Monday, August 14, 2006

YouTube and Google Video

Have you seen YouTube? It’s a site where anyone can freely upload a video file of up to 100 Mb in size and a maximum length of 10 minutes per video. In fact, a user can upload an unlimited number of these videos!!! The website freely hosts your video and visitors can come and view them. Similar services exist such as Google Video. Unlike YouTube, it has no size/length restrictions but it does require a Google account. These video hosting services work great. Try them. Just browse around serching for key words. You'll see some pretty informative, entertaining and creative examples of home made videos.

So why am I posting this to e-Learning Acupuncture? Well, digital storytelling has been an established learning activity for a couple of years now. With the arrival of free video hosting sites such as YouTube and Google Video, the hosting problem for Digital Storytelling files by students is technically solved. Students could create their videos and upload them to YouTube or Google Video easily. This hosting server relieves any server load pressures caused by large Digital Storytelling videos on a school’s LMS server. That’s a good thing. Still unconvinced? Check out one example of a lovely digital storytelling project created by grade 5 and 6 students at Saxlington Public School in England (make sure to turn on your speakers). After viewing the video consider how useful this free hosting site is for children at this school. They can share a simple URL with their parents, grandparents, cousins and friends, and everyone can see the fruits of their labour. Very cool!!! If you have any examples to share of your digital story projects and how they are freely hosted on the Internet, please leave a comment by clicking below.