Inclusive Learning Materials: Using Multimedia for Universal Learning
What is Multimedia
Multimedia is derived from “multi,” meaning many, and “media,” which refers to different communication channels.
Educational content often incorporates text, images, and interactive exercises to enhance learning. Video games blend graphics, sound, and narrative to create immersive experiences. Combined video, sound, and text can capture attention and convey messages effectively.
One of multimedia’s key advantages is its ability to engage multiple senses, making information more accessible and memorable. For example, a lecture presentation can be multimedia because it can include visual aids, sound effects, and interactive elements that cater to different learning styles.
Multimedia is a powerful tool for exploring content in learning and teaching, but it serves its best purpose when designed for diversity, inclusion, and belonging. This presentation explores the connections between culturally sustaining practices, learning theory connected to multimedia, and the Universal Design for Learning framework.
Presentation Slides
Using Multimedia for Universal Learning by Quill West
Resources for Finding Multimedia
Try searching for multimedia resources before you make your own. Here are some places to look for materials.
- Research Guide: Audio and Video: This research guide, created by Pierce College Librarians, will help you find videos and audio clips in library databases and recommended websites.
- LACLI: A repository of free online resources for Latin American, Caribbean, Latinx, and Iberian studies. Some of these resources are multimedia, and others are readings.
- ROAM: Repository of Open and Affordable Materials: This collection from PennState University Libraries includes full lessons on a variety of topics.
- University of Oxford Podcasts: This is a collection of podcasts from the University of Oxford.
- Internet Archive: Try limiting your search to audio, video, or images. This collection is vast but tends to have more historical materials, such as old movies and public service-style videos.
- Digital Public Library of America: All materials found through DPLA—photographs, books, maps, news footage, oral histories, personal letters, museum objects, artwork, government documents, and so much more—are free and immediately available in digital format. Check items individually to identify copyright status.
Resources for Creating Multimedia
Here are some places to find raw materials for creating multimedia.
- Inclusive Openly Licensed Images: This is a list curated by ELAD. The repositories contain openly licensed images that promote diversity and inclusion.
- BBC Sound Effects: If you want to incorporate sound effects into a project, the BBC has released their sound effects library, as long as your use fits their licensing.
- Public Domain Films: These films from the National Film Registry, available through the Library of Congress, are available for reuse and adaptation.
- Library of Congress Free to Use and Reuse: A collection of materials from the LOC in the public domain. Materials are organized by theme.
- Prelinger Archives: This collection of videos, housed at the Internet Archive, includes over 9,000 videos with various purposes. The collection includes amateur, educational, industrial, and ephemeral films converted to digital formats. Much of this archive is dedicated to the public domain, but check the licensing on each piece of work before deciding to modify or adapt a work.
- Discover NASA Image and Video Library: A collection of NASA’s images, video, and audio recordings.
- European Southern Observatory: A collection of videos about space and astronomy published with a CC-BY license.
- Free Stock Footage Archive: A collection of stock footage that is free to use with attribution.
- Videvo: A collection of stock footage that is licensed Creative Commons Attribution 3.0.
Tools for Making Multimedia
Here are some tools that you can explore.
- Clipchamp: A video creation app in Microsoft tools. It allows for video editing.
- Panopto: A video recording and hosting tool embedded in Canvas.
- H5P: Build interactives such as comprehension checks in a reading.
Check with ELAD to learn more about creating multimedia and the tools Pierce College supports.