A while ago we’ve talked about how we could use video to “spice up” the communication with your students, and you were invited to check out Cornwall College Students’ Union YouTube Channel. Alex Ledbrooke, their Communication and Participation Officer, has shared with us their latest video production on the result of exit survey for 2008/09 academic year:
How did you come up with this idea? The ideas were a combined effort. The content itself was generated by the survey. I took the “you could fit xx double decker buses…” idea to the students who gave me the topical themes to work around.
What about the actual production of the video? I then did the creation (which is using powerpoint and very simple animation) and finally the music was recorded by a student at our Camborne campus.
Although Alex explained his work in very simple terms, I’m sure you’d agree that there’re lots of creative work and effort in it. Not only did the students’ union manage to report “boring” figures in an interesting, easy-to-understand way, the cooperation between students’ union and other students with talents is also brilliant! And of course their committment to follow up the negative experience is encouraging too!
So have you been inspired? If so, don’t sit and wait – make your own media today!
Two days ago, NUS hosted the first annual networking event for FE student officers and learner voice professionals. We had altogether 80 participants joining us to share experience and ideas on various campaigns and issues in the FE sector. Becta is also very pleased to support the event as sole sponsor.
As this blog is about using technology to strengthen learner voice, I’m sure you already expected something about technology! Yes technology played an important role in facilitating the whole event - We’ve built a social networking site using Ning, for delegates to check out agenda, discuss different issues and share thoughts before, during and after events (Ning is a good platform if you wish to have more customised and secure environment for a specific target community). Some delegates volunteered to use flip cameras to record their fellows’ actions and feedbacks throughout the day. We also had a breakout area with laptops, so delegate could comment, blog or upload files onto the Ning website real time. Besides, we also had a Twitter hashtag (#nusfestival), and invited delegates to text us feedbacks at the end of the day. As some delegates mentioned, technology was everywhere and it proved to be very effective in creating and facilitating the dynamic!
We’ve also held a workshop on how technology could help engage students. Delegates shared how they currently used technology at their colleges, and what more they would like to see in the coming year. Many students’ unions are now looking at setting up their own websites, using online registration for their activities and events, introducing online forum and blogs, installing video conferencing and texting system, as well as improving the use of their virtual learning environment. It’s encouraging to see more and more officers seeking technological solutions to better support their students in multiple campuses, with various engagement alongside their learning journey.
The best quote I heard about technology during the day was – It’s about finding a solution, even simple things like a phone call can be very useful! - It’s not about making life fancy, but making good use of technology to get the right things done!
In the last few blog entries, we have discussed how an online presence can be established through social networking sites and independent websites; while these tools are powerful and can effectively disseminate information and maintain a searchable platform, there is one single tool I’d highly recommend on top of them – Blog.
Why blogging?
Unlike other formal communications, blogging enables a mixture of formal and informal communication approaches: Company CEOs talking about their ambition, travellers sharing their experience, students’ union presidents expressing their ideas and thoughts… the unqiue “voice” in between the lines is more engaging and reflective, just like our old friends telling their stories. At the same time, blog is also a very good tool to provide information and collect feedbacks. It’s therefore a very popular tool in this social media era.
If you don’t want to spend a lot of time maintain an independent website, and you don’t want to use social networking tools such as Facebook and MySpace, blogging tools can also help you establish an online presence quickly. For more information on how blog can be used as an alternative to a website, check out information 1 and 2.
What to blog?
The essence of a blog is its update – so you can keep your audience informed anything that you think they’d be be interested in. For example:
Event information
Call for campaign support
Policy updates
Meeing highlight
Discussion of learning issues
Want some ideas on the content and the tone of communication? Why not checking out some excellent examples from various government and political organisations?
How to blog?
Exisiting blogging tools are pretty user-friendly, so you won’t need a long time to pick the skills up. However, there’re other issues you need to consider. Resource planning is very important:
How often do you plan to blog? (If it’s left in the cold for too long, your audience might lose interest!)
How many people are involving? (Bringing in different voices is brilliant, but that needs a bit of coordination.)
Who is responsible for what?
What kind of tone of language would you adopt?
Do you have other tools to help you create content? (E.g. Camcorders, audio recorders, etc.)
