Hello all:

I have been informed of a new piece of software which allows you to make "talking heads" for educational presentations out of just about anything. The article I read noted it was being used in some areas for teaching history and art history lessons, and so, never one to not look into something helpful, I downloaded a trial copy of the software.

As I am looking to do some presentations to secondary schools next year here in the UK, this seemed like a tool worth exploring, particularly in talking about ancient Egypt.

So, what I am looking for is opinion as to the appeal and appropriateness of the software as a possible educational tool. I have set up a test sample here. (The first image will autoplay (hopefully); if not, then you will have to click the "start" button on the lower left corner (perhaps twice) on either image to get its speech going).

These samples utilise the software by "animating" two pieces of Egyptian art from the Amarna period to give an idea of the speculatively thought historical tension said to have been experienced between these two Amarna queens. Please note that I am limited in these samples to no more than 30 seconds of speech to each model, but these should be enough to get the point across.

So, think back to your secondary school days (or think about your teenaged child today) and recall how bored a student would be if someone merely lectured the same information to him/her. Now, think about this presentation and answer these questions, in your honest opinion:

a) Does the concept such a talking art or historical image intrigue you into listening to what it says?

b) Does use of a talking model make the history seem "more alive"?

c) Do you think you (or your child) would retain the information better by use of "living models" rather than a straight lecture?

d) Do you think the use of talking models intrigue a student enough to want to learn more?

The software, as software goes, is not all that expensive, which makes it attractive to me as a teacher.

I also believe that a full purchased copy would give me more access to modifying movement, increase speech length and modes, etc., so please don't judge the software's overall features strictly by these examples of mine here (also know that while the software is user friendly (I did both models in about an half-hour each), I am by no means a graphics/animation expert). The examples give in the program are very sophisticated, enough to look like a real person talking in very normal speech.

But I am interested in your critical appraisal on the educational worth, in your opinion, on how effective you think such software could be in conveying information to students at the secondary level. I personally would be a bit hesitant to create a presentation for adults (except for an occasional auto-run Powerpoint presentation), but I am interested for its possibilities for younger students, as interest in history wanes at that level.

Thanks for all of your opinions in advance.