Using narrated PowerPoint slides to create videos for youtube

Sometimes I want to create a resource for students that exists outside of the LMS. In this case, I had  material on research methods and statistics in psychology that I wanted to make available to online students. This can be a pretty dry topic, so rather than giving them something to read, I wanted to combine visuals with narration.

I used PowerPoint 2010 to create a slide show, and then used Record Slide Show (under the Slide Show tab) to add narration. This is an easy way to add narration - basically, plug in a mic and speak. PowerPoint saves the slide timings, and you can change the narration for individual slides if you make a mistake.

If you plan to upload your slide show to youtube, be aware that youtube only permits 15-minute videos. In my experience, the youtube video can be a little longer than a 15-minute PP slide show, so give yourself some leeway: create PP slide shows that are about 13 minutes in length (i.e., if you have a longer PP show, divide it into Part 1, Part 2, etc).

Use PowerPoint to create a video of your slide show that can then be uploaded to youtube. Click Save and Send in PP and then Create Video. This takes some time so plan to create the video when you have plenty of time for this part. Once the video has been created, sign in to youtube, upload the video with title, tags, etc., and you're good to go. Your youtube videos can be public or private, so you can control who your audience is. You also have the option to embed your youtube videos in a blog, Moodle, etc.