The document discusses streaming media and multimedia in education. It begins by discussing how Confucius and educational theorists since have found that students remember and understand information better when they are more actively involved in the learning process. It then discusses different levels of multimedia, formats for multimedia content, and methods of delivering multimedia like downloading, streaming, and progressive downloading. The document advocates for the use of screencasts, slidecasts, webcasting, and flipping the classroom to make lectures and classes more interactive and improve student learning outcomes.

1. Towards a new look
at streaming media
R. Robert Gajewski
Warsaw University of Technology
Faculty of Civil Engineering
Institute of Building Engineering
Department of Fundamentals of CE
Division of Information Technologies

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To be continued…
 R.Robert Gajewski, How to change the
unchanging? Restructuring Polish universities for
the XXI century, TelE-learning, The challenge for
the Third Millennium, IFIP, 2002
 R.Robert Gajewski, e-Learning in Polish
universities of technology: challenges, problems
and own experiences, 8th IFIP World Conference
on Computers in Education, WCCE 2005
 R.Robert Gajewski, e-Learning in Polish
Universities: Between Mission and Commerce, 5th
IFIP Conference I3E , in: e-Learning: Experiences,
Cases, Projects, 2005.
 Towards a new look at streaming media

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Confucius
Confucius in 450 B.C. said:
“tell me and I will forget, show me and I
may remember, involve me and I will
understand.”
According to many researchers individuals
remember more information and for
longer when they are more involved in
learning process.

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Dale Cone of Learning [1945]

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Treichler [1967]
People generally remember:
 10% of what they read,
 20% of what they see,
 50% of what they see and hear,
 70% of what they say and write and
 90% of what they say as they perform a task

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Modified cone of learning

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Bloom’s taxonomy [1956]

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Revised Bloom’s taxonomy

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Three levels of multimedia [1]
High level multimedia require access to
high speed Internet.
Moreover there are often special software
requirements in order to run different
components.
Finally in many cases computers should
be setup in a specific way for such
multimedia.

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Three levels of multimedia [2]
Mid level multimedia are moderately
interactive.
Video, animations and slide shows provide
learners with visual description of
conceptually different tasks.
They are less expensive but their
development in some cases requires time
and expertise.

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Three levels of multimedia [3]
Finally, low level multimedia are definitely
passive but still provide learners with
visual information which facilitates
learning.
They are definitely less expensive to
produce.

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Formats…
There are different file formats suitable
for delivery of multimedia.
There are many pros and cons for each
format.
The choice is not only the matter of
personal preferences.
Much more important are ease of use,
required bandwidth, quality and, last but
not least, costs.
SWF Flash … HTML5

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Downloading
Downloading a file means saving it on a
computer - such a file can be then opened
and viewed (HTTP delivery)
This has some advantages like quick
access to the chosen part of a file but
disadvantages are bigger.
The whole file should be downloaded
before opening it which can cause
problems in the case of long
presentations.
In order to give an access to such file it is
enough to provide appropriate hyperlink.

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Streaming
Streaming media works differently – the
end user can start watching the file as
soon as it begins downloading.
The obvious advantage is that no
additional waiting is required.
Streaming media can also broadcast live
events – this is called webcast or netcast.
Such streaming should be delivered by
specialized streaming server which is the
biggest disadvantage.

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Progressive downloading
Progressive downloading is a hybrid
method in which clip is downloaded from
simple HTTP server but begins playing as
soon as a portion of the file has been
received.
Such approach is only a simulation of true
streaming but has majority of its
advantages.
SWF, FLV and MP3 files are excellent
examples of progressive downloading.

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Broad-casting [Wikipedia]
Broadcasting is the distribution of audio
and video content to a dispersed audience
via any audio or visual mass
communications medium, but usually one
using electromagnetic radiation (radio
waves).

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2002 motivation - screencastings
The type of content which people are
willing to have online is in majority of
cases application or software instruction
More and more online learning is related
to information technology and also to
engineering applications.
Nearly all organizations need to provide
training to software users and the Web is
one of the most effective tools to do this.
What we are now desperately seeking for
are software animations.

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Definition [Wikipedia]
A screencast is a digital recording of
computer screen output, also known as a
video screen capture, often containing
audio narration.
The term screencast compares with the
related term screenshot; whereas
screenshot is a picture of a computer
screen, a screencast is essentially a movie
of the changes over time that a user sees
on a computer screen, enhanced with
audio narration.

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Joe Udell [2004]
 Screencast, screencasting
 Democam, activevid, castware, dynamivid, dynavid,
movieware, narrationware, prescast, presencast, softcast,
vidarration, videoactive, vidware, smoovie, screedio,
product interview, appbeam, appcast, appflick, appshow,
appstream, displaycast, livescreen, screenbeam ,
screencast, screenflick, screenreel, screenscenes,
screenshow, screenshow, screenstream, windowbeam,
moviecapture, movieshot, democam, democast, screen
movies, video how-to's, screencast, democast,
screenblogging, helppeg, cinecord, videmo, democast,
demovid, democasting, demosharing, screensharing,
udelling, softreel, software reel, appcast, appcap,
appstream, appshow, appshow, screen video, screening
video, video screening, converstream, videodemo,
demovideo, videoshow, usage capture, advid, softmovie,
screenmovie, screentake, smoovie, democast, uldeo,
screenplay, democast

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Lotus Screen Cam [1994]
ScreenCam (formerly
Lotus/IBM
ScreenCam) is a
Screencast tool for
Microsoft Windows
that is used to author
software
demonstrations,
software simulations,
branched scenarios,
and tutorials in .swf
(also known as Adobe
Flash) format.

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Slidecasting is a standard?

