Videos: Are they OER? Or ZTC? 🤔
Videos are an excellent, zero-cost source of content to curate. But what is their copyright status? Are they OER?
Some videos you find on free sites like YouTube will have a Creative Commons license indicated in their description, but the vast majority are not OER. They are free, but they are fully copyrighted. In other words, they are ZTC resources.
With that said, you can link and embed videos without worrying about getting copyright permission. If the video is freely available, and especially if you see an "Embed" option, that means the video is meant to be shared!
Accessibility Note: Videos must be accurately captioned. YouTube automatic captioning is not acceptable, because it has inaccuracies and does not have punctuation or sentence capitalization. .
Use High-Quality YouTube Channels
One strategy is to use a site or channel that is well-known for producing high-quality, captioned videos. The following YouTube channels contain videos that are mostly captioned (always double-check though)!
- American Masters PBS Links to an external site.
- More from PBS: NatureLinks to an external site., Space TimeLinks to an external site., EonsLinks to an external site., Above the NoiseLinks to an external site., Deep LookLinks to an external site., Great PerformancesLinks to an external site.
- TED TalksLinks to an external site.: Always a favorite. You can use their YouTube channel or their websiteLinks to an external site. to embed videos.
- TED-EdLinks to an external site.: Library of talks and original animated videos with lessons, for educators.
- Khan Academy: It's not just for Math! They have resources on many subjects, including Economics, Art History, History, PoliSci, Finance, Entrepreneurship, etc.
- Crash CourseLinks to an external site.: Very well-known channel providing educational and highly engaging videos on many subjects.
- 3Blue1BrownLinks to an external site.: Math with a visuals-first approach.
- Mathispower4uLinks to an external site. and Mathispower4u EspanolLinks to an external site.: Math tutorials from basic arithmetic through calculus III and beyond.
- The Art AssignmentLinks to an external site.: Art and art history through the lens of things happening today.
- MinuteEarthLinks to an external site.: Science
- BraincraftLinks to an external site.: Psychology
- Wireless PhilosophyLinks to an external site.: Learn about Philosophy with professors from Yale, Stanford, Oxford, MIT, and more. 130+ animated videos.
- The School of Writing, Literature, and Film at Oregon State UniversityLinks to an external site.: Videos on grammar, fiction, poetry, literary terms, and more. The most popular English Department channel on YouTube!
- Audiovisual Lexicon for Media AnalysisLinks to an external site.: Library of 3-minute streaming videos featuring cinema and media studies faculty from across the world explaining a specific critical media studies term and illustrating how it can be applied to analyze selected film, television, and media examples.
- Netflix Full Features: Netflix has put some of its films and series out for free on its YouTube channel, with captions!
- Your campus library! Check to see if your library subscribes to streaming video databases like Films on Demand, Kanopy, Swank, Alexander Street, Academic Video Online, etc. Your library has paid for the copyright permissions on these, and they are captioned!
Filter Your Results to Captioned Videos
Avoid YouTube videos with auto-generated captions with this simple trick! After entering a search on YouTube, use the "Filter" option to limit results to those with Subtitles/CC. Note the other filters available, such as Duration and Creative Commons:
Page Adapted from "Teaching with OER and Open Pedagogy for Equity" by Aloha Sargent and College of the Canyons, for the California Community Colleges’ Zero Textbook Cost Degree program, is licensed under CC BY 4.0Links to an external site.
Page adapted from Online Teaching and DesignLinks to an external site. by @ONE/Online Network of EducatorsLinks to an external site., licensed under CC BY 4.0Links to an external site.
Image: "Closed captioning symbolLinks to an external site." by WGBH is in the Public Domain
