628 Week #4 - Exploring Media Accessibility Through Free Online Tools.

I chose to work with Screencast-O-Matic.  I bought an account and have already been using it, but I haven’t been utilizing it to its fullest potential and I haven’t made my videos fully accessible yet.  I learned that captions can be added to videos, but so far it appears they have to be typed in manually in the editing room.  I really wish it could just record voice to text.  There appears to be a way I can do that by using Google voice – but apparently it requires Google creating that after the fact, then presumably I’d have to add the file to the Screencast-O-Matic video after the fact in the editing mode.  I haven’t yet mastered that yet.  I also learned that I can do a green screen and put anything I want behind me.  I can also include music played from my computer, during recording as well as adding sound effects.  Most of the accessibility features I learned about have to be done after the video has been recorded in the editing process.  This creates an extra chore and doubles if not triples the time I’d have to spend making the video.  I wish it was easier and that I could at least have the captions record, voice to text, right in the recording process – that would make things so much easier.  Just the ability to make videos while going over written instructions is tremendously helpful and really is all about accessibility in and of itself I suppose.  It’s been a GREAT tool and has allowed me to flip my class room which has been hugely beneficial because it’s allowed me to have more time actually working with my students.  I will continue to play with Screencast-O-Matic, but I’m allowing myself to take my time so I don’t become overwhelmed.  The videos I make may not be pretty yet and they don’t have closed captioning, yet, but eventually they will!