How might you apply the ideas summarized by Karppinen when using videos in your teaching? Describe (or provide a link to) an example of a videoclip that you might incorporate into a lesson, or a video-production project that you might ask your students to complete, and explain how you would use this videoclip/project to achieve a particular learning objective.

Karppinen states: "The value of the tools (e.g., online videos) lies in the ways they are put to use in real life teaching, studying, and learning situations." There are numerous videos and clips that are available online that used to not be easily accessible. Of course, as Karppinen states, the vastness of this resource means nothing without what is utilized being relevant. I agree that it is only with relevancy and good methods that such online videos can be incorporated into the classroom in a meaningful and productive way.

I have incorporated an online video clip into a lesson in my classroom before. My class was studying world religions and the social significance of religion in the world and, more specifically, in the United States. I showed my class an online video clip from a debate that President Obama had while he was running for Senator a few years ago. In this debate the devoutness of President Obama was at issue. After the video, I engaged my students with the question: "Why does it even matter that Obama is Christian at all (let alone why he is devout)?". We also discussed why Obama's middle name had been controversial in the United States and what implications such intolerance has. The video was able to engage my students with the issue in a way that I do not think I could have otherwise. It was a fantastic way to begin a discussion on an issue which is so complex.