YouTube to Offer Educational Content to Students Without Ads and Other Distractions

YouTube has introduced three new features to help students engage with new subjects on the platform without any distractions

YouTube, in a bid to help both students and creators of educational material, has announced the introduction of three new updates on the platform. The product, according to the world’s most popular video hosting site, will allow learners to go deeper on subjects they are passionate about and creators to provide structured learning content. The Google owned platform says that these updates have been added as a that 93% of viewers are using YouTube to gather information.

“Everyday, teachers and students across the globe are using YouTube to learn, and YouTube Player for Education will help further learning in educational settings by allowing students to engage with new subjects distraction-free,” said Quim Sabrià, CEO and Co-founder, EDpuzzle, Inc according to YouTube’s new blog.

New Updates Announced by YouTube

Player for Education: YouTube Player for Education – a new YouTube embedded player that shows content on commonly used education apps without distractions like ads, external links or recommendations has been launched. In the same vein, the company has partnered with established edtech companies in the US including EDpuzzle, Purdue University and Purdue Global. YouTube Player for Education will also improve upon the existing YouTube embedded player in Google Classroom for a better YouTube experience, says the company.

Creators can offer free or paid courses: Next year, qualified creators can begin offering free or paid Courses to provide in-depth, structured learning experiences for viewers. Viewers who choose to buy a Course can watch the video ad-free and play it in the background. Courses will arrive first in the United States and South Korea in beta before expanding to more countries.

Quizzes: To make the platform more interactive, quizzes will be offered on YouTube for creators to help viewers test their knowledge. For example, a math creator who recently posted 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. Quizzes will roll out in beta over the coming months, with all creators who have the Community tab gaining access to Quizzes next year