At FlixAcademy, we've always believed that the combination of entertainment and education can be great way to learn, but who knew that comic books could help with college!
The University of Baltimore is now offering a class on the Marvel Comics universe. I must admit, this would be a fun but challenging class, even for the great Stan Lee. If you've ever wondered why Spider-Man and the Avengers don't team up, then this could be the class for you. After all, Spider-Man lives in New York City, and the Avengers just had a massive fight with aliens in New York City. At least DC Comics uses fictitious (but familiar) locations like Smallville, Metropolis and Gotham.
At FlixAcademy, we've always believed that the combination of entertainment and education can be great way to learn, but who knew that comic books could help with college!
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Netflix is great. Never before have so many people had so many hours of entertainment (and education) with such easy access and at relatively fair price. But one group was left out. Linux users.
Linux, an open source variant of Unix (which Macs run on) has been left in the cold when it comes to many commercial software packages. Usually there has been an open source alternative. But not for Netflix. Now, Netflix is available for Linux users. This is important because some schools have standardized on open source software, and now they can have access to hours of educational videos. The hard part will be deciding what to watch! That's where FlixAcademy's search engine comes in! Times have changed. I remember when getting Ethernet in our dorms was a big deal. Now, students are getting streaming capabilities and cable providers are touting such features. Comcast offers "Xfinity On Campus" which allows cable service to be bundled with room and board charges and accessed using the school's ID credentials.
Comcast released the results of a study stating that "millennials are watching more TV on computers, tablets and smartphones than the living room TV. At the same time, 106 million Americans watch TV online today and that number is expected to grow to 145 million by 2017." If Comcast can get students hooked on their services, in college, they could be customers for life. It's a business model straight out of Big Tobacco and illicit drugs, but cable companies aren't regulated as toughly. Indeed, Comcast, already the #1 cable provider, is trying to merge with Time Warner to become an even bigger monopoly! It looks like Amazon will bring their Amazon Prime Instant Video streaming app to Android phones. Currently, it's only available on Amazon's own Kindle Fire tablets and Apple iPads. It's about time. Netflix has had the party all to itself. Of course, the timing could coincide with Amazon's Kindle Fire Phone, slated for release next week. Never before have so many people had so much access to so many movies. It's a great time for movie lovers, and perfect timing for educators and parents looking for videos to supplement their students' education.
LeVar Burton has resurrected his popular Reading Rainbow TV series, as an iOS app. I was at the announcement two years ago, at Apple's Worldwide Developers Conference. LeVar told the audience at WWD that he comes from a family of educators, and while he went on to acting success in ROOTS, Star Trek: TNG and more, he caught the education bug, too! Now, he's using Kickstarter to bring his Reading Rainbow to the web, for more universal appeal. The show, if you're not familiar with it (you should be!) used video and narration to introduce quality children's books to kids. Today's news is that Seth Macfarlane, creator of The Family Guy but also behind this year's reboot of the COSMOS TV show, is pledging up to $1 million to help fund the effort on Kickstarter! Kudos to Seth and there's still time to make a pledge, and it doesn't have to be anywhere near $1 million! There's something happening here. People aren't just watching TV anymore. They are experiencing TV, through multiple screens. More than half to as many as 86% of people use a companion screen while watching TV, at some point, according to research by the Second Screen Society. People may be using twitter or other social media to comment on shows like American Idol or The Voice. They may be researching more information about a movie or actor. They may be using companion apps like those for COSMOS and SyFy's Face Off. However those users are using their tablets and phones, the key takeaway is that they are using them to enhance the viewing experience. And "watching TV" will never be the same again.
There's a scene in The Matrix where Keanu Reeves' character's brain is wired in to a computer and fed video of Bruce Lee and other Martial Artists. He suddenly pronounces "I know Kung Fu!" This form of education is a bit extreme, but maybe not that far off, considering technologies like this. Many students, perhaps as much as 30% are considered visual learners. What if there was a way to harness movies, videos and TV shows, for educational purposes? That's what FlixAcademy is all about, with one exception. Teachers and Parents play a vital role. They need to be able to select videos that are appropriate for the learner's age and personality. They need supplemental materials that build on the video. And they need help. FlixAcademy is a searchable, structured database of educational movies, with crowdsourced interactive lesson plans that make learning a no-brainer!
A few days ago, Apple announced their next generation of the Mac operating system, Yosemite and it's available to developers and as a public beta. Already, our friends at Netflix have embraced the new technologies in Apple's Safari browser and made video streaming easier and secure.
No special app or plugin will be required for customers to view videos from the Netflix library. This can make the Netflix experience even better and open the door to some neat new features from FlixAcademy. Follow us to stay informed about our efforts! I had the distinct pleasure of meeting with renowned Astrophysicist Dr. Neil deGrasse Tyson, just before he spoke to thousands of students at Monroe Community College. (That's me, Todd Bernhard, in the FlixAcademy fleece!) I asked him about the role of videos and apps, such as his COSMOS reboot on Fox, National Geographic, and the App Store.
As always, Dr. Tyson was quick with a reasoned and thoughtful response. He replied to my question with a question and suggested If there are cars available, wouldn't you leverage that technology instead of taking a horse to work? As videos, and apps, become plentiful, they become tools just like the blackboard or pen and paper. People didn't want books to be used by the masses, either. Videos and companion apps like the COSMOS app can be wonderful accessories to education. There are great teachers in the classroom, but most of us can't explain a Black Hole the way Dr. Tyson can, or cover the Gettysburg Address the way Doris Kearns-Goodwin could. Videos can be a wonderful way to bring the most talented subject matter experts into the classroom, for every student. I was lucky to see and hear Dr. Tyson in person. For everyone else, who couldn't be in that room, videos are the great equalizer. Apple just dropped $3 billion in their largest acquisition to date, by far, for Beats by Dre. The purchase brings industry leaders Dr. Dre and Jimmy Iovine into the Apple roster. At the Re/code conference, Iovine discussed Apple TV. While Iovine insisted his focus was on music and not TV, he did lament the state of movie selection. Iovine said "I’ve got an enormous job with music. I’m not going anywhere near TV. But, that said, my bigger problem is with movies. I wanted to watch a movie the other day with my girlfriend. Too hard to pick a movie. We need curation."
At FlixAcademy, we couldn't agree more. Follow us to learn more about our curated Educational movie database, with crowdsourced lesson plans, by and for parents and teachers. |