





YouTube is launching a brand new tool to help teachers and students get their learn on. "YouTube for Schools" is a portal that helps curate education materials and videos on subjects such as history and math while filtering out potentially offensive or distracting content.

YouTube for Schools was created thanks to demand from teachers and schools across the country. "YouTube for schools is a technical solution to allow schools that normally restrict access to YouTube to gain access to it," says Angela Lin, head of YouTube EDU. A blog post on YouTube further explains:

We’ve been hearing from teachers that they want to use the vast array of educational videos on YouTube in their classrooms, but are concerned that students will be distracted by the latest music video or cute cat, or a video that wasn’t appropriate for students. While schools that restrict access to YouTube may solve this distraction concern, they also limit access to hundreds of thousands of educational videos on YouTube that could help bring photosynthesis to life, or show what life was like in ancient Greece.

The site will also act as a network setting that allows schools to only grant access to education materials on YouTube EDU as opposed to, say, movie trailers or other esoterica. The setting also does away with comments and related video recommendations. It won't, however, stop students from watching that content via an external 3G or 4G network connection.

The filter also raises some tricky questions on what counts as "educational." For example, a super-cut video or movie clips could be distracting to a math class but relevant for a media-studies class. If a video isn't on YouTube EDU, it won't show up in YouTube for Schools. Teachers can, however, create individual playlists which they can share with their class. These videos can be pulled from any part of YouTube. The goal is to give teachers access without letting students run amok.

"Video has always been incorporated into classroom teaching," Lin say. "Back when I was a kid it started with VHS and then moved to DVDs, but the idea that we can unlock this vast store of information [on YouTube] that teachers can pull from is really exciting. ... I think it's the next step in the evolution of how video is used in class."

To help balance the content, YouTube worked with teachers and 600 organizations such as the Smithsonian and TED to select and curate the available content. There are also more than 400 playlists sorted by grade level and subject including Science, English, Math, Social Studies more.

YouTube is trying to make the site an open conversation. Teachers can suggest new playlists and comments to help further integrate YouTube in the classroom. Like most YouTube products, YouTube for Schools is free to use.

Can a classic procrastination tool like YouTube actually work in the classroom? Let us know your thoughts in the comments.