Who needs educational TV when you have YouTube?

I've just seen one of the best nature documentaries I've ever seen. It's been viewed by over 10.5m people. It wasn't an Attenborough, it wasn't feature length. It's eight minutes shot from the back of a Safari van by a tourist with a shaky hand who then thought to put what he had seen onto YouTube. Take some time to view this amazing fight for life in the Kruger National Park and then go and look for what else YouTube could be offering, for free, to your classroom, were it not blocked. Via Bobbie.

Comments

[DK]

Woe...

[Christian Long]

Ewan -- Luckily I had a chance to watch the video yesterday while at home (and not staring down the blackhole of an internet filter blocking my access), whereas I can't while here at school (as you so playfully stated at the end of your blog post).

Agreed. Brilliant viral video. Very intriguing possibilities for bringing into the classroom. Already wondering if it would be approrpriate in "Lord of the Flies" discussion when we discuss core human instincts in the larger social and natural world(s) we occupy. Have to download via some clever app to burn to CD to bring into school, of course, but when there is a will there is a way and all that jazz.

Hope all is well in almost-new-daddy land. Be well! Best to missus...and tell that hospital to let you use your cell phone so you can Tweet the gang.

Cheers from Texas,
Christian

P.S. How pleased am I that I can pick-up your blog while at my new school? Yes, yes, yes...Ewan MC is now in the house and going to have an impact for good on my kids and colleagues this year. And that makes me very, very happy!

[Brian Mull]

Christian,

Try http://www.vixy.net. You can take the video's URL, plug it in on the website, and convert it to a .mov file that you can burn to a CD.

[Paul Wilkinson]

Oh goodness me. Isn't that such a great video. I couldn't get vixy.net to convert this for me at all. Kept getting an error message. I did try Zamzar and that seems to have converted it. I'm waiting for a link from them now. Interestingly when I first found this video a few days ago I copied it into my blog but then got a message to say it had been removed due to copyright claims. Your link still seems to work and hopefully I can get a copy to keep. Nothing more frustrating to find a fantastic resource one day and not have access to it the next.

[Jim McDougall]

Compelling drama!! A powerful example of where broadcasting is going, and how "ordinary" people can set the agenda an dachive huge ratings! There are so many clips out there, for every subject imaginable, for example vintage footage of key events in our time, classical music broadcasts, field trips. The key thing for schools and authorities to consider is how to manage the access and use of the fantastic educational potential of YouTube while minimising the risks of pupils accessing or stumbling on inapproprtiate material or comments. I imagine most schools do not yet permit any access to YouTube owing to concerns over content and bullying.

[Allanah]

I use Vixy to convert to a movie for my video Ipod which I can then play though a TV in a big enough size for the class to view. No worries about hooking up a data projector or big screen or loosing the file or CD or whatever and the resource is always on call.

Things must be getting close now. Good luck for the new arrival.

[Charlene C]

Thanks for sharing this -- great video. Our school is not yet blocking YouTube (we are a high school), but I can sympathize with schools that are. The video is awesome, but the comments left by viewers in YouTube are less than desirable for younger viewers... such as those using adult language. That's what prevents schools from providing full access.

[Stuart Lennie]

Well there's one easy way around the YouTube issue- get more staff using TeacherTube instead!!

Its far better moderated that Youtube is (please note that Youtube now links similar related videos at the end of playing and on its homepage- which you have no control over!! so you could be chatting away to your class while indecent images are being diplayed behind you) and is not being blocked in this Authority.