There are some great video resources out there today that allow for students to get assistance in learning a new idea or concept as well as furthering their understanding of that idea or concept. Zaption and EdPuzzle both allow the teacher, or anyone for that matter, to places questions and feedback into the videos to create a better learning experience for students. We do not just want our students to consume, we want them to be actively thinking even while watching a video. The questions we place into the videos also allow for some form of formative assessment to allow us to see how they are doing at understanding the ideas or concepts being shown in the video.
Both of these tools are very simple to get started, allow you to log-in using your Google account and make it easy for students to get to the videos. Both record their results so that you have data to use to adjust your plans and to let you know how your students are doing. Both allow you to trim the videos so you only have to watch the parts that are needed (do not assign a really long video, effectiveness drops greatly as the time goes up) and you can place questions wherever you want into the video to assess their understanding.
There are some basic differences between the two tools but they are best seen in the video below. In the video I show both tools, side by side, to do a comparison between them. If you are going to use one of them, make sure it is the one that fits your, and your students, needs the most.
Most of all, try both out and play with them. Remember that the more you play with the tool, the better you are able to make a decision about which one best fits your learning needs.
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