By: Rachel Levy, Deputy Executive Director MAA, @mathcirque

On social media, teachers are discussing how to survive a Fall with many unknowns. Many are preparing for online instruction so that if teaching starts in person they can move online relatively seamlessly if needed.  

This past semester was an emergency. People explored new technologies and used old tech in new ways.  This “great migration online” went OK, although institutions reported disappearing students, some of whom didn’t have the time or tech to access online learning.  Now people are planning to incorporate distance learning into future courses, even if they are meeting in person. That’s great. What’s not so great is the growing inclination to get ahead this summer by recording lectures. Here’s 5 reasons why.

1. Most professors do not have video design expertise. Are you using your lectures like a textbook? Most people can’t write a fantastic text in a couple of months. Unless you are teaching a specialized topic, you can find a video set of lectures that have been recorded, iterated, refined, and edited the same way a great textbook would be. Ask on MAA Connect if you need suggestions. Your students deserve high quality instructional materials that are ADA compliant for accessibility.

2. The time it takes to make videos can be better spent on course design. How can you engage your students in projects, formative assessments, inquiry-based learning, and other active learning techniques that work well both online and in person? It takes time to think these things through and build them into a course. You can make short less polished videos that provide perspective on a topic or problem (but include captioning and image descriptions). Other elements of the course can get the remainder of your creative energy.  

3. We need time for care. The pandemic seems far from over.  Some of us are mourning loved ones or caring for family and friends. The #BlackLivesMatter movement has raised awareness of how individuals and groups are impacted by systemic racism. Other -isms are in the news as well. Caregivers are struggling to work. Not everyone has a chance to take a break, but for many, summer can be a time to refresh, reflect and attend to our health.

4. Online fatigue is real. Think about how to provide students a variety of ways to access and engage ideas. Those of us in professional development workshops this summer are experiencing firsthand how easy it is to tune out, try to multitask, and feel stuck in place at a screen. Maybe it is easier to simultaneously watch a video and care for a sibling than to read a book, but we all need breaks from time online.

5. Lectures are not an effective way to teach. The evidence is clear. Mini lectures can have some value, but if you are making videos, they should be brief and topical.  Informative tags and titles will allow students to find and review the videos they need. Don’t forget that reading materials can be more easily skimmed and reviewed than a video.   

I hope this gives you permission to NOT make video lectures.  We know we need to make learning accessible and not reliant on 100% synchronous teaching and learning.  Let’s collaborate, create and build engaging, effective hybrid, and flexible learning opportunities for the future.