Making Videos Engaging and Meaningful

Edpuzzle is an excellent resource for making online video content more interactive and engaging, allowing teachers to tailor lessons to specific learning objectives. The ability to upload your own videos, search through a rich library of content from trusted sources like YouTube, TED Talks, and Khan Academy, and add interactive elements such as voice-overs, quizzes, and links makes it a highly versatile tool for educators. Edpuzzle's integration with platforms like Google Classroom and Canvas makes it easy to assign videos and track student progress, while the added bonus of AI-generated questions helps automate and streamline the process. What I really appreciate about Edpuzzle is its potential to foster active learning. Instead of students passively watching a video, they are prompted to engage with the content through assessments and reflective questions. This encourages critical thinking and helps ensure that the video material is not only absorbed but also understood at a deeper level. The tool also offers flexibility, allowing teachers to create customized content and share their videos with other educators for collaborative use. The integration with various learning management systems (LMS) further simplifies classroom workflows, making it easier for teachers to manage content and assess student progress. However, Edpuzzle does have some drawbacks. The search function can be overwhelming due to the sheer volume of content available, and it can be challenging to find exactly what you're looking for among all the user-generated videos. This can be time-consuming, especially when there are multiple versions of the same video. Additionally, while Edpuzzle allows teachers to upload their own videos, it could benefit from more robust features for annotating and remixing videos, such as combining multiple videos into one seamless lesson. Currently, this requires sequencing multiple videos, which isn’t as efficient as combining them into one. Another consideration is the fact that user-generated content might not always be fact-checked, so teachers need to be vigilant about reviewing any content they intend to use. Additionally, videos that teachers upload can be repurposed by others unless set to private, which could raise concerns about ownership and control over educational material.

I believe that Edpuzzle is a great option for quick homework assignments, but not as an in class activity. Edpuzzles are not truly engaging, and assigning them as in class work is just another form of busy work. Instead of using edpuzzle, play a video in class and have a worksheet, or call on students to answer questions.

This software is great to keep students engaged in the material that's being posted.