The road to self discovery? Videopapers a tool for reflection on practice

UCET Conference November 2009

Elisabeth Lazarus

My aims today are:1. Introduce you to videopapers;

2. Outline a project carried out at the University of Bristol from 2005-2007 and which continues in 2009;

3. Investigate the potentialities of videopapers through our case study;

4. Conclude with some remarks about future plans for using videopapers in teacher education;

5. Before opening up the discussion…

Why “videopapers” – what is different and what is new?

• Use of video in teacher education is well established (e.g. Sherin 2007, 2003; Tochon 2007, 2001) – vignettes; video groups

• Linking observations of more or less experienced teachers or trainees (real or virtual), with personal practice and experiences

• Drawing on practitioner-orientated and research-based literature to underpin personal practice

• Use of Teachers TV and TTRB• Mentoring and coaching

Why “videopapers”?

• Videopapers are multimedia documents that integrate and synchronise video, images and text in one non linear cohesive document (Nemirovsky et al, 2005)

• Videopapers have grown out of a desire to bridge the theory - practice divide

• Disseminating research and sharing practice with others

• Supporting self-reflection

Slides – synchronised with the video

Video – synchronised with the text

Play buttons – synchronising text to video

Hyperlinks – to other pages in the videopaper or to external sources

Navigation menu/tools

TextClosed captions

Where did videopapers originate?

• Developed as part of the Bridging Research and Practice project at TERC (Boston, MA) to create an alternative genre for alternative genre for the production, use, and dissemination of educational the production, use, and dissemination of educational research.research. (http://vpb.concord.org)

• The project conjectured that teachers, researchers and other communities interested in education could use videopapers to make their conversations more groundedconversations more grounded in actual events, more insightful, and more resistant to oversimplifications.

• Videopapers are multimedia documents that integrate and integrate and synchronise different forms of representationsynchronise different forms of representation, such as text, video and images, in one single non linear cohesive document.

…to disseminate research

Nemirovsky et al. 2001Olivero et al. 2004

Use of videopapers

…to share practice with

othersBeardsley et al. 2007

Nemirovsky et al. 2005

… as a tool for self-reflection and assessment

Olivero and Lazarus, 2007, 2009 Lazarus and Olivero 2009 Smith and Krumsvik, 2007

Our case study

• The collaborators (Elisabeth Lazarus, Federica Olivero and Maria Daniil)

• The Project (funded by ESCalate and GSoE, University of Bristol)

• The Assignment• Participants• Methodologies• Data analysis• Findings• Conclusions and Future plans• Bibliography

Future plans?

• Start small and be sceptical• Technical infrastructure (e.g. access to video

cameras)• Inclusion of other subject areas and other

professional groups (e.g. counsellors, Trahar 2008)

Where next?• All MFL PGCE students will be creating a

videopaper as an assignment in Dec/Jan.

The work continues…• “Watching video affords the opportunity to develop a different kind of

knowledge for teaching – knowledge not of “what to do next”, but rather, knowledge of how to interpret and reflect on classroom practices.” (Sherin, 2003, p.17)

• “The intellectual work the videopaper demands arises from the fact that video, text, and slides must be connected in order for the narrative to emerge. This interconnectedness pushes the author to closely examine the relationship between the images and their text, to think carefully about exactly how to generate meaning from their media. The exactness of the medium demands that one makes precise choices in editing and concentrates on discrete themes in the video.” (Beardsley et al, 2007)

Bibliography• Beardsley, L., Cogan-Drew, D. and Olivero, F. (2007) Videopaper: Bridging

Research and Practice for pre-service and experience Teachers. In R. Goldman, R.D. Pea, B. Barron & S.J. Derry (Eds ) Video Research in the Learning Sciences, Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum.

• Daniil, M. (2007) The use of VideoPapers from Modern Foreign Language student teachers as a tool to support reflection on practice. Unpublished Masters Dissertation, University of Bristol.

• Daniil, M. and Olivero, F. (2008) The use of VideoPapers from Modern Foreign Language student teachers as a tool to support reflection on practice. In Proceedings of the 6th Panhellenic conference with international participation Information Communication Technologies in Education, p. 429-436, Limassol, Cyprus.

• Lazarus, E. and Olivero, F. (2009) Videopapers as a tool for reflection on practice in initial teacher education, Technology, Pedagogy and Education, 18 (3), 255-267.

