The Selection and Use of Media for Open and Distance Learning

Context:
In this article the author provides guidance on selecting and using video in distance education.

Source:
Kirkwood, A. 1994. "The Selection and Use of Media for Open and Distance Learning." In F. Lockwood, ed., Materials Production in Open and Distance Learning. London: Paul Chapman Publishing, pp. 64-65.

Copyright:
Reprinted with permission from A. Kirkwood, "Selection and Use of Media for Open and Distance Learning," 1994, copyright 1994, Paul Chapman Publishing Ltd., London. This permission is for nonexclusive English-language rights only, for this edition only. Reproduction of this material is confined to the purpose for which this permission is hereby given; and for use on a noncommercial basis by handicapped persons and the blind.

Video

Would your teaching or training benefit from the addition of moving images or the presentation of real events? Could you make effective use of animation or sequences that are speeded up or slowed down?

Television is a rich and flexible medium for education and training and there are a growing number of means by which television material can reach a viewer's screen. Unfortunately, terrestrial broadcasting and transmissions via satellite or cable are options available to only a limited number of educators and trainers. However, the video-recorder (VCR) allows prerecorded videocassettes to be replayed and broadcast programmes to be recorded off-air for subsequent viewing. Like their audio equivalent, video-cassettes can offer learners convenience and control in terms of when and how they study the material. Video or television material can contribute to open or distance learning in many different ways: it can provide learners with 'vicarious experience' by demonstrating complex processes or making possible visits to locations that would be too costly or too dangerous to achieve in any other way; it can use animation or adjusted speed techniques to demonstrate changes over time; it can be used for the direct teaching of ideas, processes and procedures, or to present 'real life' case studies for analysis, or to act as a trigger to reflection and discussion among learners.