifacts such as photographs, maps, newspapers, and texts.
Many social studies teachers already
take advantage of documentaries and
Hollywood films to investigate the big
ideas of history, geography, economics, and civics. Video can add motion,
sound, and a sense of real life to social
studies instruction. Further, teachers
can guide students through documentary projects in which they engage in
critical thinking as they work with
digitized primary sources—the raw
materials of social studies.
Science. In contrast to the social
studies, which focus on history and
human endeavors, science is primarily
concerned with natural phenomena
explored empirically, often through
visual observation. In the science
classroom, digital video—especially
when enhanced by special effects
such as time-lapse, slow-motion,
and extreme close-up photography
or when paired with data collected
via probeware—provides a wide range
of opportunities for engaging in scientific inquiry. Video not only allows
students to see the detail of a phenomenon they might not otherwise
Michael Wensch, a digital
ethnographer, reports that youth
contribute the majority of posts on
You Tube. The 10,000 hours per day
posted on You Tube are the equivalent of 400 continually broadcasting
channels. They are posted in the
form of 200,000 three-minute
videos intended for an audience
of 100 or fewer viewers in most
instances. The shift from analog to
digital video transformed the system from a unidirectional analog
broadcast to a two-way conversation, resulting in the birth of participatory media.
Digital video offers new opportunities for teaching science, social
studies, mathematics, and English
language arts. The professional education associations for each content
area are devoting extensive thought
to ways digital video might be used
to strengthen student learning.
The affordances of digital video
that appeal to these educators differ
substantially based on the nature of
their content area.
Teachin g with Digita l Video across the Curriculum
La ngu ageAr Ar ts
Discipline Instructional Methods
Social Studies Interpreting the record of human endeavors through media
Science Exploring and analyzing natural phenomena
Mathematics Interpreting multiple representations of visual patterns
English
Communicating through multiple modes of new literacies
