by Daniel Pigou , English Language Centre, School of Languages, Xi'an Jiaotong-Liverpool University
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H5P allows for the creation of a variety of different digital activities for use both in and outside the classroom. One of the most effective of these is the interactive video, which, when used as part of a blended learning framework, could improve learning by giving students differentiated opportunities to interact and engage with the target language in ways research has shown can be highly motivating (Reinders et al., 2022). These videos work well for listening comprehension where questions could be embedded within the video, for note-taking and summarizing where questions are embedded at the end of the video, or for providing interactive feedback. While H5P videos have the potential to modify or redefine learning (Thomas & Thomson, 2022), it is important for them to be integrated within the curriculum with some type of communicative follow-up task to maximize learner motivation (Bong & Khoo, 2014).
This article will focus on how H5P interactive videos can be used to design student-centred listening activities; information and ideas on how they could be used for other purposes will also be provided. A complete listening activity is provided as an example.
The aims of this activity are :
- Students will engage more deeply with listening content.
- Students will engage with feedback and core requirements.
- Students will receive relevant and differentiated feedback.
- Students will be able to use technology as part of their learning.
Activity length
10-15 minutes
Course area
Listening comprehension, feedback
Level
All
Target skill(s)
Listening for key points, summarizing; and giving feedback
Set-ups:
The teacher needs to:
• Create an H5P interactive video in the content bank on Moodle (e.g.: LMO at XJTLU).
• Make the H5P video available to students in a Moodle folder.
• Prepare Moodle (LMO) to show students how to access videos.
Step 1:
Upload ‘How AI will change the world’ H5P file to the content bank on Moodle (LMO) and click ‘Save Changes’. See the attached file in the 'Download' section at the bottom of the page.
Step 2:
Go to your Moodle (LMO) page and turn on editing if using Moodle 4.0 or later. Select ‘Add an activity or resource’ and add an H5P activity to your own page.
Step 3:
Name the H5P activity using the same name as earlier (How AI will change the world) and select the H5P package under ‘package file’ and ‘content bank’. Finally, click ‘Save and display’ at the bottom of the page and test the H5P activity yourself before directing your students to complete it.
Note: Go to ‘Create your own H5P Interactive video’ (below) for instructions on how to set up, design and use your own H5P videos on Moodle.
Procedure:
Step 1:
Instruct students to bring an Internet-compatible device to class. This may include a tablet (e.g.: iPad), laptop, or even a smartphone, although a larger screen will make the content clearer.
Step 2:
Explain and demonstrate how to find the H5P activity on your Moodle page at an appropriate stage in the class. This may be best after a lead-in activity and any pre-teaching of vocabulary from the video.
Step 3:
Students complete this H5P activity.
Step 4:
Bring students back to class content by integrating the H5P video with overall content. Discussion or reflection questions work particularly well as a follow-up to interactive H5P content since they allow for meaning-focused communication on the same topic.
Note: interactive H5P videos can effectively be allocated as a self-study activity, but this is only recommended once students have become familiar with the H5P format through in-class use.
Step 1:
Navigate to the content bank in Moodle or open an external app where H5P content can be created (e.g.: Lumi).
Step 2:
Click Add and select ‘Interactive video’ to get started (see Image 1).
Step 3:
Add a title for the H5P video activity (Image 2). This will only be seen by other teachers. Then upload a video file. You may either upload a video file from your computer (.mp4 or .webm file) or paste a URL link. The content bank suggests a YouTube link, but a link to any supported video source URL should work.
Step 4:
Add interactive elements to the video (Image 3). At this stage, bookmarks can also be added to the video to simplify navigation both for the teacher/editor and students. Basic interactions include text, images, statements, multiple choice, drag-and-drop, mark the words and more. These can be added by either navigating to a specific time on the timeline and selecting an option or dragging the option directly onto the video.
Once a question type has been selected, you have to choose how the question will display, how long it will appear, and how students will interact with it (Image 4).
You should also decide how long the question will be displayed on the video, whether the video will be paused for this duration, and whether the question will be displayed as a button that the user must press to open or a poster that covers the screen. These options allow the teacher to customize students’ experiences by highlighting or hiding questions and forcing students to answer a question before proceeding or allowing more freedom.
Secondly, questions and options are relatively straightforward to set up but remember to spell out all options carefully and clearly identify the correct option by ticking the relevant box before clicking ‘done’ and adding other questions (Image 5).
Finally, behavioural settings should be considered. These include whether to allow students to retry a question, whether to enable viewing of the solution, whether to randomize answers, and whether to require an answer before the solution can be viewed (Image 6). Each of these options is likely to have an impact on how the task is performed by a group of students, as well as the overall user interface and how it may best be used in or outside the classroom.
Step 5:
Include the H5P video in a Moodle activity (e.g.: page or text and media area) or set up an H5P activity on your lecturer page by selecting the package file from the content bank with the same title you entered in Step 3 (Image 7).
Note that students will not be able to access content from the content bank unless this is linked to a Moodle activity.
Step 6:
Test the H5P activity carefully, note any errors and make changes as needed before presenting it to students and other teachers. Pay particular attention to question formatting, clarity of interaction instructions, results of correct and incorrect answers, and the overall behaviour of the activity. Consider editing content by going back to step 4 if something does not work as expected.
Caveats and alternatives:
Behavioural and adaptivity settings allow for more advanced H5P videos to be created. These could include points systems, delayed feedback and actions for students that get the right or wrong answers, such as moving forwards or backwards in the video as appropriate.
Another option is to use self-created videos and embed them with relevant H5P questions, comments, and activities. These videos could be used for course feedback, summaries of core requirements, and blended or flipped learning. In this case, a video will first have to be designed and generated using software such as Camtasia. This can then be uploaded before following steps 3-6 in setting up the activity for your students.
Download:
References:
- Bong, C. J. & Khoo, E. (2014) Adding some TEC-VARIETY: 100+ Activities for Motivating and Retaining Learners Online. Bloomington, Indiana: Open World Books.
- H5P (2022) Content Types and Applications. Retrieved from: https://h5p.org/content-types-and-applications
- Reinders, H., Dudeney, G. & Lamb, M. (2022) Using Technology to Motivate Learners (PDF). Oxford: Oxford University Press.
- Thomas, A. C. & Thomson, C. (2022) Applying the SAMR Model to aid your digital transformation. JISC Guides. Retrieved from: https://www.jisc.ac.uk/guides/applying-the-samr-model
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