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Creating Educational Videos

Steps and resources for faculty creating instructional videos

Video Best Practices

Don't have time to review this entire guide? At the very least, keep these best practices in mind*:

  1. If your presentation is longer than 10 minutes, split it into several videos or easily navigable sections.
  2. At the beginning of your video provide an overview of your presentation and learning objectives.
  3. At the end, provide a summary.
  4. Rather than including a lot of text, use a couple of key words or related visuals.
  5. Provide explanation with voice narration, not text.
  6. Script and/or storyboard each slide or talking point. It will save time during recording and make your narration clearer.
  7. Don't forget that your voice tone should be conversational! Monotone and recitations are much less engaging.
  8. To help keep your audience's attention, you can embed a simple recall type quiz in a video. You can also add an evaluation survey at the end.

*Click on links to review related information in this guide.

Example Videos for Inspiration

Format

Videos can take several forms: When choosing a format consider:
  • Traditional Khan video- Drawings, annotations, and notes (often drawn using a tablet) accompanied with voice narration
  • Narrated slide presentation, with or without annotating the slides
  • Video of a short lecture or a "talking head"
  • Video demonstrations
  • Animations or cartoons
  • A combination of any of these formats
  • A new style of your own creation. Feel free to be creative! 
  • Which format(s) best relays the information?
  • Which format(s) best facilitates my learning objectives?
  • What resources are available to me?

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