Screencasts

Screencasts

A screencast is a video that is made that shows the viewer the screen that the author/creator is looking at while also narrating it.  Screencast videos are a great way for people to share instructional videos with others. There are many types of learners and in this age of digital learning, a screencast video is a good way to present information for all learners, visual, auditory, and tactile, as all 3 types can practice the task their way.  With the Coronavirus shutting down gatherings and closing schools down, teachers everywhere are doing their teaching online, from elementary to college, and screencasts are great ways to deliver step by step instructions to their students.

There are several platforms to use to create screencast videos.

Jing (now to be Screencast) by TechSmith

Jing was one platform that can be used to create screencast videos. Upon starting to research the different platforms/applications I could use for this, I learned that the creators of Jing are transitioning to “Screencast” for video captures and still use “Jing” for still screen capture images until the “Screencast” app updates.

*Download

*Free 

*Help/Tips offered on page

*Menus pop up when working on recording

*Record-audio, cursor, screen full area or region

*Pro Version available for either monthly fee or yearly.

The Screencast app from TechSmith must be downloaded into the computer being used. Once downloaded, the user would have to open the app to record. I struggled finding information on exactly how many minutes of recording this application allows.  Once the recording is done, users save it on the applications “cloud” and can share it with the link given.

Screencastify

*Free

*5 minute recordings

*📹Record screen and webcam

*✂️Trim your videos

*💾Autosave to Google Drive

*📤Export as MP4, GIF and MP3

*🖥Full HD resolution

*💧No watermark

*✏️Annotation tools

*🔺Publish to YouTube

*Chrome extension

*Unlimited Version available for a yearly fee (Education Discount available)

Screencastify is another platform that can be used to create videos. This program has a Chrome extension and will be easy to use for those that switch to different devices through the day (laptop to desktop, to home device).  The extension being installed allows the user to create videos without having to click too many things to get ready to record. Having an option to record the webcam preview is great so that the viewer not only sees the computer screen, they can see the creator's face too. Once the recording is done, users save it on the applications on their own GoogleDrive and can share it with the link created, or share it to YouTube where viewers can be given the YouTube link or channel to follow.  The ability to trim videos is beneficial when editing videos.  

My Choice

After researching and working with both programs, the clear choice for me was working with Screencastify.  It offers many things, some that “Screencast” offers, but the ease of use allowed me to make the choice. 

With Screencastify being a Chrome extension, I can use any computer in which I have logged in using the Google username to create the free account.  At work, I switch between my office computer to a laptop when doing presentations with the students. Having the ability to record when doing a class live on the library learning floor would be extremely beneficial for students that may be absent on the day of a library lesson.  Many teachers are not allowed to download software (and any updates as they are pushed to the public) onto their machines without having to go through their campus tech person, such is the case for me. I think that could possibly turn into a waste of time and district money to have them install the software on both of my computers. I really liked that I was able to save my videos on my Google Drive and on my youtube account. The other company used their server/cloud and with the free version, only had access to them for 12 months.  Once the videos created are on my google drive, they are mine to keep. I liked that I did not have to download anything onto my computer, I just had to add the extension onto the browser. The editing features are also very simple to use with this program. I was able to cut/trim some of the video that I created at the beginning and at the end of my recording. I also liked that when I moved my cursor within the webpage, the viewer could see it . I really liked Screencastify, I was following them on Twitter and was able to get a free month of Unlimited for a month, using a promotional code they created for teachers having to do remote teaching for their students.  I believe that the price of $49 ($29 for educators) for a year subscription is very reasonable for the additional features offered.  

I chose to create a Screencastify video teaching my students and staff how to log into our card catalog to read/view/checkout ebooks that we own.  

I was able to share the link for my video and share it with all of my teachers to share with their students via their distance learning platforms, along with adding it to our campus Facebook page for our families to see.  

https://youtu.be/uRL1suqjGZk

Ways That Screencast Videos are Helpful

+Previously record lessons on accessing a new website or online application.

+Record live lesson to later share with students which they can use to review how to perform a task. 

+Share videos with families so that they can support classroom instruction by knowing the procedures being taught in class.

+Great for teachers having to do distance learning.

+Teacher could record lessons that have to be taught when having to be absent and can have a substitute/team teacher show the students the video.

+Can have the students explain their learning step by step to other students.

+Screencast videos are great for all types of learners, tactile, oral, and visual, as viewers can hear instructions, can see the steps and follow along to be hands on.