Abstract:

XiMET is a network of university teachers working on different aspects of Evolutionary Biology, and which has been established with the aim of promoting the spread of educational innovation partnerships within Spain. The Network is formed by teaching staff belonging to the University of Valencia (UVEG), Polytechnic University of Valencia (UPV), University of Barcelona (UB) and the Autonomous University of Madrid (UAM). Developing activities (e.g. joint meetings) with the support of faculty from multiple universities is an important and necessary step to optimize the efforts of teachers from different centers, but also a key factor in assessing the different skills and concepts that the student receives in each University.

Therefore, a fundamental task of XiMET is the creation of a collection of teaching materials and multimedia learning objects (MLOs) designed as a support for teaching. These MLOs will facilitate the work in the classroom for the different modules offered in our universities and will further complement the work carried out within the theory lectures. The collection of MLOs is structured into separate thematic unit, which facilitates the teaching activities and allow students to work independently. Each one of the multimedia learning objects is divided itself into blocks of self-explanatory videos of about 15-20 minutes. Each thematic unit usually contains four problems, starting from a basic problem and then sorted in order of increasing complexity.

This contribution will introduce the network and present the steps taken for the implementation of multimedia tutorials. From the making of exercises as Microsoft PowerPoint presentations, to the assembly and the subsequent production of video tutorials using the computer program Camtasia Studio 7. In addition, we will show some of the videos produced by the network, which are available in different repositories such as the RODERIC repository of the University of Valencia (http://roderic.uv.es/) or the website of our group (http://www.uv.es/gemeg/). These units are integrated into the modules taught in the Biology degree at the University of Valencia, but can be used by students from other schools. Hopefully, the material produced will be useful for independent study both of our students and the general community interested in teaching.