Video in the Classroom: Problems and Promises

Abstract

My discussion specifically concerns the reproduction of live, dynamic events in the classroom. Showing dynamic images of processes, particularly those in biology, is often essential if students (and indeed, teachers) are to gain deep understanding of dynamic events. To illustrate this point, imagine how difficult it is to describe to another person what a sport like football might entail, using only static images such as photographs and diagrams. Image manipulation has also become extraordinarily evocative and useful: consider for example, how educated we have become about the weather because of time-lapse images that show the dynamics of the atmosphere.