Should your blog be hosted externally (E.g. with WordPress or Blogger)? Within your organisation’s website? Or within VLE (Most VLE supports blogging function)?
How would you integrate your blog to your wider communication strategy?
Need more ideas? Check them out: Imperial College Union Blog Your Lewisham College (This blog is establised by college members, but open for individual students to submit entries for publication. This idea is quite interesting and has made good use of the “collaborative power” in the social media era.)
A while ago, we have discussed how videos can spice up your communication with your students. Lancaster and Morecambe College Students’ Union has just finished their new promotion video, which is really informative and with a great sense of humour! Here is the video:
We have invited their Student Liaison Officer (SLO), Adele Burrow, and Film & TV Tutor, Janine Bebbington, to share their experience:
What are you planning to use this video for?
The film was primarily made to be used in the Induction Talks to new students this September so it will be seen by all new students to the college. It is also on Facebook and U-tube, and was shown on a TV by Main Reception throughout the Summer Term 2009.
How did you start the planning and preparation?
The SLO contacted the tutor on the Film and TV course and asked if it was possible for her students to put together a promotional film for the SU. This fitted in well with one of the modules on the course so she asked the SU to put together a brief for her students (first year National Diploma Film and TV). The SLO presented the brief to the students as ‘an external client’ to give them real-life experience.
How much did it cost?
The SU decided that they would contribute £200 towards the film so that the students could purchase a new group tripod and individual mini-disks.
Who decided the content and presentation of ideas?
The students on the course split into groups and came up with ideas, which were then pitched to the SLO over an afternoon (unfortunately the SU officers couldn’t make the time of this session – hopefully they will be able to do the judging next year). The winning group was selected and the other groups then fed their ideas into the idea for “SU TV”. None of us was too prescriptive – that way everyone was allowed to gain from the project – the SLO and tutor were open to suggestions from students and willing to trust their ideas. Projects like this could become unstuck if too many “directors” emerge
How was the production process? Did you encounter any difficulties?
The filming was made over just a few weeks and there were a few challenges along the way – e.g. the module fell in the Autumn Term and thus the SU volunteers were new in their roles – some didn’t want to be filmed and some couldn’t meet at the times the film students were available. In spite of the challenges and the short turn around, the students put together a fantastic film with the support of their tutor. We also had a fairly tight structure that the students operated within, so that things did not run away with themselves.
What do you think are the advantages of using videos?
It’s a fantastic medium that reaches a wider audience. Student feedback is always to cut down text on flyers and that many don’t read lots of text information. Creating a vibrant and amusing short film captures the imagination and represents the opportunities much more clearly.
If you were to give one advice to others who are interested to use videos, what would you say to them?
Make links with departments with the expertise e.g. Film/ TV courses! The tutors can then look at where it could fit into the curriculum and choose motivated groups who are interested and up for the project.
Last time we’ve talked about Podcast; let’s have a look at video this week.
Thanks to the blooming of YouTube - breaking news, hidden talents and captivating speeches are now more accessible than ever. Besides uploading videos, many people also use it as a “search engine” to find new information, ideas and inspiration. But you might be wondering: how can we make the best out of it for student participation?
Why using Video?
Video gives an alternative for people to get the information they need. Not only is video more entertaining (of course only when the content and presentation are interesting!), it also helps us get a flavour of the events’ atmosphere and people’s emotions. Similar to podcast, this nature can better keep your auidence’s attention and get your voice heard in a friendly and personal manner. Not to mention: Making videos is now easier than ever!
What to capture?
As you can imagine, videos are in a much better position to capture actions, atmospehre and movements. Therefore it is a popular tool for recording events, such as student music contest and football competition. However, have you thought of…
Presidental broadcast on students’ union updates?
Promoting nomination and election?
Induction information for new students?
Students talking about their learning experience?
Apprentices sharing their daily life at work place?
Interview with principal or staff members?
Campaign highlights?
As technology develops, students don’t necessarily be passive auidence. So why not invite your students to make videos around a certain topic, and engage them in discussion and sharing? An idea could be “One minute of your favourite time on campus”; another interesting one is currently carried out by University of Central Lancashire Students’ Union - 100 Voices from new students. People love learning others’ stories, especially for those who are related to their own lives!
So use your creativity and tell the stories!
How to make video?
