Meet TED-Ed, The newest member of the TED family
Yesterday TED, an organization dedicated to Ideas Worth Spreading, announced the launch of a new Youtube channel focused on providing educators with a platform to create high quality, professional animations on almost any topic. TED has a fabulous track record of creating inspiring educational videos. Now they’re reaching out to educators everywhere and offering to help anyone with something to say to create an inspiring video. Videos will be hosted on Youtube’s education channel, hopefully making it easier for teachers to access content behind school filters and firewalls and without having to display ads.
Fabulous news. However, the best part is that they’re really put a lot of thought into creating this to fill a need, to provide something that is currently missing. While there other organizations committed to creating an entire curriculum on video, most notably the Khan Academy, TED-Ed is sticking to it’s core principle of sparking curiosity in viewers. In fact, one of it’s flagship videos is titled “Questions No One Knows the Answer to” – not a typical topic for a class lesson.
They’ve also done a lot of research into the best format to deliver content – how long they should be, and what visualization techniques to use. They’ve also partnered with professional animators and educators to ensure the best possible experience. Best of all, they aren’t trying to be everything for everyone – an impossible task. There is no need to replace teachers in the classroom with videos, and these videos won’t replace textbooks – or even other educational videos. What TED-Ed will do is provide a powerful new tool to educators and parents that can be used alongside other proven tools to create a more thrilling learning experience. TED talks have already inspired thousands of adults to continue their quest for lifelong learning and “mind-shifting insight.”
TED-Ed will hopefully do the same for students everywhere – what will YOU teach?
Image credit: http://www.flickr.com/photos/matteopenzo/
Elisa teaches online professional development courses for teachers at teachertechtraining.com.
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Tags: Educational Video, In The News, TED-Ed
A passion for creating educational multimedia, especially digital games. Fascinated by the challenge of integrating gameplay mechanics with educational content to create a true intrinsic learning experience. Interested in technology and special ed, digital storytelling, and science education. Closet science geek (shhh!!!)