YouTube Delivers New Ad-Free Player for Classrooms, New InStream Courses for Educational Creators

Whether you need help with a home DIY project or are looking for help with your math homework, YouTube has become a default educational resource for many, with some 93% of YouTube viewers now uses the platform to gather information.

Building on this, YouTube today has announcement a new YouTube player dedicated to education, which will allow teachers to view YouTube content ad-free through certain third-party platforms, while YouTube also offers qualified creators the option of offering free or paid lessons directly in the app.

First, on the new educational player – according to YouTube:

“To improve the YouTube experience in education environments, we are launching YouTube Player for Education – a new embedded YouTube player that displays content from commonly used education apps without distractions such as ads, external links or recommendations.”

This will make it easier for teachers to use YouTube content in their curriculum and share relevant links with students without further disruption.

YouTube says it is partnering with established tech companies like EDpuzzle, Purdue University and Purdue Global in the early stages of the initiative, with further expansion planned for the near future.

It should also be noted that YouTube is already available through Google Classroom, which is now used by more than 150 million students, educators and school leaders worldwide. YouTube says the new Player for Education improves the classroom experience, offering improvements for those users as well.

On top of that, YouTube will now give select creators the ability to offer free or paid courses “to provide in-depth and structured learning experiences for viewers”.

YouTube’s new courses will be purchasable within the app, giving teachers another way to earn money from their content.

It will also provide users with a more structured way to learn deeper skills, matching the growing demand for informational videos with immediately accessible course options.

YouTube will first launch the courses in the United States and South Korea, before expanding to other countries in the future. The option will initially only be available to selected YouTube creators.

And finally, YouTube is also adding quizzes, which will allow creators to help viewers test their knowledge.

“For example, a math creator who recently released a series on algebra can create a Quiz on the Community tab to ask their viewers a question related to a concept taught in their latest video.”

The quizzes, as you can see in this example, will also link back to the reference video, providing a more holistic educational loop to help reinforce key knowledge.

YouTube says the quizzes will launch in beta “over the next few months”, with all creators who have set the Community tab to be able to access the quizzes next year.

These are some valuable updates, which are especially beneficial in the modern age, where kids are spending more and more time online. One of the lasting impacts of the pandemic has been in education and changing the ways students learn, with many now becoming increasingly accustomed to honing their skills in the classroom via YouTube tutorials, where they can find information presented in a way that best connects. with their gait.

In that sense, these new course and quiz elements could be hugely beneficial, while greater access for classrooms will also expand access to key reference materials and resources for educators around the world.