Ever wanted to record video lectures for your students but you do not know where or how to start? Perhaps, all you want is an easy to use, free software to create video lectures for your students.
Video lectures are useful as a learning resource for students to view and refer back to whenever they require a refresher. Students have the freedom to watch these video lectures whenever they want and however many times they need. With the option to pause and rewind sections that students find difficulty in understanding, students take ownership of their learning and thus improve knowledge retention.
Teachers may also record video lectures to teach topics that do not change much over the years. Rather than rehash the same course content every year, teachers can produce video lectures for students to view before coming to class. By doing so, class time is freed up to discuss less intuitive concepts that require more coaching by teachers.
So, what are some of these free software for making video lectures? The following are six screen recording services that can help you record video lectures:
- Loom
- Screencast-O-Matic
- Quicktime
- Ezvid
- Apowersoft
- Panopto
1. Loom
All of Loom’s paid features are permanently free for all educators. With Loom, teachers are given the choice to record their screen together with the camera, or just the screen with audio narration.
If you are not keen on installing any third-party software, Loom also has a Chrome extension that you can use to record a video lecture. Using Loom’s Chrome extension, teachers can choose to record only the current window to safeguard their privacy.
After recording the video lecture, teachers can host their videos on Loom instead of going through the trouble to download and upload it elsewhere for students. Overall, Loom simplifies the process of making video lectures by guiding you from the time you start recording until you are ready to share your end product.
2. Screencast-O-Matic
Screencast-O-Matic is free for teachers to record video lectures. Similar to Loom, Screencast-O-Matic also offers cloud hosting for teachers to share their video lectures easily without having to download and upload it elsewhere for students.
What sets Screencast-O-Matic apart is its editing features. After recording video lectures, the free version of Screencast-O-Matic enables teachers to trim videos, include captions, and add music to their video lectures.
For $1.65 per month, teachers will also have access to an additional suite of editing features. Whether it is to add subtitles automatically or to speed up certain sections of the video lecture, Screencast-O-Matic’s deluxe plan has got you covered.
3. Quicktime
Does Quicktime sound familiar to you? If you have pre-installed Quicktime Player on your computer, you would already have everything you need to record video lectures!
Not only does Quicktime read MP4 videos, but Quicktime also provides basic audio and screen recording functions. If you only seek to create a basic video lecture without any subtitles or camera recording, Quicktime is sufficient to satisfy your needs.
4. Ezvid
If you wish to draw and annotate on the screen while recording your video lecture, Ezvid is the perfect software for you. Unlike most free screen recording services, Ezvid will not superimpose a watermark over your video lecture.
However, a drawback of Ezvid is that your videos cannot be saved from the software and be shared elsewhere. Instead, all videos created with Ezvid must be uploaded to YouTube.
For more information on how to use Ezvid, refer to this video:
<Embed: https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=22&v=oiLBZPo8jbA&feature=emb_title >
5. Apowersoft
Apowersoft is a free online screen recorder that works in your browser. Once you have installed the launcher the first time you use Apowersoft, simply visit the Apowersoft website whenever you want to make a video lecture for your students. Apowersoft was designed to make it fuss-free for anyone to make screen recordings.
Before you click on ‘record’, you may notice the red dotted lines surrounding the edge of the screen. Adjust these lines to restrict the part of the screen that you wish to record. This tool is especially useful to protect teachers’ privacy while recording video lectures.
6. Panopto
Panopto also works within browsers but unlike Apowersoft, Panopto does not require users to install any launcher. If you do not want to install any software or Chrome extension, Panopto is the screen recording tool to choose from.
Once you are done recording your videos, the system will prompt you to download or upload your video lecture to YouTube, Google Classroom, or Panopto.
HeyHi’s online whiteboard
Now that you are aware of six free software to make your first video lecture, it is time to decide on a teaching platform to present the content for your pre-recorded lesson. Here, it is our pleasure to introduce HeyHi’s online whiteboard as an option to deliver your video lecture.
HeyHi’s online whiteboard is free to download and users on the free subscription plan can set up a virtual classroom for up to four participants. If you are using HeyHi’s service to pre-record a lesson, simply create a meeting and start recording with your preferred recording software.
Unlike most online whiteboard services, HeyHi has an expandable whiteboard. If you run out of whiteboard space while recording your video lecture, simply shift to a different section of the board to continue with the class! Alternatively, you can also add additional pages to your whiteboard.
Since you no longer have to erase whatever you have written to make space for each part of the lesson, you can also download your annotations and disseminate them together with your video lecture. This way, students will be able to add their notes to yours.
For teachers who rely on the whiteboard in class, HeyHi’s online whiteboard is a great platform to deliver your pre-recorded lesson. Instead of stressing over designing slide decks with amazing graphics and transitions, HeyHi’s online whiteboard encourages spontaneity and mirrors the classroom environment. By annotating on the screen, the video lecture will also be more engaging and less static.
If you are using HeyHi’s online whiteboard to conduct a class or to facilitate student consultations, you may also consider recording these sessions with any of the tools listed above. Some of the questions that your students raise during consultations may also relate to the issues experienced by their peers. Therefore, sharing a recording of these small group sessions could potentially benefit other students in the class as well.
HeyHi’s online whiteboard is free to download for Apple and Android devices.
Summary
In this article, we have suggested the following free software for making video lectures:
- Loom
- Screencast-O-Matic
- Quicktime
- Ezvid
- Apowersoft
- Panopto
Pre-recorded lectures are useful for teachers who are interested in a flipped-classroom approach to teaching. Under this teaching pedagogy, students learn at their preferred pace with course materials curated by teachers. After going through these pre-recorded video lectures and notes, students attend lessons to discuss any difficulties or questions that they may have regarding the uploaded content.
With HeyHi’s online whiteboard and any of the six tools that we have listed here, you should have the resources that you require to begin recording video lectures. Next, please check out our in-depth guide on making video lectures with Loom for more information on how you can create a pre-recorded tutorial video for your students.
If you are interested in trying out HeyHi’s online whiteboard after reading this article, do reach out to us to request a demo or even experience the user interface for yourself!