Music Videos in the Classroom Lesson 2
Lesson Objectives
In this lesson:
Students will be able to determine whether a specific music video is appropriate for their own classroom needs.
Students will be able to determine whether a specific music video is appropriate for their current student population.
The Problem
There are a number of resources available to teachers on the internet, music videos being just one of these helpful resources. However, not all music videos can or should be used for classroom use.
What You Need to Know
A number of factors need to be taken into account when determining whether a music video should be used in any particular classroom. Using the following checklist, teachers can begin to eliminate some of the many choices that are available.
1. Were you able to watch the music video in its entirety?
While this may not seem like a big deal, it is very important! If you cannot sit through the video, it is either too long or not engaging enough to be used for your students. A music video should NEVER be used if the teacher has not first watched every available second, especially when used with younger children.
2. Did the music video contain profanity or inappropriate content?
Another seemingly obvious point, however one that is worth mentioning. Just because students are exposed to profanity and other inappropriate content on the radio and other places in their every day lives, does not mean it should ever have a place in the classroom. This includes looking into the original song that the video was written to be sung to. If the original song has inappropriate content that the students may be familiar with, this could lead to issues in the classroom if any classmates begin singing the original instead of the educational video.
3. Does the music video cover the content needed for the classroom?
Some music videos may have a great deal of educational content that we want to expose our students to, but content is key. If the goal is to teach students about Ancient Mesopotamia, it would not be appropriate to jump into a music video about Ancient Egypt.
4. Are the lyrics sung at a reasonable speed and available to print?
If the lyrics are hard to follow along with, students will be unable to learn the lyrics in their intended content. This would make the music video unusable as a teaching tool. Having the ability to print (or type and print yourself) the lyrics, allows students to highlight important parts of the song and practice to more easily learn the content.
5. Do the images in the video make sense in the context of the song?
If the images used by the author of the music video do not match the content being taught, the lyrics could be helpful, but the video itself creates too many misconceptions.
6. Is the music sung to a current song that your students will be familiar with?
Using outdated songs to create music videos for the classroom could be a good thing or a bad thing. On the one hand, if students are less likely to know the original lyrics, it is less likely that their learning will be interrupted by the want to sing the song that they are more familiar with. However, if the song is too outdated, students are less likely to be able to sing along unless the tune it catchy and repetitive in nature.
7. Is the length of the video appropriate for the specific lesson being taught?
As teachers, we want to be sure that we cover all of the required content in the classroom. However, there is such a thing as too much information. Ensure that the music video being used does not contain unnecessary information, but that it also covers all main points for your topic.
8. Is the video easily searchable on the internet?
Students need to be able to find the music video from home to help them study. You will also want to easily and quickly find it for classroom use.
What Did You Learn in This Lesson
Let’s see what you learned from this lesson! Below are 2 links for already created music videos and a brief description of the content students needed to learn. Use the checklist provided to help determine if they should be used for the intended purpose.
1. Students are struggling to learn about the Dewey Decimal System. You have found this video to help them better understand the content. Would you use it in your classroom?
2. Students have been struggling learning about ancient civilizations. You have started a unit on Ancient Mesopotamia and found this video. Would you use it in your classroom?
Bonus: Find your own music video and analyze it to determine whether you could use it with YOUR students.
Ready to move on?
Click the link below.