Astrid Choromanska

EDpuzzle

Embedding questions into a Crossroads Cafe video

  • February 23, 2021 at 8:21 PM
  • Visible to public
Right now, our distance-learning (fully and solely remote) students are using the Crossroads Cafe program to continue learning English. Every two weeks, they are sent materials (2 packets) through the mail, they need to watch the corresponding episode of Crossroads Cafe on YouTube, and they join daily Zoom sessions to help them work through the printed materials.

How was it embedding questions into the video? The video is quite lengthy. Each episode is 25 minutes. One of the printed materials already engages students in comprehending the main points of the episode by retelling the story through photos of the video episode and asking 10 multiple choice questions. Not every detail is covered in this retelling, but the main points are. Therefore, embedding questions in the video is just another way of engaging the students, and having them check their own understanding as they watch the video. The difference with the video edited in EdPuzzle is that there are open-ended questions, where the students need to provide their own answer rather than selecting one of the choices given.

The only way for me to see how effective this "modification/extension/improvisation" is would be to view the video as a whole class with the in-person (not remote at all) group. I could pause the video and we could take a moment to let each student jot down their answer, and then, we could review them as a group. The other way to share this video, would be to Screen Share it and play it during a Zoom session. Similarly, we would stop, give each student time to write down an answer, and then, look at the question as a whole group.

Embedding questions was not difficult. I tried a mix of open-ended and multiple choice questions, and I also wrote one note.