Creating a Screencast!

 

Now that the world has gone virtual, especially with teaching, screencasts have become a very important part of addressing state standards and objectives. A screencast is a digital video recording of your computer screen and usually includes audio narration. Screencasts are just one of many different types of instructional videos. ... Not unlike a screenshot, screencasts can be called a screen capture video or screen recording and is a great way to teach or share ideas. It is quite helpful if a teacher is going to be absent due to Covid or other emergencies, or even just for the day! It makes it as though the teacher is still there within the classroom, but she isn't! Screencasts are also useful when trying to show others how to access and manipulate technology, it's programs, and/or databases. In a way, it makes learning a bit more hands on and easier to follow along than if just discussing and trying to tell someone how to use the systems. Below, I have used and critiqued 2 screencast programs. The first I used was called Screencastify. The second one I accessed was Screencast-o-matic. Both can be found at the links provided and are free. You can, however, upgrade to be able to create longer videos and access more tools. I just twiddled with the free versions since I was only out to find what worked best for me. 

https://www.screencastify.com/

Screencastify is pretty basic and was easy for me to handle being a beginner! I first used this program in 2019 when the Covid outbreak hit and the world shut down, but teaching had to go on. I created a screencast on how to gain access to our computer programs, Education Galaxy, and how to manipulate the assignments and complete them. I also created a screencast in Screencastify on how to operate Google Classroom. This was a huge challenge for a lot of people! I also recently created a screencast to show students how to access my school's OPAC and Destiny Discover. See the link below to watch! Screencastify is easy to use, but is limited on the tools you have and ways you can edit. You can cut and edit in the free version, but that's about it. No whistles and bells really. It also only gives you a 5 minute time limit. You can upgrade for a cost, of course, to have access to more tools and time. Now you DO have the option to create Interactive questions to go with your created screencast, even in the free version! What a great way to get students to interact with the lesson/video! We have to make sure they pay attention that's for sure! This was my program of choice. The below mentioned screencast program, Screencast-o-matic also works very well, but I found that Screencastify was much more user friendly for me, especially being a beginner. The link mentioned previously about accessing my school's OPAC and Destiny Discover is below...

https://watch.screencastify.com/v/h2ZBjyLr6tJamrH4H27k

https://screencast-o-matic.com/

So while Screencast-o-matic has more options and longer run time for free than Screencastify does, I did find it a bit more unfriendly to use. At least that's my opinion! But I am a newbie to all this fancy technology of today! I found it a bit harder to get started in the screen I wanted, not realizing that the record/stop bar was in the bottom icons of my screen. It took me several tries to realize and figure out what I needed to do. It also took me a bit of time to figure out how to share with others and where links were located. Once figured out, though, I began to get the gist of it. I do like how the free version lets you have longer time limits, unlike Screencastify. Although harder to use, it had more options to edit and manipulate. Like Screencasity, you can upload a better version with more options for a price....everything always has a price doesn't it?! I just worked with the free versions to get the idea of what to do. This would be very beneficial for seasoned users of screencasts! My link to how to access my school's OPAC and manipulate it is below...

https://screencast-o-matic.com/watch/cr6rYLVXSvG