Discovering Something New--Vine

 I chose Vine as a new tool to explore from a great collection of sites at Go2Web20.  I first experimented with the app on my phone.  My daughter downloaded this app to use a few months ago (she doesn't have an iphone, so uses mine often for apps).  I thought this would be a good staring point.  All I knew about Vine was it provided laugher for my daughter and her friends as they filmed goofy short videos.  Seeing how much my own 6th grader likes this app, I thought perhaps it might provide some useful purpose at school.  It's very easy to use.  The Menu has a Home option which will scroll through may public Vines posted by public users.  Here, just like many other social networking sites, you can Like and Comment on other user's Vine videos.  The menu has an Explore option to choose categories, like Comedy and Cats.  The Activity option shows what has been happening on your own account, such as if someone likes your post and who is following you.   And a Profile option where Settings can be managed, such as password information and how to find and connect with others. Then of course, in addition the the Menu button, there is a Record button.  Here is where the fun begins.  Users press a finger on the screen to record, and lifting your finger will pause the recording.  Users have 6 seconds to record and pause as many times as they want.  Then, you can choose whether or not to publicly post on Vine, Twitter and/or Facebook, and add a caption, location, and channel.  So, I filmed a normal night in my house (video above), which in 6 seconds shows what my daughter, husband, dog and myself engage in at 8:00 (notice the only one working!).

More In Vine:  What's great is the video automatically saves to your smart phone's photo library.  Then you can share it multiple ways outside of the Vine App such as in an email or message.  You can also film part of a Vine video, and save it to continue later. You can save up to ten sessions for later filming.  You can even edit finished Vines and rearrange the order of the clips.  There are more options than I expected in a 6 second production!  While filming, there are also some simple filming effects, such as the Ghost effect.

Use in Teaching:  I struggle with the educational value of Vine.  I looked online to see how other teachers are using Vine.  There is a site about how an English teacher uses Vine for Project-Basedlearning, having students pick a favorite character from Macbeth and become that character in 6 seconds. Also, a science teacher uses Vine (same link above) for lab experiments to replace lab notes. Again, I would need parent's permission to use this app, and I would also need to be sure all students had access to a device that allows for mobile apps.

**Criticism:  Although some educators have success using Vine, I still feel it is not the best tool for teaching.  It is a social site, and the privacy factor would have to be monitored and maintained.  Also, I feel the quick filming option would actually take away from the productivity factor.  Even in filming a silly video, I have witnessed my daughter and her friends film 20 takes until they got the Vine they wanted.  After all, you have seconds to get it right!  As I explored Vine's categories, I found very little with educational value, even in the News & Politics section.  Perhaps if Vine launched an educational contest, students and teachers might be more inspired to focus Vine in the classroom.  In addition, just as SchoolTube is to YouTube, Vine could dedicate a special App for the classroom.