Maximize AI-Powered Functions of YouTube as Your Study Buddy and Tutor
Move Over Flashcards: The Future of Studying Is AI-Enhanced, Interactive, and on YouTube
What if I told you the world’s most popular video platform — the one your students already use daily — could double as a study buddy and tutor? Would you encourage your students to use it to create and review notes, produce study guides, and partake in formative assessments?
I’d like you to meet my old friend, YouTube. He’s got a close friend called Gemini. They both work full time for Google.
Pew Research Center’s data shows that a significant majority of teens (often over 90%) use YouTube, with a large portion (around 70%) reporting daily visits. This trend has remained strong even with the rise of competitors like TikTok. In a 2023 Gallup survey, teens reported spending an average of 1.9 hours per day on YouTube, making it the most used social media platform in terms of daily screen time, ahead of TikTok at 1.5 hours. There are notable differences in usage between genders. While both boys and girls use YouTube frequently, data from Pew Research indicates that boys are more likely to use YouTube “almost constantly” as compared with girls, who prefer Instagram and TikTok.
In this blog I’m going to share a process your students (K-12 and beyond) can use to maximize the AI-powered functionality provided by Gemini and turn YouTube into an effective learning platform.
Getting Started
There is one obvious requirement: Your students must have a Google account with access to Gemini (web or mobile) as well as an account with YouTube.
To create a standard YouTube account, a student must be at least 13 years old, but this can vary by country. Children under 13 can only use YouTube through a supervised account set up by a parent, which is linked to the parent’s Google Account. Parents can also use the Family Link app to manage their child’s activity and settings, including age-appropriate content.
Users ages 13 and older can access Gemini with a personal Google Account. Children under 13 can use Gemini Apps if their account is supervised through Google’s Family Link. The minimum age for a school Google Account is 13 or older, but the school administrator must enable the service.
The next section of the blog provides step-by-step instructions for students who want to maximize the study functions of YouTube.
Step 1: Get the Transcript from YouTube
The first step is to get the words from the video. YouTube has a feature that automatically transcribes every video, and it’s easy to copy and paste. Note: Sometimes you may have to dig into the video notes and find a button labeled “Show Transcript” before you can copy it.
Open the Video: Go to the YouTube video you want to study.
Find the Transcript: Below the video, you will see a series of options. Click the three dots “...” next to the “Share” button.
Show Transcript: From the menu that appears, select “Show transcript.” The transcript will appear on the right side of the video.
Copy the Transcript: Click and drag your mouse to highlight all the text in the transcript box. Right-click and select “Copy.”
Step 2: Turn the Transcript into a Summary with Gemini
Now that you have the raw text, you can use Gemini to make sense of it. This is where the real power of AI comes in!
Open Gemini: Go to Gemini’s website and start a new chat.
Paste and Prompt: Paste the transcript you copied from YouTube into the chat box. Before you send it, type a clear command.
Example Prompt: “I have pasted a transcript from a YouTube video about SUBJECT. Please read it and give me a one-paragraph summary of the key points.”
Step 3: Create a Study Guide
With the summary in place, you can now ask Gemini to organize the information into a detailed study guide.
Ask for a Study Guide: In the same chat, use a new prompt to ask Gemini to expand on the summary.
Example Prompt: “Using the same transcript, create a detailed study guide. Organize it with clear headings and bullet points for each major topic, like ‘Key People,’ ‘Major Ideas,’ and ‘Outcomes.’ “SEE SCREENSHOT
Step 4: Generate Flashcards
Flashcards are a great way to memorize key terms and concepts. Instead of making them by hand, you can ask Gemini to generate them for you.
Prompt for Flashcards: In the same chat, ask Gemini to pull out the most important terms and create a flashcard list.
Example Prompt: “From the study guide you just created, please identify all the key terms and concepts. Format them as flashcards with the term on one line and a one-sentence definition on the next.” SEE SCREENSHOT
Step 5: Practice Quizzes
Want to test your knowledge? Gemini can act as a study partner by creating practice quizzes based on the material.
Request a Quiz: Ask Gemini to generate a quiz with various question types.
Example Prompt: “Based on the information you have, please create a 10-question practice quiz for me. Include a mix of multiple-choice, true/false, and short-answer questions. Do not provide the answers until the end.”
Tips for Success
Here is the primary rule for prompting a generative AI model such as Gemini: Be specific. The more specific your prompts are, the better the results will be. This is true for both students and teachers. The user must tell Gemini exactly what they want and how they want it formatted. Ask Gemini to revise the output until you get what you want.
Keep in mind that Gemini, like many Large-Language Models (LLM), can lose the thread of a conversation. By staying in the same conversation, Gemini will remember the context of the video and your previous requests, which will lead to more accurate and cohesive study materials.
I am exhausted by the number of times I’ve had to tell both teachers and students to edit everything generated by an LLM. You are the human in the human-in-the-loop process, which means you have the primary responsibility of ensuring that the information you use or consume is accurate and ethical.
Remember that time in high school or college when you borrowed your friend’s notes or read their textbook annotations? It never quite worked because what your friend thinks is important rarely matches what you need. Personalize your notes and study materials even if you are relying heavily on Gemini to create them.