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2004 motivation - slidecasting
PowerPoint gained a position of leading
software used to illustrate lectures.
One can easily add to it audio comments
but such file has tremendous size.
It is also possible to publish PPT as
webpage, but such presentation is
properly visible only for Internet Explorer
users.
The best solution is conversion of PPT file
into SWF format.

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Advantages of SWF (Flash) [1]
 Flash format enables greater accessibility of
presentations.
 Once PPT files are converted to SWF they can be
easily viewed by any Internet browser equipped
with Flash Player.
 Flash format ensures compatibility – everyone
who has a computer including Macs, Linux, Solaris,
HP, SGI workstations as well as handhelds can
watch PPT converted to Flash.
 PowerPoint presentation converted to Flash has
drastically reduced size up to 10% of the original
size.
 Flash files can also easily integrate audio tracks.

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Advantages of SWF (Flash) [2]
They can also be played at virtually any
resolution and/or screen size.
Due to the fact that progressive
downloading of Flash files is possible such
files can be easily distributed in the
Internet.
Flash files can contain optional embedded
basic interaction controls that let the user
stop or rewind the presentation.
Last but not least Flash files are more
secure from the author rights point of
view – it is very easy to edit and copy PPT
files.

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From lectures to knowledge clips
Lectures recorded at home or at the
university
Reusable Learning Objects – 5 to 10
minutes long parts of lectures
Knowledge clips – short presentations
devoted to particular subject

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Motivation 2009 - webcasting
The two podcasts (personal on demand
broadcasts) mentioned above have one
common drawback – they do not allow
two way communication.
The technology of webcasting gives a
chance to reinvent the lecture which can
be accessible in real time or from archives
as podcast.
Classical lecture has been for a long time
a dominant method for transmission of
knowledge from lecturer to students.
In the era of increased use of technology
this type of teaching can limit learning.

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Webcasting [Wikipedia]
A webcast is a media presentation
distributed over the Internet using
streaming media technology to distribute
a single content source to many
simultaneous listeners/viewers.
A webcast may either be distributed live
or on demand.
Essentially, webcasting is “broadcasting”
over the Internet.
It is a new instructional technology
enabling learners to participate in live
event via personal computer.

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Motivation 2013 – flipping [1]
Tenths of hours of different podcasts
stored on educational portal helped a lot
during classes but did not have expected
impact on quality of learning process
measured in terms of grades obtained by
students.
These observations lead to idea to revert
the situation.
Why not to ask students to perform easier
task at home and learn from podcasts
independently and why not to solve
during classes more difficult problems.

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Motivation 2013 – flipping [2]
Such situation is with agreement with
Bloom’s Revised Taxonomy.
Lower order thinking skills like
remembering, understanding and applying
are gained at home from podcasts which
can be treated as recorded classes.
Higher order thinking skills like analyzing,
evaluating and creating are gained at the
university.
Such situation requires change of the role
of academic staff – from teachers to
tutors.

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To flip or not to flip…
The Short History of Flipped Learning
Told by Jonathan Bergmann, Aaron Sams
 One of the problems we noticed right away about
teaching in a relatively rural school is that many of
our students missed a lot of school due to sports and
activities. The nearby schools are not nearby.
Students spent an inordinate amount of time on
buses traveling to and from events. Thus, students
missed our classes and struggled to stay caught up.

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To flip or not to flip…
The Short History of Flipped Learning
Told by Jonathan Bergmann, Aaron Sams
 And then one day our world changed. Aaron was
thumbing through a technology magazine and
showed Jon an article about some software that
would record a PowerPoint slide-show including voice
and any annotations, and then it converted the
recording into a video file that could be easily
distributed online. As we discussed the potential of
such software we realized this might be a way for our
students who missed class to not miss out on
learning. So in the spring of 2007, we began to
record our live lessons using screen capture software.
We posted our lectures online so our students could
access them. When we did this YouTube was just
getting started and the world of online video was just
in its infancy.

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Flip your classroom
 It started with a
simple observation:
students need their
teachers present to
answer questions or
to provide help if they
get stuck on an
assignment; they
don't need their
teachers present to
listen to a lecture or
review content.

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Definition of flipped classroom
Jon Bergmann, Jerry Overmyer and Brett
Wilie: The Flipped Class: Myths vs. Reality,
The Flipped Class: What it is and What it is
Not
Traditional definition:
 Where videos take the place of direct instruction
 This then allows students to get individual time in
class to work with their teacher on key learning
activities.
 It is called the flipped class because what used to be
classwork (the "lecture" is done at home via teacher-
created videos and what used to be homework
(assigned problems) is now done in class.

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The Flipped Classroom is NOT:
A synonym for online videos. When most
people hear about the flipped class all
they think about are the videos. It is the
interaction and the meaningful learning
activities that occur during the face-to-
face time that is most important.
About replacing teachers with videos.
An online course.
Students working without structure.
Students spending the entire class staring
at a computer screen.
Students working in isolation.

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The Flipped Classroom IS:
 A means to INCREASE interaction and
personalized contact time between students and
teachers.
 An environment where students take
responsibility for their own learning.
 A classroom where the teacher is not the "sage on
the stage", but the "guide on the side".
 A blending of direct instruction with constructivist
learning.
 A classroom where students who are absent due
to illness or extra-curricular activities such as
athletics or field-trips, don't get left behind.
 A class where content is permanently archived for
review or remediation.
 A class where all students are engaged in their
learning.
 A place where all students can get a personalized
education.

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Preliminary results…
First results from academic year 2012/13
are very positive and promising.
Average result from tests increased by
approximately 5% and the number of
students who failed decreased.
General students’ opinion about two
subjects.
As it could be supposed not all students
were satisfied by this change.
There is quite big group reluctant to work
at home and prepare to classes by
watching podcasts.