This document provides instructions for students to create effective self-edited and self-reflective video essays. It outlines a process where students film videos of themselves at the beginning and end of a course and edit them together with commentary. Students reflect on their strengths/weaknesses, progress toward goals, and areas to continue improving. The document recommends designing courses with multiple video assignments and provides sample questions and editing software options. It suggests ways the approach could be adapted for other skills like writing and reading by incorporating files like concept maps, highlighted text, or book descriptions into the videos.

1. TESOL Electronic Village Technology Fair Presentation by Candice Quiñones,
@ 3pm, March 27
2014
For More Information Contact: cjq208@lehigh.edu
Creating Effective Student-Edited, Self-ReflectiveVideo Essays
Rationale
Many times, trying to assess speaking and listening using a paper based format can be challenging, but
using video, students can tell you directly what they want to say and show you examples of their
progress. Using video also opens their eyes to their issues and improvements.
From the mouth of a student:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D9GqIsH6k9I&feature=player_embedded
“The one thing that I think that will help me to improve my speaking skill and my pronunciation
is filming myself because when I’m filming myself, I will see how I speak, and I will hear what I
speak. It will help me a lot.” – Apple (not her real name)
Sample Videos
Onur (7.5 min) - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eqIJzIBs2ig#t=335
Claire (5 min) - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4W6W5S4O-e0#t=119
Instructions
* The key to being able to create self-edited, self-reflective video essays is designing a course that
requires several pre/post video assignments, or regular assignments of a similar nature.
Examples of recorded projects that work well:
Sample Assignment Descriptions:
https://www.dropbox.com/sh/9l5i0fqwqwwfqry/IcYUsHNm-b
Pronunciation assessment recordings (pre and post – use the same text)
Beginning / End of course partner interviews
Weekly self-reflective video journals
Periodic self assessments (using the same questionnaire/rating scale)
News Reports
Class presentations
Programs for Video Editing:
iMovie
Windows Movie Maker
Steps:
1. Make sure you have all of your video and audio files in one place. Start watching a few of your
first videos, and compare them to their counterparts from the end of the course.
2. Reflect on and take notes of important changes and improvements so you can use them later
(pay attention to the guidelines your instructor provided so you can look for those things).
Consider the following questions:
 What were my strengths and weaknesses at the beginning of the program?
 How did these change?
 How did the presentations, videos, and interviews I had to do affect my strengths and
weaknesses?
 To what extent did the assignments help me in making progress towards the goals that I
set at the beginning of the program?
 To what extent did I achieve my goals? (Do I need to keep working toward some or all of
them?)

2. TESOL Electronic Village Technology Fair Presentation by Candice Quiñones,
@ 3pm, March 27
2014
For More Information Contact: cjq208@lehigh.edu
 What are some things related to my speaking and listening that I should work on in the
future?
3. Choose a video editing program to use. Watch tutorials or experiment with it to make sure you
know how it works if you haven’t used one before.
4. Import the files that you know you want to use to the program.
5. Start trimming the original clips to isolate the parts of the video you will focus on in your self-
assessment.
6. Film any additional commentary you will need. (See questions in Step 2)
7. Import these files and combine them with your edited clips in the proper order (Usually this is as
simple as selecting, dragging and dropping a clip).
8. Add titles/captions, music, transitions, and any other special effects you think you will need.
9. Do a test-run of your video in the editor to see if it came out the way you wanted it to.
10. Make any last minute corrections or adjustments.
11. Export your video, and publish it as specified by your instructor.
Adaptations
This type of video essay is most easily done with regard to speaking & listening and pragmatics courses,
but it can be adapted to showcase learning from just about any type of course with a little creativity. The
key lies in designing the course to provide you with material that can be used to make a video.
For writing, you can perhaps have students create online concept maps using bubbl.us and then export
them as .jpg files, which will allow them to be inserted into videos. You can also make maps in Prezi. You
can also have them highlight sentences or paragraphs they are proud of or in which they realize there
were a lot of mistakes using PPT slides, which can also be saved as .jpg files or even imported directly
into some editing programs. Voice over is another feature that will allow students to show the
“pictures” and comment on their progress.
For reading, you can have students create slides (saved as .jpg files) featuring books read, tables of
reading rate improvement, vocabulary and skills learned, short segments of them describing some of the
skills they learned and/or reading aloud.
Presentation Link: http://prezi.com/finw4jg12fws/?utm_campaign=share&utm_medium=copy