The FunnelBrain Blog » academic videos

It’s Not About the Flashcards

Jack — Sat, 29 Aug 2009 19:45:45 +0000

So What Is It?

Many people have told us they think FunnelBrain is the best flashcard site on the Internet. Of course, we are gratified by this, but for those who look at FunnelBrain and see only a flashcard site, I have a surprise: FunnelBrain is not really about flashcards.

“Flashcard” is actually just a metaphor. FunnelBrain is really about creating student engagement through online collaboration. Read on to learn why we focus on collaboration and why we use the flashcard metaphor.

First, why on online collaboration? We want to get students excited about learning, and we know that:

Learning is more fun and effective when it is social.
Students engage on a deeper level with an audience of fellow students, rather than the teacher.
Online collaboration with all the latest web 2.0 tools makes it cool to be smart.
A shot at online stardom is a great motivator.

So how do you make online collaboration work? We spent a lot of time studying the essential elements of successful online collaborations. The key elements boil down to these:

First, you need a well-defined project for your collaborators to join. The participants must all understand the expected output of their collective efforts.
Second, you need a group of people with some inherent motivation to contribute to your project.
Third, the barrier to participation must be small. For this, you need a project that is highly “granular,” so that it is easy for participants to jump in and make small contributions to the project.
Lastly, you need an automated way to assemble all the granular contributions into a cohesive whole.

So, we designed FunnelBrain as a student collaboration project around these essential elements:

The Project

Create a collection of online flashcards decks with all the questions you need to know for your class.Of course, these are not literally flashcards. They are actually multi-media presentations of academic questions, answers and explanations.The flashcard metaphor simply allows the participants to instantly understand the project.The question, answer and explanation format gives the project just enough structure for the many participants’ contributions to hang together, while still leaving broad latitude for student expression and creativity.

The Participants

All the students in your class, along with all the students in similar classes around the world. Their motivations will range from the obvious value of the finished project at exam review time to the thrill of seeing themselves and their work published online.

The Granularity

Individual contributions can be as large as complete sets of flashcards on a particular subject, or as small as a correction, comment or tag on a single flashcard.

The Cohesive Whole

Flashcard decks can automatically sorted and assembled into subject area collections based on the tags users assign them (and by the site’s search index).

Students are already having a great deal of fun with this project. Of course, words only go so far. To get a better sense of the project’s potential, take a look at these “video flashcards”:

Click here to view a video flashcard deck created by the AP Environmental Science students at Saint Mary’s Hall in San Antonio.

Click here to view a video flashcard deck created by the AP Biology class at Lee High School in Houston.

Okay, now how do YOU get started? Easy. Click here to set up a group for your own class.

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Publishing Videos On FunnelBrain

Joe DeTuno — Thu, 27 Aug 2009 20:05:39 +0000

Hi Everyone -

We just launched a new free video publishing platform for multi-media flashcards on FunnelBrain. Flashcard authors can now capture video directly into FunnelBrain from a connected web cam when creating questions, answers, explanations and mnemonic devices. Of course, you can continue to upload videos the traditional way if you like. The online capture method is ideal for authors who are speaking directly into the camera to create a set of flashcards or record a video explanation.

To use the platform, simply click on the “Create Flashcards” link in the main navigation bar. Once in create mode, use the drop down menu on the flashcard to select “Video” and then click the “Upload Video” button as illustrated below.

Once you select “Upload Video,” you will be asked to install the browser plug-in. Once installed (you may have to restart your browser depending on what browser you are running), you will see the screen below.

If you have a camera configured for your computer, click the “Record From Webcam” button to launch the recording service. If you prefer to upload a video from your computer, select “Upload Video” browse for the file on your hard drive and drag it into the window to upload.

We hope you enjoy this new feature and look forward to your feedback. Thanks again for using FunnelBrain!

- The FunnelBrain Team

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FunnelBrain Brings Flashcards to Life with Student Videos

Joe DeTuno — Wed, 13 May 2009 06:44:29 +0000

Environmental Law - Saint Mary's Hall

Students collaborate to create online video flashcards for their classes

FunnelBrain, LLC – May 13, 2009 – Flashcards are not just for memorizing vocabulary words anymore. On www.FunnelBrain.com, a student-driven academic question-and-answer community founded by education experts and seasoned Internet executives from Move, Inc. [NASDAQ:MOVE], students create and share multimedia flashcards to enhance their learning experience.

AP Environmental Science students in San Antonio, Texas, recently used FunnelBrain to develop video review materials for their study of environmental treaties and laws.

“I’m always looking for new ways to drive engagement in and out of the classroom,” said Brian Kaestner, AP Environmental Science teacher at Saint Mary’s Hall in San Antonio, Texas. “FunnelBrain’s video flashcards are the perfect way to have students apply the same social tools they already use in their personal lives in a fun and educational way.”

On FunnelBrain, flashcards don’t have two sides anymore: students can add a third side to any flashcard to explain a difficult concept or to share a favorite mnemonic device. They can also include videos, photos, voice recordings and math equations.

FunnelBrain users can then share their questions—and collaborate on creating complete sets of flashcards on any topic of interest—with classmates and other students around the world.

“The power and versatility of online video flashcards coupled with group collaboration adds a new dimension to the learning experience,” said Joe DeTuno, CEO of FunnelBrain. “Students are interacting with the FunnelBrain learning community in very creative ways—the most dynamic of which is recording collaborative video questions, answers and explanations for their classes. “

About FunnelBrain LLC
FunnelBrain is an academic question-and-answer site that provides an environment for collaborative learning. For additional information visit http://blog.funnelbrain.com or http://www.funnelbrain.com, or email us at contact@funnelbrain.com. FunnelBrain is a proud sponsor of the World Scholar’s Cup, a team academic competition for students around the world. FunnelBrain is a trademark of FunnelBrain LLC.

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Student Generated Videos For Biology and Environmental Law Questions

Joe DeTuno — Fri, 24 Apr 2009 22:24:13 +0000

Image Cap from Student Generated Biology Videos

An advantage of using FunnelBrain to create review materials is its support for video content. After clicking on below URL, you will see how a group of high school AP Biology students used FunnelBrain to create review materials including video answers for Embryonic Development and The Brain.

This is a great example of the power and flexibility of online flashcards and how FunnelBrain brings another dimension to your online learning experience.

Environmental Laws and Treaties

Embryonic Development and The Brain with Student Generated Video Answers

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