YouTube, an online video streaming site
Description: YouTube is an online video-sharing platform where users can view, comment, share, and upload videos. Users can search for all kinds of multimedia content, create channels, and interact with other users through likes, comments, and subscriptions. YouTube is free to use with advertisements. Users do not need an account to view videos, but signing up is required to upload videos and gain access to features such as commenting, adding videos to favourites, following channels, and more. YouTube is available for all kinds of devices in browser and app versions. It was developed by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim and was launched in 2005. In 2006, Google acquired YouTube.
Evaluation: YouTube is a practical and versatile tool for finding authentic material in a target language. Teachers can find tutorials, explanations, and examples of real-life speech, or even create their own video blog for students. YouTube can also be a collaborative tool where students create their own video projects, upload them to a class channel, and comment on each other’s work. Importantly, videos on a channel can be made visible only to those with a link to them. YouTube also offers user-friendly editing tools for uploading videos.
Cost: Free + premium plan available.
Respect for privacy 
Privacy evaluations indicate how a tool handles personal data collection, storage, and sharing, including GDPR compliance and security measures, among others. The ICT-REV team provides them for informational purposes, reflecting our best understanding at the time of review, but assumes no legal responsibility for the accuracy or completeness of these evaluations and encourages users to conduct their own assessments: Medium/low. YouTube is owned by Google, which is well known for using user data for behavioural advertising and marketing purposes. However, it offers a high degree of data security. YouTube collects viewer data to customise its services, such as providing recommendations, personalising search results, and displaying behaviourally tailored ads. YouTube has had multiple copyright issues in the past, as well as occasionally breaching children’s privacy laws. It does not explicitly state compliance with the GDPR. See more here.
Type Of Interaction:
Group/pair work - outsiders,
Whole class,
Presenting (e.g. lecturing, storytelling),
Skills:
Listening,
Speaking,
Pronunciation,
Content:
Website/other users supply,
You supply,
Usability and tech notes ▼
Time efficiency Time needed to learn how to use a tool and its time-saving potential: High.
Interface language(s) The number of languages in which the tool is currently available/adaptable to: Dozens of languages.
Saving work for future use Can work be saved for future use?: Yes, users with an account can save work for future use when uploading and editing a video. They can also save videos to watch later.
Any other relevant information:
- Installation required?: Not for the browser-based version; yes for the apps.
- Compatibility/ Operating System: Any browser; Android, iOS.