• Nemirovsky, R., Lara-Meloy, T., Earnest, D. and Ribeiro, B. (2001) Videopapers: Investigating new multimedia genres to foster the interweaving of research and teaching, in M. v.d.d Heuvel-Panhuizen (ed.) Proceedings fo the 25th Conference of the International group for the Psychology of Mathematics Education, 3, 423-430.

Bibliography cont.• Nemirovsky, R., DiMattia, C., Ribeiro, B, and Lara-Meloy, T. (2005)

Talking about Teaching Episodes, Journal of Mathematics Teacher Education, 8, 363-392.

• Olivero, F., John, P. and Sutherland, R. (2004) Seeing is believing: using videopapers to transform teachers’ professional knowledge and practice. Cambridge Journal of Education, 34 (2), 169-176.

• Olivero, F and Lazarus, E. (2009 in press) Using Videopapers to communicate and represent practice in Postgraduate Education Programmes. In R. Krumsvik, (Ed) Learning in the Network Society and Digitized School. (New York: Nova Science Publishers)

• Olivero, F. and Lazarus, E. (2007, August) Using ‘videopapers for professional learning and assessment in initial teacher education. Paper presented at the 12th Biennial Conference of the European Association for Research on Learning and Instruction (EARLi), Budapest, Hungary

• Sherin, M.G. (2007) The Development of Teachers’ Professional Vision in Video Clubs. In R. Goldman, R.D. Pea, B .Barron & S.J. Derry (Eds ) Video Research in the Learning Sciences, Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum.

Bibliography cont.• Sherin, M.G. (2003) New perspectives on the role of video in

teacher education, Advances in Research on Teaching, 10, 1-27.• Smith, K. and Krumsvik, R. (2007, August) Video-papers: an attempt

to closing the notorious gap in teacher education. Paper presented at the 12th Biennial Conference of the European Association for Research on Learning and Instruction, Budapest.

• Tochon, F. V. (2007) From Video Cases to Video Pedagogy: A Framework for Video Feedback and Reflection In Pedagogical Research. In R. Goldman, R.D. Pea, B. Barron & S.J. Derry (Eds ) Video Research in the Learning Sciences, Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum .

• Tochon, F.V. (2001) "Education Research": New Avenues for Digital Video Pedagogy and Feedback in Teacher Education. International Journal of Applied Semiotics, 2, 1-2, 9-28.

• Trahar, S. (2008). VideoPaper and assessment. Therapy Today, 19(2), 41-43.

THE AIMS

• To pilot the use of videopapers as a reflective learning tool for PGCE students;

• To investigate advantages/ disadvantages over more conventional use of videos, observation tasks and assignments.

THE PARTICIPANTS

• 18 volunteer MFL graduates on one-year PGCE course

(1 dropped out after 2nd workshop)• Varied background in terms of qualifications

(BA, MA, PhD); experience of teaching; experience of use of technology; native and non-native speakers of the languages they were teaching (German, French & Spanish)

THE ASSIGNMENTTo create a videopaper instead of a written essay for one of their

units which required them to reflect on issues relating to their practice:

Specifically, the assignment requested students to:• Select a focus for the videopaper• Choose one lesson to be video-recorded• Collect materials from the classroom and from their teaching• Review and edit the video from 50 min to approx. 5 min.• Write text/commentary to the clips, including the wider

literature• ‘publish’ the final videopaper

THE METHODOLOGY• Workshops• Observations of students reading videopapers in pairs

(video recordings, transcriptions and notes)• Focus group interviews on reading and writing

videopapers (video recordings and transcriptions)• Observations of students reading each others

videopapers (video recordings and transcriptions)• Final individual and group interviews about the whole

process (video recordings and transcriptions) • Collection of the produced videopapers• Comparisons of videopapers vs. conventional essays• Building case studies around each volunteer

DATA ANALYSIS

• The relationship between creating a videopaper and writing an essay

• Students’ perception of videopapers as a tool to support self reflection

• The role of experience (teaching, ICT, research)

• Location of assignment in trainee’s stage of development

• The process of assessing a videopaper, as compared to traditional essays

DATA ANALYSIS (reported elsewhere)

• The process of creating a videopaper (selection of clips, collection of other artifacts, technical difficulties, requirement for support)

