There is a lot going on in terms of educational content on YouTube lately, and I am not talking about classic education providers like universities and colleges. There is a whole new breed of young creators, some of them already well-known from non-education related channels.
The interesting part is that those guys and gals already had a very strong educational message underlying in their more geeky videos. The new education focused channels are “just” that – more focused on explaining complicated things.
There are for example the VlogBrothers John & Hank Green. They launched two new education channels on YouTube lately. One is CrashCourse where both post short lessons on history and biology. The other one is SciShow where Hank talks about, well, science.
If you look at these videos you will notice the superb production quality. The videos look like actual TV shows and show what individuals are able to create today with technology and software that is darn cheap.
It also shows what a difference it makes when someone of the same age as the viewers or slightly older explains complicated stuff in a way that is both entertaining and detailed. These relatively new channels have already signed up more than 100k subscribers each and the videos have been watched between 50k to 100k+ times each. No cute kittens or funny accidents involved, mind you.
Below you can play a small YouTube EDU quiz that also introduces you to some of the newest edu channels.
And there are, of course, YouTubers like CGPGrey, VSauce, MinutePhysics, Veritasium and more who keep creating great content week after week as well.
From my personal experience as I have been watching those short “video lectures” for over a year now I have to say that I have really learned a lot. 5 to 10 minutes is an ideal time for a coffee break with added educational value but without the feel of being taught.
It is also great to see those guys grow up. I know, that sounds a bit like an old fart but I know many channels from very early on and hence saw how they grew up in front of the camera. I think that’s also part of the experience and loyalty of the viewership.
