I think it is very interesting that young adults and adults are going to YouTube for credible and authentic information. Yes, the site contains real clips from television, which are credible, but what about the other billion or so videos from all the Jane Does with nothing better to do than make a video.
Many of my students enjoy creating videos, editing them, and posting them on YouTube for their friends to view, and I think it is great! I love that they are expressing themselves and showing their ideas to other, but my students are not credible sources. If my students are looking for authentic websites online to support their research or a story that they are writing, I want them to find sources that are truthful and hopefully unbiased. That is all part of the learning process; they need to learn how to tell what they should believe or question online or even in books.
I believe that YouTube can have a role in schools or in my students' lives when it comes to researching and sharing. YouTube contains real video clips from movies, television shows, live broadcasts, and commercials that can support their research and their learning; I would never want to take that away from them. Also, it is a great method that they can use to share their ideas and things they have created; however, YouTube isn't a controlled site and isn't safe for all students. I would love to use something like YouTube in my classroom that is safe for all of my students to view and pull credible information from. Also, something like YouTube could allow them to post school projects or videos online for their peers to view.
If a site like this exists that is free and can get past my school's security, I would love to try it out in my classroom. I am open to the idea of YouTube and other new technologies that could help me and my students.
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