Educational Video Instead Of Thousands Of Words: How To Make It Perfect?

Since the pandemic, most niches switched to remote mode. The education system didn’t stay aside from this process and went digital too, using video format to make learning more fluid. Let’s take a look at what impact educational video clips have on students’ performance and why your brand should apply them in 2022.

 

 

How Does The Use Of Educational Videos Affect Students’ Performance?

 

With the pandemic, the tendency to use video format for self-education has increased, as more and more users want to learn something “without water”. In fact, 83% of people prefer watching videos to accessing instructional or informational content via text or audio. 

 

Education is now going completely digital — there are millions of hours of e-learning videos on various platforms. Educational videos impact visual, auditory, logical, and associative memory. This, in turn, allows you to maximize the effectiveness of learning. As recent studies showed, when students watched the video materials, their academic performance increased by 20%. 

 

To get a complete education or learn new skills, you no longer have to go to a university or a private tutor. You can choose between distance and face-to-face learning. Although the second one seems more familiar, online learning is more contemporary and convenient. 

 

Modern information technology allows watching a wide range of video formats: educational animation, studio footage, screencasts, etc. Some of them are easy to perform, others, on the contrary, require financial expenses, a large team of developers, and time resources.

 

Essential Features Of A Successful Educational Video

Educational videos are viral. More and more information is being viewed on phones, which gives rise to the vertical video format. Very often, users minimize apps and continue listening to educational clips that broaden their horizons. 

 

One of the current trends in creating instructional videos is to allow viewers to influence what they see through comments and likes. Now we’re going to look at a few basic points on how to improve the quality and informative cohesiveness of your video.

Spark Students’ Curiosity From The Start

Attracting and holding attention is one of the most difficult types of any content, not just video clips. It is a well-known fact that people can be interested only in the first 3 or 7 seconds. If you fail to catch their attention during this time frame, the viewer will simply fly through your video. 

 

Today, it is challenging for people to concentrate their attention on one thing while surfing the Internet. This is especially true for the younger generation, which is considered the primary target audience. They can be distracted by many factors. 

 

If you start with the phrase “today we will discuss the topic…,” then it is likely that the customers will skip your video, because they do not immediately hear what it will be about. We recommend throwing in some exciting and intriguing facts on your topic from the very beginning to hook the viewers. 

 

Not Overloaded Or Over-Informative

One of the main points in creating a video is not to overload it. This is a common situation when we don’t fully grasp the information while watching a training video. Most likely, it was overloaded with information. 

 

To avoid these cases and make every e-learning video successful, you should use less scientific vocabulary and graphs. In educational videos, it is better to use just normal, informal language, this way your viewers will understand the information better. Also, if the subject is complicated to fit in one video, break up the topic into several parts. 

 

Mobile Format

The development of social media is putting its spin on the content. Users have become accustomed to the short format of videos that can be watched on the phone in their routine. Is there an optimal training video length? 

 

While creating an educational video that describes a simple technique, it’s ideal to make it 2-5 minutes long. However, if your video clip requires more material to be highlighted, then it’s better to make it no longer than 30 minutes. In case your educational trailer appears to be even longer, break it up into smaller segments of 3-5 minutes. This will help the viewers breathe out between actions. 

 

Speak The Audience’ Language

One more vital component in an explainer video is the form of speech, or rather the style. Before creating the video, analyze the behavior and preferences of your target audience. This way, you will understand which style is better to choose to convey information. 

 

Try to be on the same page with your viewers — transfer the information in a simple way, using less special terminology. If this is impossible, we recommend explaining what the term means right away. 

 

Your tone of voice plays one of the most critical roles because it determines how well the audience will understand you. And now let’s look at a few steps to craft your educational video. 

 

How To Make Animated Educational Videos Effective: 5 Detailed Steps

The popularity of educational animation has greatly increased with the advent of powerful graphics-oriented programs. Advanced technologies make producing spirits much easier and cheaper than previously when traditional video required special time-consuming and expensive techniques.

