VIDEO COURSE GUIDE
7 Tips for Teachers
1) HOW TO USE:
A Dekko Video Course is a series of interactive videos for school teachers to use in their class; ideally on a projector or smartboard in front of the entire classroom.
They have been piloted on 20 schools across the UK. They can be used both for mainstream classrooms of mixed learning types and targeted intervention classrooms for SEN pupils.
Pupils can use them independently and SEN Teachers can do one-on-one sessions using them, but their format is best suited for audiences of multiple pupils.
2) WHO ARE THEY FOR:
In terms of age-range, they are best suited for late primary school to early secondary school (Primary 4 – S1 in Scotland, Year 5 – Year 9 in England).
The courses are primarily based around teaching creative learning skills and strategies. Different courses focus on different subjects (such as Punctuation & Grammar or Confidence with Neurodiversity), but all of them focus on applying creative strategies to engage with and learn those subjects.
The goal is to introduce pupils to different ways of learning and to equip them with creative strategies that they can put into use immediately - as well as help them develop their own. This is so that they are well-prepared and confident when it comes to important things like exam revision later down the line, as well as helping them with tackling school work in the short run, too.
They are designed to be especially helpful for neurodiverse and/or creative students who struggle with conventional text-based learning, but their value is relevant to any pupil who can benefit from being equipped with learning strategies and creative study skills.
3) WHERE TO USE:
It is up to the teachers and the school as to how and where these resources are applied, but examples can include PSHE lessons, or part of an English or Maths lesson (eg: when teaching punctuation marks or times tables).
You are encouraged to watch the videos in advance so that you know how best to apply them to your lesson plan. The skills taught in the courses can be applied to any subject or lesson, as they are just creative ways of converting information into other formats. So the more you already know about the video course material the more you’ll know where it can best be applied for your lesson.
4) WHEN TO USE:
Each video course is 4-6 videos in total, and each video is 10-25 minutes in length with pause breaks and interactivity in between. We recommend you do a video a week with your class when taking on a course. Watch the material in advance so that you know what to expect and how long each segment of the video is likely to take when the pause segments are included.
If you like, you can just do half a video one week, and continue the other half the following week. There is no set rule that you have to complete an entire video in a day in order to get the most out of the course. The courses are flexible and how to most effectively use them is up to you and your personal knowledge and relationship with your own individual pupils.
5) LINEAR or NONLINEAR:
You do not need to worry about playing the videos of each course in order. You can show them to your class in whatever order you think works for them. Each video is complete in and of itself and does not rely on you watching the previous video in order to understand and follow the video after.
For example: in the Confidence with Neurodiversity Course, you might prefer to start the video course with the last video (Video 5: ‘Confidence’) as you may think that’s a more important video to start off with based on your knowledge of the pupils that you want to get the most out of it. Or you may decide to Start with Video 2 first (‘Strengths’) and do Video 1 second (‘Struggles’).
Go for whatever you think works best for your class’ needs and relevance.
6) PAUSES, INTERACTIVITY & TASKS:
Each video has multiple “pause” sections. This is to allow the pupils to take a break from the video and reflect on what they’ve just been taught, and many include an interactive task. Some pauses prompt the pupils simply to have a think about what’s been shown, while other prompt a class discussion, while others prompt a “draw-along” or a “mini-task” - which can be helpful particularly when pupils are excited to try some of the techniques out for themselves as quickly as possible.
Each video ends with a task as well - which is linked to the downloadable activity sheets which come with each video within every course. These activity sheets are the main tasks for each video that cement what’s been learnt and give the pupils a chance to put the strategies into practice and see how well they work for them. They can be used as homework, as well as evidencing.
7) OTHER BITS & TIPS:
There are other accessories you can download from the videos of these courses, including a “before and after” questionnaire for your pupils - so you can measure how they have improved in their confidence about the subjects taught. Be sure to look at what each course offers as a downloadable accessory to make sure you’re getting the most out of each one.
A good opportunity to use these courses (or put what’s been taught in them to practice) is when your class has a big test coming up in the weeks or months ahead and creative retention strategies will be invaluable, (eg: an upcoming SATs Exams).