Here’s a short video we made a few years ago (I’ve lost weight and had a shave since then) just to test out the then newly-acquired Flip video. Like a lot of writers I was talking about my two favourite subjects: me, and my books. But joking aside, there is a serious side to all this.

As you can see, although there is a lot of background noise, the sound is pretty clear. The quality of the image isn’t bad either. These two facts together mean that it’s perfectly feasible for someone to make a decent video with a pocket device (including a phone) in non-ideal surroundings. So what kind of things could pupils do as far as video interviews are concerned? Here are some ideas off the top of my head.

• Interview local residents as part of a living history project.
• Interview each other talking about their work, for assessment purposes.
• Interview teachers, including the Principal, for a weekly news bulletin.
• Interview the Child Protection Officer about the school’s answer to bullying, including cyberbullying.
• Interview parents at an open evening about what they think of what they’ve seen, and use these videos in a subsequent open evening (having obtained written permission of course).

You could use a phone insteadI’m sure you and your pupils can think of even more uses for the video interview. Do share in the Comments section if you feel so inclined.

Incidentally, the book I referred to at the end of the interview is also available as an ebook for £1.99 plus VAT where applicable – see below.

Further reading

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