Chances are that you have had to use video resource platforms like YouTube to find some explanation for a concept you don’t understand. This isn’t surprising — in the educational landscape, video content has become a very important tool for transforming learning immersiveness and quality.
Educational videos can help people enjoy learning and remain engaged throughout the material. This is because they have been shown to significantly improve retention rates and engagement levels. However, you should know that educational videos are only effective when production is done right.
In this article, you’ll discover key things you need to know about educational video production, including important strategies and tips for educational video production.
Stages of Educational Video Production
There are three broad educational video production stages, each with its focuses and requirements. Each stage builds on the work that has been done in the previous one to create an interlocking process of smooth work operations. The three stages of educational video production include the following:
- Pre-Production Stage: Creating educational videos that hit the mark every time requires careful planning and research. This is where all of these preparatory activities are done. Some activities that feature in this stage include objective setting, audience analysis, resource allocation, location scouting, and so on.
- Production Stage: The production stage is where plans and designs from the previous stage are implemented. As the name implies, this is where the actual video recording process takes place.
- Post-Production Stage: Shooting and recording the video doesn’t mean that the process of resting educational videos is done. There’s still a need to go over the recorded content to make revisions and edits, like adding transitions and effects where necessary. It’s only after all the editing and final review have been done that the educational video production process is complete.
Techniques For Educational Video Production
Whether you’re creating training videos for your company or educational content for more academic purposes, there are some things you have to do. These include the following:
#1. Audience Research
The first thing to do before writing a script or recording your educational video is to research your intended audience. This first step is pivotal because it ultimately determines how successful your content is going to be. Educational content has to resonate with its target audience to be effective.
So you’ll need to research and take note of points such as:
- Target age group
- Learning objectives
- Educational background, and so on.
#2. Developing The Content
Once you have researched your target audience, the next thing to do is develop the content. Note that shooting educational videos should only happen after there’s a solid content plan in place. This will involve doing some scriptwriting to ensure videos have a nice flow and are sufficiently informative.
To ensure your content is quality enough, you may have to engage the services of a professional scriptwriter. This is because educational videos have to offer an excellent balance between being informative and engaging. Achieving this balance on your own could be challenging if you don’t have prior experience.
#3. Quality Visuals
One mistake lots of educational content producers make is not recognizing the importance of having quality visuals. “Visuals” here refers to the pictures, animations, and other relevant imagery that are incorporated into the educational content. Note that while incorporating visuals into your educational content is important, they also have to be chosen with care.
Ideally, you’ll want to pick imagery that reinforces the point you’re trying to make, not something that will distract your viewers.
#4. Keep It Short
It’s important you make sure your educational content is succinct. If you’re recording a video that requires a longer period of time, there’s a way around this limitation. All you’ll have to do is break and arrange the content into very short segments. This will help you maintain optimal levels of viewer engagement throughout your video.
#5. Storytelling
Educational videos are more impactful when they favor a storytelling approach. You should be able to provide two or three real-life scenarios or examples your audience can relate to. You should also incorporate the use of visual tools like charts and illustrations to explain complex terms. This will significantly contribute to making them more relatable for your viewers.
#6. Audio Optimization
It’s also important to mention that sound quality is crucial in producing engaging educational videos. The purpose of educational videos is to teach or communicate knowledge about a particular thing, so it makes sense that videos recorded actually have audios that allow people to hear clearly what is being said.
You should note that location choice also plays a role here. The choice of your filming location determines how much background noise you’re going to have to deal with. That said, a quality microphone will help you minimize background noise.
You should also be aware that just like the graphics, any sound effects or music added to the video should enhance the listening experience of viewers and not distract them.
#7. Pace Yourself
Pacing is also important in creating educational videos that offer engaging learning experiences. The pace of your explanations and presentations should align with the complexity of the content you’re recording. So, complex topics should progress at a slower pace to give enough room for adequate comprehension.
You should include pauses throughout your video, especially after complex or somewhat tricky information. This will allow viewers enough time to process the information you have just provided, ensuring you’re able to carry them along moving forward.
Conclusion
Educational video production is more tricky than it appears since there are many things to pay attention to. However, with the tips and techniques outlined above, you’ll have no problem creating educational content that is engaging and satisfactorily informative.
