Since students in all three of my classes will need to do a data table in Excel at some point, I decided to put together a short video on 1 and 2-variable data tables.
Teaching three preps has been much more time consuming than I'd expected. Luckily, I'm almost through the most time consuming parts of my classes - in one, the most technical material comes first, and the other two (the case course and the student-managed fund) require a lot of "setup" at the beginning of the class. So, I'm hoping that crunch time will shortly be over.
In any event, here are the videos
click here for the video file in MPEG-4 format, and here if you want it in MOV format.
It takes time to make these, but it should save me a fair bit of time in the long run. For example, I won't need to spend class time on teaching my students the basics of data tables any more. They'll still have questions after viewing the video, I'm sure, but they can review it multiple times, and it'll eliminate the need to go over the basics in class.
I know one person who's put the majority of his introductory finance lectures into video files like these (he did it initially for an online course). Now he uses them as review material for upper-level students who are weak in one area or another.
Any comments on the video are welcome. It's not perfect - there are some "ummm" and "uh" moments. And yes, I've stripped out the identifying data - I finally realize what some people had said in the comments.
Showing posts with label Technology. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Technology. Show all posts
Saturday, September 26, 2009
Tuesday, August 18, 2009
Tutorials For The BA2+ Calculator
In any class, there are some sections that take up a disproportionate amount of class time but are only needed by some of the class. For example, in my case course, some of the students have a very good grasp of how to use their business calculators, while others somehow made it out of the introductory class without learning something as basis as how to calculate simple present and future values using the built in financial functions of their calculator.
So, how do I make sure that all my students have the basic background knowledge needed to survive the class? My solution this semester is to use screen recording software to create a few tutorials for the Texas Instruments BA2+ calculator (the model we encourage our students to use in the intro class).
I made a short 5-6 minute video that goes over how to change the settings on the calculator (i.e. the number of decimals displayed, number of periods per year, etc), and another to demonstrate how to solve problems involving present and future values of lump sums (and how to solve for interest rate and number of periods, too). I'll make a third video to cover annuity problems, a fourth to cover NPV and IRR problems, and a fifth to work some problems in depth.
I've posted a link to one of the videos below. In case you're interested, I created the guides using Techsmith's Camtasia software, Texas Instrument's calculator software emulator, and hosted it on Techsmith's Screencast platform. It's not professionally done by any stretch of the imagination, but I think it gets the basics across (and there aren't enough "ummm's" and "Ah's" to be too distracting).
Updated 8/22: I put all the tutorials in one spot for easier access. Updated 8/20: They're in MP4 format, which should be playable on the latest versions of Windows Media Player and most other video players. If you want to download them, feel free, but realize that the largest is about 20 meg. So it might take a while (depending on your connection speed).
Introduction To The BA2+ Calculator
Solving Present and Future Value Lump Sum Problems On The BA2+ Calculator.
Solving Annuity Problems on the BA2+ Calculator
Using the Cash Flow Register on the BA2+ Calculator
Any feedback is appreciated.
So, how do I make sure that all my students have the basic background knowledge needed to survive the class? My solution this semester is to use screen recording software to create a few tutorials for the Texas Instruments BA2+ calculator (the model we encourage our students to use in the intro class).
I made a short 5-6 minute video that goes over how to change the settings on the calculator (i.e. the number of decimals displayed, number of periods per year, etc), and another to demonstrate how to solve problems involving present and future values of lump sums (and how to solve for interest rate and number of periods, too). I'll make a third video to cover annuity problems, a fourth to cover NPV and IRR problems, and a fifth to work some problems in depth.
I've posted a link to one of the videos below. In case you're interested, I created the guides using Techsmith's Camtasia software, Texas Instrument's calculator software emulator, and hosted it on Techsmith's Screencast platform. It's not professionally done by any stretch of the imagination, but I think it gets the basics across (and there aren't enough "ummm's" and "Ah's" to be too distracting).
Updated 8/22: I put all the tutorials in one spot for easier access. Updated 8/20: They're in MP4 format, which should be playable on the latest versions of Windows Media Player and most other video players. If you want to download them, feel free, but realize that the largest is about 20 meg. So it might take a while (depending on your connection speed).
Introduction To The BA2+ Calculator
Solving Present and Future Value Lump Sum Problems On The BA2+ Calculator.
Solving Annuity Problems on the BA2+ Calculator
Using the Cash Flow Register on the BA2+ Calculator
Any feedback is appreciated.
Thursday, July 26, 2007
More on Screen Recording Software
After a few missteps (and a call to Techsmith's customer support), I manged to get my screen recording software up and running. I usually spend the majority of the first day of class on administrative things - how I grade, how many quizzes, exams, projects, etc...
It's never fun, and it suck a lot of energy out of the first class. But it is important material. So this time, put it all into a short recording, and I'll post it on the web. I'll still hand out the syllabus in class (at the END of the class), but instead of wasting precious class time on what I call "administrivia", and can use it to deliver some real content.
I'm pretty excited about the prospects for this stuff. I can see myself eventually moving a significant portion of my material online, and then using classroom time for the elements that don't lend themselves to web-based learning - like working problems, cases, and classroom discussion. This will also make it very easy to transition my materials to an online setting.
Yes, I am a hopeless nerd. But I'm o.k. with that.
Update: Bob Jensen has one of the best sites I've seen on derivatives-related accounting material. Not surprising, he's also done a few Camtasia videos (links are in the comments section).
It's never fun, and it suck a lot of energy out of the first class. But it is important material. So this time, put it all into a short recording, and I'll post it on the web. I'll still hand out the syllabus in class (at the END of the class), but instead of wasting precious class time on what I call "administrivia", and can use it to deliver some real content.
I'm pretty excited about the prospects for this stuff. I can see myself eventually moving a significant portion of my material online, and then using classroom time for the elements that don't lend themselves to web-based learning - like working problems, cases, and classroom discussion. This will also make it very easy to transition my materials to an online setting.
Yes, I am a hopeless nerd. But I'm o.k. with that.
Update: Bob Jensen has one of the best sites I've seen on derivatives-related accounting material. Not surprising, he's also done a few Camtasia videos (links are in the comments section).
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