​An Unsung Hero of Remote Learning: The Ubiquitous Camera

We have had so many changes in the last few weeks in our world.  Most of us are now living under “stay at home” orders and sequestered to our homes in almost all cases.   Many of us are now very aware of maintaining social distance from others and washing our hands often.  Much like our “new” normal, we have a “new” normal in education. 
 
In just a few weeks, we have seen education move from the classroom to a new stage – the home.  Parents are now serving as home school teachers and classroom teachers are serving as instructional designers.  As our teacher plan instructional cycles and design lessons, there seems to be one tool that many are using but, perhaps, it is not getting the recognition that it needs.  We often take this tool as granted and overlooks its multiple uses.  My guess is that almost all students with a device have either used or benefitted from this tool without realizing its importance.  It is the camera that almost everyone has on their device.  In my district, our K-8 students have an iPad with a camera and our high school students have a macbook air with a camera.  It is these cameras that are working so incredibly hard these days with many of our apps. 
 
Here is just a few ways that cameras have benefited me in the last few days.

• Zoom:  The use of zoom for the delivery of instruction has skyrocketed in the last few weeks.  Our district has modified its policies to allow Zoom for use with communicating with students.  Zoom has allowed for teachers to communicate face to face with our students and more importantly to allow our students to feel connected to a larger world outside their home while remaining safe.  This has been huge for our students.  The camera and its other unsung associate, the microphone, have allowed our students to safely interact with other and for teachers to delivery instruction.  None of the would have been possible without the camera.

 

• Screencasting: This has been a huge win for many of our educators.  Many who have never heard of screencasts previously are screencast rockstars.  One of the last face to face PD that I provided to our staff involved showing them how to screenrecord on their iPad.  The ability to create your own, individualized screencasts to personalize instruction for students is a game change.  For many of our students to hear a familiar voice can be very comforting during these times.  To learn more about how to screen record on your iPad, view this screencast that I created for my staff.  https://www.screencast.com/t/NVNn52TeG

 
 

• Apps:  This is where the camera really earns its worth with various apps.  Many are free and can quickly transform pictures and video into amazing creations.  These creations can be used to demonstrate learning and storytelling.  Some of my favorite apps to use with my camera are included below:

 

1. Adobe Spark:  This is an amazing app that can used for free.  The only catch is that those using Adobe Spark for free involves a watermark that indicates the product was made with Adobe Spark.  I pay for an upgraded version which does not include the water mark.  Even with the watermark, it is a dynamic tool and well worth using  This app makes amazing graphics that are easily shared.  You can also make a quick website using graphics and videos collected with the camera and tell stories.
2. Apple Clips is a free application for iPads and iPhones where you can remix up images and videos from your camera.  It allows you to create snazzy presentations and short videos.  Here is one that I made in just under three minutes for my amazing colleague Angela Ramey (@rameyac):  https://youtu.be/jJthuCYY2us
3. Presentations & Slideshows:  Last week, Angela gave an amazing presentation to our district where she showed how to use Keynote to trace a picture and then animated it.  In her webinar, we asked participants to share their ideas on how to implement this practice into their instructional design and lesson delivery.  One idea shared involved having students trace maps and show the movement of troops during a war and diagram significant landmarks.  Additionally, we discussed how students could begin to show how the coronavirus has spread throughout our world.

 
The ubiquitous camera is a tool that is often not given the credit that is due.  It has and will continue to serve many purposes in education and creation.  Coupled with various apps, it can totally transform students from mere consumers to creators.  So, the next time you use your camera, think about how amazing this tool is and how much more we could be doing with it.