EDLD 5363 – Week 2 Video Editing Experience Reflection

This week started out being a time of anxiety and concern for me. Frankly, I did not have a clue as to how I was going to complete the assignment. I have never used video editing software and the task at hand seemed overwhelming. After listening to Wednesday’s web conference I felt a little more comfortable, but it wasn’t until I decided to evaluate and began experimenting with Windows Movie Maker that I felt more at ease. As a teacher who has taught and used many of the Microsoft Suite programs, Movie Maker was simple and uncomplicated to learn, and the applications were not difficult to figure out. I watched a couple of tutorial videos on You Tube and soon I felt secure in making my podcast. I had never used Audacity, so that also was a new experience for me. Putting the two together was easy, although I had difficulty downloading the LAME mp3 encoder software. I ended up just saving my audio file as a WAV file and it worked perfectly in Movie Maker.

After this experience, I am sure I will continue to use Movie Maker and Audacity to support and enhance my future assignments and especially in my classroom. This week’s assignment has definitely been an educational event, and I am excited at the prospect of teaching my students the new applications I have learned. 

EDLD 5363 - Week 2 Video Editing Software Evaluation

As many of my colleagues have expressed in their discussion posts this week, video editing is a completely unfamiliar process that I previously knew nothing about. In reviewing the readings and evaluating my options, I chose Windows Movie Maker, partly because I am familiar with Windows applications and partly because I already have it on my laptop. I first decided to explore on my own and pulled in a clip to edit that I had accidentally (because I didn’t know what I was doing) saved from playing with my web camera when we were working on the project for EDLD 5364, Teaching with Technology. I must say that because of my familiarity with Microsoft products, the use of Windows Movie Maker and the tutorials included with it, were easy to navigate. I was able to take three separate clips (I still don’t know how I did that) and put them together for a seamless video. I wish I could have done that when we were working on our project! I then watched a video from YouTube (Bass, 2011) which was very informative and covered the various introductory applications of the program.

“Media are built things.” (Garrison, 1999, Winter) This statement is simplistic but true. The ease of the 1, 2, 3 format makes Movie Maker easy to use and “build” the project, especially for a novice like myself. I was able to follow the video descriptions and then take a video clip and drag the clip to the storyboard, then edit the clip. You can also merge and split clips before you add to the storyboard. One point I should state is that you should watch and time the videos you want to edit to ensure that you only merge and/or split the portions of the video you desire. However, thank goodness for the undo feature! This allows you to undo any commands you find you do not want. When adding music, audio or sound, it is very similar to other Microsoft programs, as importing this feature is straight-forward. The timeline makes it easy to adjust your music, audio and/or sounds to your video clip as you edit.

When adding transitions, you can place them on the storyboard between the video clips, just as you would with a program such as PowerPoint. Again, familiarity with Microsoft programs makes the instructions effortless to follow. Adding titles and credits, with animations, font styles and types, will augment those slides and enhance your video. The video effects you can add can help to achieve some drama to your videos; however, as I teach my students, make sure your effects are appropriate for the document (video) you are creating. Sometimes you can get carried away with effects and it takes away from the message of your production.

Once you have completed your video, saving is simple – just navigate to the area you want to save and name the video. Microsoft will default to the My Videos folder, but you can also browse and save in other folders you choose. One factor that is important to understand is that videos are normally large files and Movie Maker assists you in compressing those files during the saving process. When finished, Windows Media Player will allow you to view your video.

Finally, Movie Maker allows you to easily e-mail, save to CD, or post your video to the Web. The video hosting feature appeared simple; however, I prefer to use my own options and it didn’t provide for this through this feature. However, posting to YouTube is still available, as long as the video is saved in a format compatible with YouTube. The clip I edited saved as a wmv file, so it should be good to post to You Tube or other similar sites.

