YouTube: Not Just For Cat Videos

"Mom, what happened to the cursor?”
“Google VY Canis Majoris, Patrick.”
“Click that next video, Sean.”
"Let's make a video."

These are just a few snippets of phrases that have been uttered, without prompt, by my nearly seven year old brothers. (Note: some of the things they said were when they were four and five.) Ever since my brothers could talk they’ve been immersed in two distinct languages: English and the Digital Language.

The video above is one that my brothers made, unbenknownst to me, on my Apple MacBook. Imagine my surprise finding this on Photo Booth. They were either four or five. Though the content is typical of a five year old being silly, the fact that they are able to not only open, but use the program, without aid. The incredible thing is that most kids of this generation have the digital literacy! Imagine what kids born 5 years from now will be able to do?!

When they were four they were drawn to the computer, curious about all the possibilities that existed at their fingertips. And what does a four year old do when he finds something he likes and wants to know more about? Well aside from getting peanut butter everywhere, these two boys ask questions… lots of them. After learning the name of the “little arrow” on the screen, then began to experiment with what exactly the little guy to do. The explorations escalated and when they were five, nearly six, their fascination with space collided with the wonders of technology. One day, when I finished listening to an onslaught of their questions, I decided to show them, rather than tell them the answer to “what would happen if two galaxies crashed into each other” (they actually asked me this, no joke.) So using my oh-so-fabulous technology skills… I went on YouTube and looked for a video that I had seen when taking an astronomy class, and lo and behold, using a varied combination of search terms, I found it. My brothers were mesmerized, and decided to play the video again, and again, and again. After watching the video more times than anyone would deem necessary, the two rascals made a discovery. They could click on links to related videos. Before I knew it they were talking excitedly. “Sean, Sean click the one about the supermassive black holes!” My brothers at the age of six, had become YouTubers; however, instead of using it for non-educational purposes (aka endless amounts of funny cat videos..) they were using it to answer questions and even generate more questions in their minds. They were learning, and not only that they were learning to love learning.



I know that was a very long story that seemed to have no point, but I swear, there was one: YouTube and other media hosting sites are a wonderful tool that, if used properly, can really benefit students. In some of the reading we have done for this class, social media sites such as YouTube were discussed. I thought back to a unit I had implemented in a second grade classroom: Plants. In particularly I was teaching a lesson on fruit, and as I was coming up with a SMART board presentation to use as a supplement (NOTE: simply throwing information on a SMART board is not integrating technology), I couldn't think of a way to explain how fruit come from flowers, in a language that was appropriate for second graders. Instinctually I found myself typing in a search on Google, and was surprised to find a time-elapsed video of strawberries growing. It was perfect. It showed what words could not explain, and displayed images that would take a lot of time for students to view via an experiment of some kind. I think that was truly the moment I understood the impact that a tool such as the Internet could have on classrooms today. I have to remind myself that kids today have grown up with these tools and probably know how to use them; however, as a teacher it is my job to make sure they are used for good (not evil!) In my opinion, kids are natural problem solvers, and we need to give them the tools they need to explore, to build upon that innate ability. So, while my brothers are able to find out a lot on their own, it is my responsibility to guide them. This goes the same for me as my roll as an educator.


Children are not empty vessels, but they are, even more so now, critical thinking machines that have the potential to do things we haven't even imagined yet, crazy right?

Take the Leap

“Are we doing what is best for our students, or are we doing what is most convenient for us?”

Time. When we don’t need more of it, we have it in excess but when we couldn’t get enough, it seems to slip through our fingers. The essence of this very thought-provoking question is strongly linked with time. But shouldn’t 180 days of school be enough time to teach kids what they need to know and move on? Maybe, maybe not. So perhaps the issue isn’t how much time we have, it’s what we do with it.

The question asked on Dr. Scott McLeod's blog, listed at the top of this post, is not an easy one to answer, particularly because a simple yes or no won’t suffice. The way I decided to approach this loaded question was to divide it into two manageable parts that have relatively easy answers.

First I take a look at the initial portion of the question, “Are we doing what’s best for students?” Well, obviously defining what would be best for students is a good place to start. It is also something that I, as a hopeful educator fresh from an undergraduate education, can answer. It was established in McLeod’s video (found here), that children need critical thinking problem solving skills, rather than simple fact recall, in order to succeed in today’s world. Sadly, the way many people teach today, despite what they learned in college, is to cover information a mile wide, but only go an inch deep. Students are more likely to develop these more meaningful skills if the informational holes we dig go down deeper. In other words, students need relevant information covered in depth and in ways that make sense to them.

So that said, what’s best for us, the educators and adults of the world that the fate of the world depends on? (Okay, so maybe it’s not that dramatic, but the children are our future, so technically how we approach education affects our children and the paths they may take.) We are teaching in an age of accountability: how our students perform determines our outcomes as teachers. So thinking about this part of the question, in my opinion, what’s best for us as educators is students that do well on the various defining tests. Good scores? Yay for us. Bad scores? Uh oh. In these cutthroat circumstances it makes sense that teachers might throw all of their knowledge about student learning out the window just to make sure what’s tested is taught. But as educators we have a choice: teach to the test, or make what we teach prepare the students for the test as a result. But when thinking about convenience again and that ever so pressing issue of time, it is easier and therefore more convenient for teachers to teach to the test.

I may have babbled a bit in this open heart surgery that I performed on such a seemingly simple question, but my point comes down to this: as of now, as a whole, we are not doing what’s best for the children. However; just because we do what’s convenient for us does not necessarily mean we’re not going to be doing the best for our students. The two parts can overlap. Compromise is not only a wonderful idea, but it is also a plausible one. Ideally, the standardized tests of our societies would be rearranged to test what we wanted students to actually get out of their education (hint: that would be problem solving and critical thinking skills that are relevant to the lives of our students.) However in a world where education policies are determined by people who rarely have classroom experience other than their own education, it is best to think of an alternative. So if we can’t change the test, we change our approach. If we teach with “the test” in mind rather than to it, the students can gain those necessary critical thinking skills that allow them to be successful in life and on those dreaded tests. A win-win. I’m not saying it’s easy, but it doesn’t have to be difficult either. Educators have a wonderful resource: other teachers. Standards say that students need to have collaboration skills, but so do we. Every student is unique and by association every classroom is different. This implies that every teacher has diverse experiences in their classrooms. These multitudes of experiences include varying problems and solutions that teachers encounter. By sharing with the educational community what works and what doesn’t and why, teachers have a broader expanse of knowledge in which to help them with their curriculum development.

Very long story short: the only thing standing between us and our students getting what they need out of school, is our own desire to do what’s necessary. Don’t let doubt hold you back...

...take the leap.