On demand, instant access, available now! For most school librarians, these words seldom reflect what is currently available to their students or teachers. Instead, videotapes, DVDs, and multiple pieces of equipment are still necessary for educators to check out and set up in order for them to provide instructional videos. However, as more database providers add video content to their available resources, librarians may soon find that the physical object known as "the video" will bite the dust once and for all.

Grade Ninth grade and up.

Cost Starting price: $1,995. For more information, email onlinesales@factsonfile.com.

The Big Picture Facts On File has partnered with Films for the Humanities & Sciences to provide on-demand video access specifically designed for high school students. This new online subscription database, Curriculum Video On Demand, contains more than 5,000 videos, with at least 400 new videos added yearly, and covers core subject areas including: Science and Mathematics; Social Studies; Literature and Language Arts; Health and Nutrition; Business and Economics, and Visual and Performing Arts.

Videos are available in both full-length versions for continual play, or users can access segments of the film, which provide an easy way to locate unique or specific content for use during instruction.

Access includes unlimited, 24/7 simultaneous use from any location through the database, and users may view the videos from their desktop computers or utilize projectors or interactive whiteboards for classroom instruction. Unlike some streaming video programs that require additional hardware, software, or the installation of additional servers, Curriculum Video On Demand requires no special equipment.

Video content includes programs from: ABC News, CBS News, NBC News, PBS, the BBC, National Geographic, The News Hour with Jim Lehrer, Bill Moyers Journal, Shopware, and Cambridge Educational. Video content correlates to state and national educational standards, and public performance rights are included in the purchase of the database. A complete of listing of video titles is available at bit.ly/a905FY.

Look and Feel Curriculum Video On Demand's intuitive interface enables easy searching and viewing of video content. The home page's center section displays "Featured Videos," while a browser box to the left-hand side of the page lists the subject-area contents, the state standards, the most viewed videos, and recently added videos. A single search box at the top of the page allows users to scope out titles, while a drop-down box enables searches by title or segment.

An advanced search link is provided alongside the search box, taking users to a new page, which allows them to enter keywords or to search by subject, producer, copyright date, item number, and more. At the top of the home page, four blue tabs provide users with the ability to locate content within specific locations such as: "Home," "My Playlists," "My Favorites," and "My Preferences." Users who create an individual account may add favorite videos or video segments to their individual playlists for immediate access or save titles in a "My Favorites" folder. The "My Preferences" tab allows users to select a format for streaming (Flash, Windows Media, or QuickTime) and the speed (700Kbps, 400Kbps, or 1.5Mbps). Users may also choose and save their default search preferences.

Curriculum Video On Demand also features an integrated playlist of videos, which can be added to an online catalog or Web-based program for distance learning, providing users with alternative search accessibility. Usage tracking and statistical reports are available, as are a variety of authentication choices. Closed-captioning is available for many of the titles and a citation creator provides users with either an MLA or Chicago Style format for endnotes or bibliographies.

How it Works Teachers or librarians can easily search for specific types of streaming video on various subjects by simply clicking the "View by Subject" link on the home page. Within each subject area are subtopic links, which allow the user to click on a more specific area to open a new page that provides the video image clip, title, and a short synopsis of the production.

When the user selects a video to preview, the program opens a new window. Viewers can watch the entire selection at once or preview segments of the production. Each segment runs between 2 to 10 minutes in length and includes a short synopsis of the topic covered, making it easy to locate content or save the segment to the "My Playlists" folder.

A persistent link to the subject content is available at the bottom of each page, allowing librarians to share specific lists of videos with individual instructors.

Curriculum Video On Demand provides exceptional documentary and video content through Films for the Humanities; unfortunately for many high school programs, these materials may be considered too academic in terms of content. Even with segmented versions of the videos available, most of the subjects presented are more suited for AP high school courses or for higher education programs.

The video content within this database is weighted more heavily toward social studies and science with more than two-thirds of the videos falling within those subject areas. Other topics include Business & Economics (902 videos); Visual and Performing Arts (698 videos); Literature and Language Arts (536 videos); and Health and Nutrition (476 videos).

While the balance in terms of subject matter may not be a concern, a few issues relating to content should be noted. As I browsed the subject listing for streaming video programs to sample, I decided to select a program on the topic of graphics and multimedia. Under the subject listing of Business Technology: Graphics and Multimedia, the first title that appeared on the list included the following:

Adult Entertainment: A Psychosocial Study of an American Obsession—Educator's Edition (55:00)

"….a documentary scrutinizing the scope and effects of pornography that is informative, compelling, and unsettling. [The documentary] tracks two men, one single and one married, for 60 days. The effects of a 30-day regimen of X-rated DVDs, Internet porn, adult mags, sex shops, and strip clubs, followed by a 30-day readjustment period, are both illuminating and dismaying. Porn addiction, the sex-industrial complex, and porn-related freedom of speech issues are also explored."

No educational standards were linked to this video and although it's listed as an "Educator's Edition," K-12 professionals may question whether this program correlates with any of the instructional content currently being taught in high schools—even at the AP level.

Moving down the list, I decided to select a current topic of interest to most high school students—Second Life. The second video that I selected was entitled:

You Only Live Twice: Virtual Reality Meets Real World in Second Life (47:00) and included a segment called Virtual Sex Business (03:48) with this summary:

"Virtual reality's "hot" business is selling sex toys and sexual animation. For some people, virtual sexual situations are easier to experience than real-life relationships, and they are not governed by society's moral codes."

While both of these films have a place in academic libraries or college-level psychology courses, they may become a serious issue for the high school librarian, who, seeking instructional video in business and technology, retrieves titles such as these.

For Students and Teachers Depending upon the specific instructional needs of the school, Curriculum Video On Demand could easily fit into the instructional plan of higher level or AP high school programs. However, as a general streaming video database for use in a wide-range of subject content areas, many of the films chosen for inclusion in this database may prove to be much too academic—or edgy—for use in the regular classroom.

While ease of use is a big plus for CVD, there are no options to download the video or select segments to a local computer in order to provide direct streaming presentation within the classroom. This may become problematic in schools that have limitations placed on the streaming video accessibility throughout the school day or in schools where the Internet speed is slow or sporadic at times.

Report Card Facts On File's Curriculum Video On Demand provides several high-quality video resources that definitely meet the needs of many users at the academic level; however, the content currently provided would be inappropriate for the majority of high school programs. Interestingly enough, Facts On File offers this database exclusively for high schools. Based on a simple browse of the films available, it's easy to see that the content is much more appropriate for higher education than it is for the 9–12 level.

Perhaps in the future, adjustments can be made to the video lineup to make the content more high school-appropriate. Until then, this academically-advanced video database receives a B.