Multimedia Design Outline; A Beginner’s Guide to Nearpod – Assignment 4

Photo by Nearpod
Introduction to our Media Object; Nearpod.

For our Multimedia Design project, we have decided to compile a series of video tutorials intended to instruct learners, primarily classroom teachers, on how to use the educational resource Nearpod to present material to students. To elaborate, Nearpod is a digital platform where teachers can upload their previously made lessons (PowerPoints, GoogleSlides, PDFs, etc.) and edit them for further interaction (Nearpod, n.d.). Choosing a premade lesson off of Nearpod’s library, or creating one from scratch on Nearpod itself are also available options (Nearpod, n.d.). Specifically, teachers can add formative assessment check-ins to gauge student understanding by incorporating quizzes, open-ended questions, and audio responses (Nearpod, n.d.). Additionally, teachers can add media such as Virtual Reality simulations or integrate relevant websites and videos to increase student engagement (Nearpod, n.d.). When it comes to content delivery, Nearpod offers 3 means; 

  1. Live participation, ideal for in-person or video-conferencing learning, where teachers control the pace of the lesson and students participate on their own devices (Nearpod, n.d.). 
  2. Student-paced, ideal for at home learning, where students progress at their own speed (Nearpod, n.d.). 
  3. Front of class, ideal for in-person learning, where teachers can project their lessons to facilitate collaborative discussions, and student devices are not needed (Nearpod, n.d.). 
Rationale

With the uncertainty and inconsistency of in-person and at home learning due to COVID-19 for teachers around the world this past year, we were inspired to to focus our assignment 4 on Nearpod as it offers a comprehensive solution by allowing each uploaded lesson to be adaptable to the given circumstances (i.e. live participation or student paced). As well, if a student was away for an extended period of time or needed extra support in terms of having a concrete copy of a lesson, Nearpod is a great course of action. We also liked how seamlessly formative assessment can be integrated into each Nearpod lesson – we recognize that oftentimes this can be a challenge for teachers, but, as made accessible through Nearpod, having check-ins actually a part of each lesson rather than an activity afterwards, that can digitally record student data, would make evaluation easier.

Overview

To educate learners about Nearpod, we have created 5 video tutorials, introducing the basic, necessary skills of: creating a Nearpod account, navigating the Nearpod library to find and save a pre-made lesson, editing existing features within a saved Nearpod lesson, adding a video to a saved Nearpod lesson, understanding the difference between a live participation and student-paced Nearpod lesson, and giving students access to a Nearpod lesson. We would ask all learners to follow along with our videos, stopping when needed, to take part in a more hands-on experience, and to walk away confident using Nearpod on their own. 

Learning Outcomes

Each learning outcome below has a corresponding video tutorial that learners can follow along with to help them familiarize themselves with Nearpod and its basic features.

By the end of this topic, learner’s will be able to:

Create a Nearpod teacher account:

Navigate the Nearpod library to find and save a  pre-made lesson. Open lesson and show how a lesson can be edited (click in to show how a lesson can be changed:

Edit existing features within a saved Nearpod lesson:

Understand the difference between a student-paced and live Nearpod lesson. Give learners access to a Nearpod lesson:

Create their own Nearpod lesson using multiple tools:

Evaluation

In the last tutorial video, learners will be instructed to create their own mini Nearpod presentation using the skills learned in the prior videos. We purposefully left a degree of flexibility in the hands-on activity so that they could play with and explore the tools they feel would benefit their slides the most. The finished slides would then be posted as a blog post or emailed to the educator for assessment. We would specifically be checking that a variety of Nearpod slides were included and that they were customized to the learner’s chosen theme. This would show us if they understand how to create and edit presentations using Nearpod.

Obstacles

There are two main obstacles that we found while putting this resource together. The first being that the text is not editable in the premade Nearpod slides. It was originally planned that we would create a tutorial editing elements within premade slides, but this proved to be tough without being able to edit the written portions of them. Second, there are so many features and options to explore within Nearpod that it was tricky to widdle it down to a few key points that strung together nicely for our tutorials.

Learning Theories

 Our Multimedia Design project was made according to the model of experiential learning, whose goal is to engage learners in direct experience  to increase their knowledge and skill development (Queen’s Experiential Learning Hub, n.d.). Specifically, we have created video tutorials highlighting the basic competencies needed to navigate Nearpod, which learners can use as a guide to explore the website with themselves. Thus, while completing our resource, learners will be gaining hands-on practice with Nearpod, which they can later apply to their future presentations. In cohesion with the experiential learning model, and as similarly described, we have based our assignment on off of the educational theory of constructivism, which is founded on the belief that authentic learning takes place when students can actively take part in the process of meaning-making (Ertmer & Newby, 2013). The preceding implies that when a lesson is taught in a constructivist manner, students are given chances to explore, reflect, and evaluate new ways of thinking, as well as relate them to their prior knowledge (Ertmer & Newby, 2013). Thus, while we have provided video tutorials showing how to use Nearpod, they are merely a jumping off point for learners; while accessing them learners are encouraged to progress at their own pace, stopping to extend their understanding by asking questions, or take initiative by further investigating a particular topic of interest. 

Multimedia Theories and Principles

In order to create optimal learning conditions for those utilizing our project, we have adhered to three of the information processing theories touched on in EDCI 337. To elaborate, with Dual Coding Theory stating that humans store sensory input in verbal and non-verbal subsystems, our video tutorials combine audio and visual input, so that learners can receive instruction in two formats (Cognitive Theory of Multimedia Learning, 2011). We also recognize the role of active processing in a learning experience, where learners must be actively engaged to make sense of content being presented (Cognitive Theory of Multimedia Learning, 2011). So, as previously described, we have designed our resource so that individuals may experiment with Nearpod, rather than passively listening to us speak about it. Finally, in an effort to avoid overloading the working memory, which is described as finite in the Cognitive Load Theory, we have incorporated the following of Mayer’s Principles of Multimedia Learning to ensure that our work is as user-friendly to interact with as possible (Mayer & Fiorella, 2014). 

  1. Modality and multimedia principle – our video tutorials combine graphics and verbal narration (Mayer & Fiorella, 2014). 
  2. Segmenting principle – our video tutorials are presented in learner-paced segments rather than as a continuous unit (Mayer & Fiorella, 2014). 
  3. Personalization principle – our video tutorials employ a conversational style of narration rather than a formal one (Mayer & Fiorella, 2014).
  4. Image principle – we have refrained from adding a speaker’s image to our video tutorials (Mayer & Fiorella, 2014). 
References

Cognitive Theory of Multimedia Learning. (2011). In ETEC510: Design Wiki. http://etec.ctlt.ubc.ca/510wiki/Cognitive_Theory_of_Multimedia_Learning

Ertmer, P. A., & Newby, T. J. (2013). Behaviorism, cognitivism, constructivism: Comparing critical features from an instructional design perspective. Performance Improvement Quarterly, 26(2), 43-71.

Mayer, R., & Fiorella, L. (2014, August). Principles for Reducing Extraneous Processing in Multimedia Learning: Coherence, Signaling, Redundancy, Spatial Contiguity, and Temporal Contiguity Principles. In R. Mayer (Ed.), The Cambridge Handbook of Multimedia Learning (Cambridge Handbooks in Psychology, pp. 279-315). Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. doi:10.1017/CBO9781139547369.015

Nearpod. (n.d.) How Nearpod Works. https://nearpod.com/how-nearpod-works

Queen’s Experiential Learning Hub. (n.d.). https://www.queensu.ca/experientiallearninghub/about/what-experiential-learning

Gamification – Community Contributions

Hi Yiran,

It’s incredible how much things can change in such a short amount of time! My parents were similar to yours in that they did not love the idea of my brother and I playing video games. They saw it the same as watching tv – a mindless activity that was just for fun. And now here we find ourselves today, purposefully incorporating games into learning!
I love the point you bring up about games and communication. Besides the learning that can stem from the game itself, there can be a strong social aspect to many games. Whether cooperative or simply communicative, these are additional strengths and skills that can make the games more appealing for learners and boost the benefits of incorporating them mindfully into lessons.

Interaction – Community Contribution

Hi Cynthia,

Thanks for sharing this great video. Affordable housing is such an interesting but surprisingly complicated topic, and the video you selected did a fantastic job of explaining it in simple, understandable terms. I agree with your second point – this resource packs a lot of info into a short time. But, as you mentioned, it does provides a perfect starting point for teacher and class discussions around different concepts that can be pulled from the video. This is such a hot topic, making it a great one to discuss and hear varying opinions on, and for that reason I really like your activity and method of feedback.

Interactive Learning Resource – Peer Review

Hi Breanne, Molly, Sarah, and Mickayla,

Thanks so much for sharing your interactive learning resource! I really enjoyed reading through the mini unit you put together, and took a lot of good info and ideas away from it.

As I worked my way through the resource, a couple points came up that I thought would be worth sharing:

Worksheets

Assuming that this is a resource to be shared with colleagues or other teachers, it would be helpful to have the worksheets displayed as a full page, perhaps as appendices, so that they are easily printable/photocopiable. The worksheets themselves look great, especially the “Create your own monster” one, but are not very user friendly at their current size.
If these are worksheets that you’ve created, it’s also worth being mindful that they will likely be printed or photocopied in black and white so some of the pictures may not show up as well.

Tech Resources

Speech-to-text offers a great option to help meet the needs within your learning contexts and for those students who prefer to use it. The rationale for this tech choice is well thought-out and makes sense.
I do have trouble seeing how Education.com fits meaningfully within the lesson, though. In the rationale, your group mentions that games through this site will prompt engagement and offer practice, but other than using this as an “extra” for when learners are finished with their tasks, I don’t see anywhere else that this fits into the lessons. If games provide intrinsic motivation and get learners to better engage with the content (Why Games?. n.d.), it could be an idea to add them in as a more substantial part of a lesson.
Additionally, browsing through Education.com I can see that it has tons of fabulous content, so maybe offering links to a few suggested games or interactive resources that you feel fit best into the unit would help make more sense of this technology choice.

Learning Outcomes & Assessment

In terms of learning outcomes, all of the goals identified look realistic and fitting in relation to the subject matter. When translating these into the assessments, I’m not able to see where learning outcome #1, “Students will be able to effectively identify descriptive language in text”, is being represented or assessed at all. It would be worth adding a quick description in the assessment portion of your document to mention how this would be done, or taking look at it from the Backwards Design framework to see where it could fit into the lesson.

Overall, this was a thorough and useful resource for what sounds like a fun lesson. Thanks again for sharing!


References

Why games? University of Toronto Libraries. (2021, January 2). https://guides.library.utoronto.ca/c.php?g=448614&p=3505475

Gamification and Game-Based Learning

What a spark of inspiration this week’s topic is! I am a huge fan of using games and elements of play in the classroom and, although few, I have great memories of participating in gamification and game-based scenarios when I was in late elementary and middle school.

After reading and watching the learning resources this week, the comedic panel game show, Taskmaster, came to mind. In a recent episode, the contestants participated in a “choose your own adventure”-type group task, in which they had to make a choice of which task card to select, then complete the task on the card to continue on to the next assigned location/task.

Example begins at 25:17

I imagine this kind of fun, interactive game-based group activity but with questions or tasks catered to a given unit or lesson. The scale of the game, the questions/activities themselves, the technology incorporated, and the points systems (if you were to choose to have one) could be completely flexible and open for modification to meet all learners and subjects. But ultimately, the game could remain an exciting active learning experience, as the students would be discussing, problem solving, and working together to complete the objective (What Is Active Learning, n.d.).

With elements of both gamification and game-based learning, the hope would be that the intrinsic motivation for students to want to participate in the learning would be high (Why Games?, 2021).

Gamification vs Game-Based Learning
Gamification vs. Play-Based Learning by EdSurge

References

EdSurge. (n.d.). Gamification vs. play-based learning. Microsoft. https://education.microsoft.com/en-us/course/9f02325a/2

Taskmaster. (2021, June 3). Taskmaster – Series 9, episode 2 | Full episode | “Butter in the microwave”. [Video]. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=huB67xaX47A

What is Active Learning? (n.d.). Queens University – Teaching & Learning.  https://www.queensu.ca/teachingandlearning/modules/active/04_what_is_active_learning.html

Why games? University of Toronto Libraries. (2021, January 2). https://guides.library.utoronto.ca/c.php?g=448614&p=3505475

Flow State – Community Contributions

Hi Leann,

Thanks so much for sharing about your experience of being in a state of flow! It was so interesting reading about how incredibly focused, but in a way disorientating, this experience was for you. I found it completely relatable when you mentioned that you couldn’t “feel the existence of time”, because for me this is my same experience when I get into the “flow” of what I’m doing too. Sitting down to complete a task mid-day, then noticing (what feels like only an hour or two later) that it’s dark out is weirdly fulfilling, but confusing experience!
Thank you, as well, for sharing Diane Allen’s TEDx – I had never seen it before and really enjoyed it!

Editing Video – Community Contributions

Hi Carla,

Thank you so much for sharing great additional resources on video editing. This article about creating videos in the classroom was especially helpful. Getting students involved with making and editing videos can seem like a bit of a daunting task, but this article has got me inspired. The rationales made perfect sense, the sample activities were doable but still fun, and the outlined difficulties offered important tidbits to think about.

Evaluating Media

This week’s readings and videos were fantastic in prompting me to think about how I think about technology and have been planning to use it in the classroom.
Reflecting on the activities and tasks I’ve thought up over the past year of schooling that integrate tech, there are a few that fall under the Modification and Redefinition of the SAMR Model, which is where the tech learning gets taken to the next level. But admittedly, the majority are Substitution or Augmentation. Making this realization didn’t feel great, and was an obvious result of my lack of tech comfort going into teacher education.

The SAMR model can help educators think about the role of technology in supporting learning.
“The SAMR Model” by Youki Terada

While I was able to pinpoint this an an area to improve on, it was reassuring the hear Ruben Puentedura, creator of the SAMR model, speak of how to use it and how it is most often used.

All of the examples he offers are fabulous at putting the different levels into perspective, but what is the greatest comfort after my initial panic, was him mentioning that sometimes using Substitution or Augmentation makes the most sense for a given activity.

To further this clarifying perspective, in the following interview with Puentedura he gave an example of the “fancy robotics” project that he saw students working on. He explained that it presented itself as Redefinition and that the final result was technologically impressive, but he noticed that the learners were simply looking at instructions in a text, not truly understanding what they were doing with this machine. Because of this, it cannot be said that the technology integration was truly transformative.

Example begins at 10:30 minutes

To me, this drove home the duel purpose of the SAMR model; to support learning through integrated tech, as well as avoid meaningless integration of technology. Through hearing him speak more on the topic and how to use it effectively, I feel this model is one I’d like to keep in mind when bringing technology into my future classrooms.


References

Common Sense Education. (2016, July 12). How to apply the SAMR model with Ruben Puentedura [Video]. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZQTx2UQQvbU

Terada, Y. (2020, May 4). A powerful model for gnderstanding Good tech integration. Edutopia. https://www.edutopia.org/article/powerful-model-understanding-good-tech-integration

What Is The Purpose of School?. (2020, May 31). Demystifying SAMR with Dr. Ruben Puentedura [Video]. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L9h9ePoXqS8

Interaction

Our group’s interactive resource is exploring measurement and perimeter. It was surprisingly tough to find a half decent video on the subject on YouTube, but this video covers the concept of perimeter well and presents it in a relatable way.

What kind of interaction would the video require from your students? Does it force them to respond in some way (inherent)?

While this video is interactive in that it asks questions for students to think about (how to find the perimeter of the examples), it is not inherently active. Seconds after the problem is introduced, which I believe would be designed interactivity, the video begins solving the problem. This does not leave a real need (or much time!) for students to do it themselves unless the teacher were to pause it.

What activity could you suggest that they do, after they have watched the video (designed)? What type of knowledge or skill would that activity help develop? What medium or technology would students use to do the activity?

The video above acts as an introduction to perimeter, which would fit into the third lesson in the Interactive Learning Design best. The lesson introducing perimeter, accompanied by this video, could lead into an activity where students begin by finding the perimeter of measured or partially measured shapes. Then, using prior knowledge from the last couple lessons on measurement, they couple use their rulers to find the perimeters of objects around the classroom. The first part of this activity would be a way to check that students are understanding how to calculate perimeter. The second portion would be them applying it with their own measuring skills.

How would students get feedback on the activity that you set? What medium or technology would they and/or you use for getting and giving feedback on their activities?

The two parts of the activity mentioned above would be assessed formatively. Both being through learner/instructor, probably a worksheet or something similar, would help see if students are on the right track as far as their understanding with the material goes. Feedback would be given verbally in order to prompt and discuss new thinking if needed.

How will you address any potential barriers for your learners in the use of this video to ensure an inclusive design?

The video already includes subtitles, which is a nice addition for the students who benefit from reading what is being presented. The nature of it being an online video means that it can be paused at any time, which could be beneficial to use if we’re watching as a class, leaving time to pause, clarify, and discuss after certain parts. If students are watching it individually on Chrome Books, for example, then they have the option to pause or rewatch in order to get a better understanding of the concepts being covered.


References

Bates, A. W. (2019, October 10). 9.6 Interaction. Teaching in a digital age (2nd ed.). https://pressbooks.bccampus.ca/teachinginadigitalagev2/chapter/pedagogical-roles-for-text-audio-and-video/

Yin, O. Y. [Ong Yie Yin]. (2020, April 14). BrainpopJr: Perimeter [Video]. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hzV-tUnqbFM

Inclusive Design – Community Contributions

Hi Breanne,

I know I already responded to one of your past blog posts, but I couldn’t help responding to this one as well because I love the ideas you offered for the activity in your learning resource! Having students be capable and comfortable in their sense group is a wonderful idea.
Similarly (and the way I actually initially read your idea), learners could break into groups of 5, with each group member identifying their assigned sense. Learners that face certain limitations can take on a sense that is doable for them. That way, as a team, they are working together to “complete” the 5 senses, each taking on an equally important role in completing the set. Then, they could discuss their findings in their smaller groups before sharing in the class discussion.