As I have discovered with most multimedia and presentation programs I have worked with, it is key to watch your creations as you develop them and also when you finish. This review process will ensure that your production is a quality product that you are proud to present to your audience. As I have stated in my discussion post/responses this week, I plan to learn more about video editing software from my colleague that teaches Audio/Video Production next door to me, and also from the students who are so talented and creative in this arena. As I become more comfortable with the video editing/production process, I am sure I can utilize this information in some form in my classroom in the future. Teaching a Career and Technical Education (CTE) elective allows me the freedom to introduce new and engaging ideas into my curriculum.

References:

Bass, J. J. (2011). Movie maker video editing tutorial. YouTube. Retrieved November 26, 2011, from http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JZXK68NS7gU

Garrison, A. (1999, Winter). Video basics and production projects for the classroom. Center for Media Literacy. Retrieved April 6, 2009, from http://www.medialit.org/reading_room/article3.html

The YellowMnM. (2011). How to use windows movie maker. YouTube. Retrieved November 26, 2011, from http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_9rRh7z5TCs&feature=related

EDLD 5363 - Week 2 Web Conference Reflection

On Wednesday night, I was able to participate in one of the weekly web conferences. After I read the assignment for this week, I was more confused than ever about the requirements. Many of us have laughed throughout this graduate school journey about being “digital immigrants” – I feel more like this than ever this week! Having never used any editing software or creating a podcast, the thought of actually editing and podcasting about something I know nothing about is a bit overwhelming. However, I know I have many classmates I can turn to if I have questions, and Dr. Abernathy seems to always make me feel less intimidated.

This will definitely be a week of exploring and discovering new tools that I can use in future assignments as well as my classroom. It is somewhat coincidental that I am beginning a lesson during this six weeks on Marketing in my Principles of Business class, and this tool should fit in nicely with that curriculum. Hopefully, I can become knowledgeable enough to teach my students. Wish me luck!

EDLD 5363 – Week 1 Reflection – Creating My Personal Digital Story

This week has provided me with the opportunity to not only utilize a new tool in Photo Story 3, but also to reflect and express a part of my life that I have needed to for awhile now. My mother is an amazing woman who has had an immense influence on my life, even more so than I realized. When I read through the “Digital Storytelling Cookbook” (Lambert, 2007) guidelines and reflected on the many stories I could tell, I kept coming back to my relationship with my mother.

Utilizing the information provided in the readings, as well as experimenting with Photo Story 3 (boy, have I missed these technology classes!), and again working with Kimberly McKay, has provided me with a busy, but fulfilling  experience that I have truly enjoyed this week. I look forward to learning even more multimedia tools that I can use in my classroom to engage my students. Bring it on!


Reference: 
Lambert, J. (2007, February). Digital storytelling cookbook, 1-30. Story center. Retrieved April 4, 2009, from http://www.storycenter.org/cookbook.pdf

EDLD 5363 - Week 1 Web Conference Reflection

I was unable to participate in any of the web conferences this week due to long days at school. Thank goodness we have the ability to read/watch the conferences online. As I review the web conferences for this week, I can’t help but think about the first web conferences I participated in. They were small groups, usually just my Section and maybe one or two others (shout out to 8028!) which I really enjoyed because of the ability to discuss and ask questions in an atmosphere that was comfortable. In the past several classes, the web conferences have been huge, with many sections involved, and many different programs, and the ability to discuss and ask questions were almost none existent due to the sheer numbers. It is nice to be back in the Ed. Tech. Leadership group again!

As I was reading this week’s scripts, I begin to see the excitement of getting back to learning and using technology programs, and how we can relate those to our own lives as well as educator and student instructional needs. I have had a chance to learn Photo Story 3 this week, and as I began to think about my personal digital story, I realized many ways I can utilize this in my classroom. In addition, the questions being asked in the web conference are not only being answered by Dr. Abernathy and/or the Instructional Assistants, but also by students helping each other. That is what we aspire to in our classrooms, so why not here? I am thrilled to be partnered with Kimberly McKay, as we have worked together in other classes and we know that we can learn and depend on each other, even though many miles separate us. Isn’t technology great? It is nice to be back home in an Ed. Tech. Leadership class…..