 

Now, the software is available to teachers, allowing them to create their own eagerness without special knowledge. Tutors are no longer limited by static graphics. They can easily convert the content into a teaching animation.

 

Write An Engaging, But Detailed Script

Do not forget that one of the points of a good script is details. The plot should not be monotonous, but capture the spectator at once. Unless you catch the viewers’ attention from the first seconds, they will simply miss your video. Now let’s take a closer look at how to prepare a winning script for your educational video. 

 

1. Start with a greeting. The beginning should be with a soft and easy “welcome” and then you have a chance to take the viewers’ attention. However, this should not be long — manage it within one minute. The shorter the video is — the shorter the welcome message needs to be.
2. Next comes the introductory part, which should take no more than 2-3 minutes. Here, you need to tell about yourself and provide viewers with a brief introduction to the topic. In this part, you have a chance to engage the audience. After that, please don’t forget to highlight the topics and materials that will be mentioned in your educational video for 1-2 minutes.
3. Then move on to the main part. Here, you need to cover all the details regarding the topic of the educational video. Try to make this block for up to 3 minutes. If the topic requires an in-depth broach, then break it up into several parts.
4. In the end, you need to summarize the material. Optionally, you can announce the following video. At the end, you may provide users with a little preview of the next video, or for example, you can make a contest with something to win. This will make viewers watch your videos more closely.

 

Don’t Forget About A Storyboard

Thanks to the storyboard, you can bring your script to life and visually demonstrate it to others before shooting. The storyboard can be made manually or digitally.

 

• Set the timeline. Establishing the parameters of when and where the story takes place and the chronological order of the events is the best way to organize the structure of your educational video.

 

• Identify the key points of your narrative. Think completely through your effective educational video and study the list of key moments you want to illustrate in the storyboard. Try to select scenes that show how the story develops from beginning to end. Every plot twist is worth including in the storyboard to move the story forward. Keep in mind that for a typical 30-second educational clip, the storyboard should have no more than 15 frames. The average is two seconds per frame.

 

• Describe what each frame will display. Now that you know what major stages you want to show, think about how to portray the action in each illustration. Go through your list of scenes and describe the most important elements of each stage — this will help you determine what you will draw on your storyboard.

 

Reduce cognitive processing demand

Reducing cognitive processing is one of the most significant points in the creation of any video material. There are 2 types of cognitive load:

 

• Internal cognitive load refers to the complexity of a particular topic. It depends on the users’ knowledge in the area (the more they are in the subject, the lower the cognitive load is).

• External cognitive load is created by the way the information is presented. It can be reduced by high-quality content writing and applying usability recommendations.

 

To avoid the need for cognitive processing, you can use the following. Keep your speech as simple as possible and try to present the information in an easy-to-understand format. Attempt not to use scientific vocabulary in your educational video. The simpler the information will be conveyed, the more students will be comfortable and more straightforward to listen to your video. And thanks to this method of communication, you will be able to attract a large audience over time. 

 

Clean And Clear Voiceover

Don’t forget about the voice sound in your educational video — take care of the recording quality. If possible, rent a recording studio and a professional microphone so that your voiceover will be softer and smoother. Also, one of the main roles of good voice acting is played by the intonation and timbre. Don’t forget to check how and in what intonation you speak. Alternatively, you can hire an actor or a voiceover specialist, so your video clip will sound cleaner and more professional. 

 

Flawless Recording And Editing

Last but not least is the processing and framing of your educational video material. Not a single video has ever been shot from the first take, so don’t worry if this version doesn’t yield the expected result. 

 

At the stage of cropping and trimming, select the most successful take of your educational video and then edit your future clip based on it. Do not be afraid to experiment and play with light, filters and music.

 

Wrapping Up

In this article, you learned some tips and insights on how to create a unique educational video. You discovered that instructional videos play a big role in our society and found out why it is a good investment move. If you create a quality video clip, you can attract more potential clients to your course, plus, you will be better recognized. To create an original educational video, you can confidently refer to Wow-How Studio.