Quick Tutorials

Out of the five iPad whiteboard recording apps available, Educreations and Showme are the only two apps that include an online hosting service where videos are stored for public access. Although the quick publishing capabilities of apps like Screenchomp make student video production a breeze, the online hosting component offered by Showme and Educreations make the apps excellent for recording and AUTOMATIC posting of quick tutorials for students. Below is the process I have been using:

1. Using the Google Sites “iFrame Gadget” or any other iFrame function, embed your public Showme or Educreations profile into your class site. 
2. Identify frequently asked questions or questions students ask via email or text.
3. Record solutions using Educreations or Showme.
4. Walla! Solutions are posted automatically to your website available for ALL students, not just the question asker. 

Although this seems like a very simple/no-brainer process, the fact that the iFrame functionality completely removes the step of publishing and distributing the video to students makes this process sustainable. I find myself carrying my iPad with me at all times, pulling over on the side of the road to answer student texts (I provide students with my google voice number), or simply wandering the classroom and recording solutions that I would have otherwise done on a separate sheet of paper or a whiteboard. Click here and here to see videos made via Showme and Educreations (I switched to Educreations for the second semester when it was launched). The videos are super shaky and bad quality, but that’s THE POINT. Capturing the authentic tutorial stores it for everybody, with learning taking the lead, rather than aesthetics. 

Below is a text transcript between myself and a student that references this process: