“Lights, camera, action! Video: a tool for teaching and assessment” was the theme of a national online conference held at the Technological University of the Shannon (TUS) this week.
Organised by Dr Geraldine Cuskelly and Dr Anne Marie O’Brien, both of TUS Midlands, the online conference brought together speakers from Queen’s University Belfast, University of Sussex, University of Manchester, King’s College London, Washington State University and TUS itself to share their experiences of using video in teaching and assessment.
Among the topics discussed was the use of video for the “flipped classroom”, a contemporary teaching and learning approach which encourages students to engage with learning materials outside the classroom in preparation for dynamic classroom interactions, or as an alternative to a traditional written assessment.
“The use of video increased significantly in response to the requirement to go off campus during the pandemic. We all responded using many forms of digital technology, but some of the speakers at our conference had already been using video long before the pandemic hit,” explained Dr Geraldine Cuskelly, a lecturer in the Department of Sport and Health at TUS Midlands.
More than 100 people registered for the event which featured speakers from a wide range of disciplines, including dentistry, education, social science, food science, engineering, and nutrition.
TUS’s VP of Student Education and Experience, Frances O’Connell, opened the conference. “At TUS, the student experience is paramount and there is ample evidence in the pedagogic literature that video can enhance the learning experience. Recent work within TUS is now capturing all the innovative methods and tools that can be and are being used by the TUS academic community across a wide range of disciplines to support student learning both in and outside of the classroom,” she explained.
“The use of video can be such a powerful tool in capturing, synopsising, and presenting visually complex theoretical components and themes using all of the learner’s abilities and competencies to learn”.
Originally planned as an in-person event, the decision to go online enabled a wider programme of speakers and facilitated more delegates to participate.
Those interested in learning more about the flipped classroom approach or other innovative techniques in teaching can register to receive a recording of the national conference here.
The conference was organised with support from the Department of Learning and Teaching at TUS Midlands and sponsored by the National Forum for the Enhancement of Teaching and Learning in HE.