The problems of implementing video announcements are among those that challenge many new educational undertakings. Such issues include hardware expenses, bandwidth, time, privacy when publishing student content and the varying levels of digital literacy of teachers and students. At Harkins coordinating student and classroom schedules to accommodate both the production (involving certain students) and the broadcast of the video announcements (involving the entire school) was also tough. In the end, the collaboration of a supportive staff helped us find a way to meet our scheduling needs. Other challenges were met with even more support from various players in our school community. The district provided much of the hardware and bandwidth, my colleague and I volunteered our time to get video announcements up and running, parents signed waivers for publishing student content and the students involved are more than willing to learn new skills. If there is a will, there is a way!
In researching the trend of video announcements, many new ideas have surfaced to challenge our HMS news crew and the student body in the future. Offering contests and classroom competitions via the announcements would certainly hook student interest and help build school spirit. Involving the community in the announcements can be achieved through video interviews with community members. Video announcements are also a great medium for character education and promoting morals and values. Exploring all of these avenues will prove a worthy task for our student creators.
Students are more easily able to identify with their school when they create and observe video images put forth by their school’s video announcements. Today, students are familiar with video format and able to easily relate to this media. Video announcements engage students in a spirit of constructivist learning when they participate in the various roles that lead up to the final product. Careful planning that involves all stakeholders is the key to a successful implementation of video announcements. In the green room, students must become motivated creators and teachers should act as encouraging facilitators. Constant assessment and adjustment help see video announcements improve. It has been my pleasure to oversee such a project at Harkins Middle School. I encourage other educators to indulge their students in the rich learning experience that video announcements provide.