Capturing – Some people think nowadays the quality of videos is not so crucial as before. That said, we still need equipments which can have a decent image quality, as well as audio support. Small handheld tools such as (good quality) digitial camera and point-and-shoot camera (e.g. flip camera and busbi video) can help you produce video footage quickly and easily. They are light and easy to carry; you can always bring them along and and capture interesting things when they happen. If you need videos with more professional appearence and audio support, you would need a good camcorder. Usually your Learning and Resource Centre or IT Department would have some for short loan.
Editing – No matter your video aims to be simple and friendly, or professional and funky, you’ve to edit it before release. Tools such as iMovie, Window Movie Maker and VirtualDub can help you with the task. Do bear in mind that video editing can be a time-consuming process: seeking support from your team or volunteers from media studies students can lighten your burden.
Hosting – While YouTube is seemingly an obvious choice, you can also consider other wesbites, such as blip.tv and Hulu, to suit your specific needs.
Have you ever got the feeling which you are tired of reading page after page? I’m sure it happens to all of us – while having a homepage, publishing newsletter or sending our emails can be very efficient and informative, it might not be able to draw people’s attention all the time. That’s where technology such as videos and podcast comes in and makes a difference!
What is Podcast?
Why Podcast?
Keep people’s attention: Not everyone has the time/energy/patience to keep reading. Conveying messages or reporting updates into audio format allow your students catch up with you like they listen to news or music – a good alternative indeed!
Portable: They can listen to your “story”, anytime and anywhere, by downloading the podcasts to their mp3 or mobile
Alternative “voice”: Depending on what content your podcast has, you can keep your students updated with narrative (e.g. monthly update from LGBT Officer) or interactive (e.g. chitchating with an international student about his experience on campus) approach, which makes it more interesting, lively and personal.
What to Podcast?
Ideas can be endless! In principle, anything you can report by writing can be made into podcast. The key is to be creative, concise and witty. Some examples can be:
Regular updates from officers
News of / calling for campaigns
Interviews with staff and students on different issues
“Digest” of meetings and minutes (how the decision can influence students’ life)
How to Podcast?
One of the advantages of podcasting is its accessibility! You don’t need to have expensive equipments – a reasonable audio recorder (or mp3 with recording function) can already do the job! After recording, you can edit it with freeware such as Audacity before making it available online. Remember to allow your students to subscribe your podcast by using RSS, so your new podcast will automatically go to their iTune or other audio players.
That was the answer we had most often when asking what students’ favourite technological was at the moment. The JISC’s research on Learner experiences of e-learning has shown that students often attach emotional significance to technologies. This dominant response from students does echo the finding.
From student executives point of view, social networking sites such as Facebook provide powerful tools for them to connect fellow college students – those who want to keep abreast of students activities/campaigns, those who study part-time, those who are in apprenticeship and only come to the campus once a week. With its simple yet multi-functional features, they can update students their news and activities, show videos, blog and invite students to join their events without additional cost. Through the word of mouth, they can connect 70% (unofficial figures suggested by some of the student officers) of the student population who have Facebook accounts.
We also had a discussion on what made Facebook their choice over other websites. Popularity, simplity and user-friendliness were the keys. Student officers choose the tool(s) which help them reach the largest number of members; Facebook is an obvious choice for them, compared to other social networking sites such as Bebo, which is for younger population in their eyes. It is also believed that students might find it inconvenient to log-in to different websites; the “mashable” nature of Facebook thus provides a pltaform for communication and sharing, where everyone can access easily.
However, students do face problems brought about by the college AUP. Many delegates pointed out that access to social networking sites is denied in their colleges. This is due to various issues, such as safeguarding, cyber-bullying, inappropriate content, as well as common concern of students browsing these websites during class time. When we asked the delegates how they felt about the situation, most of them did not see limiting access as a good solution. Although they understand the concern of protecting students who are under 18, they would like to see their colleges providing more guidance and support for safe internet usage, instead of banning access altogether.
From what we have heard throughout the last Becta/NUS events, it is pertinent to call for colleges’ reconsideration of their ICT policy. A more open and supportive approach will not only enable students to build a stronger community with sense of belonging, but also help colleges maximise the benefits which existing technology can offer.
And of course their committment to follow up the negative experience is encouraging too!
Posted by wingyinchan 