• The structure and content of the videopapers• The relationship between video and text• Linearity and non-linearity• The process of reading videopapers (audience,

reading online)• Perceptions of readers and writers• (Olivero and Lazarus, 2009)

FINDINGS – The relationship between creating a videopaper and writing an essay: REALISM

“You could actually see what you were talking about whereas if you were writing an essay, it’s quite hard, you know, you have to try and visualise the lessons…and it was great to take a break from typing and just have a look at the clip and you would watch it and think about this is what I’m gonna say.” Brid

“In a videopaper you have much more freedom which can be very positive or negative if the reader feels like, um, not getting enough out of it because he doesn’t think on his own.” Christine

“If you compare it to a normal essay it gives you a realistic dimension because it is not abstract any more; you’re not talking about behaviour management, big theories, here you have the reality, practice, it’s not just writing but connecting theories to the practice and the other way.” Liz

“it did bring the classroom much more alive it was there in front of you it was not just reading an essay much more involving.” (Helen)

FINDINGS – A DIFFERENT WAY OF WRITING AN ASSIGNMENT

“It’s like writing the first essay. It’s a completely new way of doing things.” (Catrin)

“Keith: …you (the reader/assessor) are actually there in the classroom and see what is happening and you can make your own evaluation there honestly, whether (the teaching and learning) is successful or whether it isn’t. While obviously with the traditional paper (the writer) would steer the reader in the direction you want.Olivia: Yea you can manipulate…Keith: in what direction you want them to go”

“…for me English is not my first language, (the videopaper) helps me put my message across in an easier way, so I can show my tutor what I mean, without ten lines… you know the video it helped, helped me explaining my points…” (Olivia)

FINDINGSPromoting reflection

“using the text to analyse what’s going on, rather than describing exactly what you’re going to see in the video anyway. Otherwise it’s a bit pointless having it there.” (Liz

“(the text is) an other dimension of (the video clip) in a sense.” (Christine)

“That again you are seeing your-self, almost naked if you like, in front of...you know you are in the classroom and...and your persona is exposed to what's going on and...and you certainly have to actually analyse your self, for other than somebody else, … and you have at your own strengths and own weaknesses and be quite critical with yourself and decide this was a good thing, this wasn't a good thing. I think that can be very difficult sometimes.” (Keith)

FINDINGS Language and genre

“I don’t see why you should make it less academic because it’s a videopaper. When you read academic… like people take it seriously…I do think that there are a lot of people who will…or would… take it less seriously. And I think it takes away some of what you’ve put in if you’re dumbing down all the language just because it is a videopaper.“ (Catherine)

- “Not the kind of language but the amount of language.” (Liz)

“well it seems like people make language less accessible when they’re writing academically…I think it’s more accessible because then you don’t have to read thousands for words… you know it’s visual and auditory and appeals to more senses… My boyfriend could read my videopaper, he would probably enjoy it. But I would never be able to make him read my essay.” (Patricia)

FINDINGSIterative process – potentiality for a Professional Development Portfolio

“I think that if you maybe do two, three or four of them and then you would compare them you could see maybe if you’ve improved or if things changed, if maybe because you’re in a different environment, in a different school, at a different time with a different class maybe you see ‘oh my God I managed so well with this group’ and if you look back at one example of a lesson we did and then you see that you actually lost some of the strategies and you found like; ‘oh I’m not doing this anymore’ or maybe you say ‘I left this behind because now I’ve seen that’s it’s not that useful or anything.’ So you would maybe go back and see how you changed so.” Christine

FINDINGS – Some drawbacks

• Time consuming• Best suited for individuals or pair work – not

useful for displaying to a group• Less experienced ICT users focused on

mastering technical aspects• Size of video & slide section could not be

enlarged• Quality of sound recordings variable• Transcriptions and subtitles could have been

helpful

FINDINGS The process of creating a videopaper

Some issues• Workshops, mutual and individual support seen as essential by

all participants• Reading of videopapers created by peers very important

starting point • VideoPaper Builder 3 - free software, easy to install – some of

the students installed it at home as well; clips edited with iMovie or windows movie maker; need Quicktime and Firefox.

• VpB3 is much easier to use – 2nd/3rd group experienced fewer problems and time was used more effectively

• Who makes the video recording? Experience? (camera position, use of locking devices etc) - influenced the final quality

• In one case school made analogue recording of student and contingency measures were needed