A CREATIVE collection of bite-sized video lectures from leading thinkers at Hay Festival is being lauded by sixth formers and educators around the country for its ability to animate academic subjects.

Inspired by the popular TED talk series, Hay Levels were developed in conjunction with Hay Festival’s Peter Florence and Hereford Sixth Form College, going live online earlier this month.

And the impact the five-minute clips have had on students already has been noted by teachers at HSF.

Head of economics at the college, Neil Taylor, said: “My students found the economics videos intellectual and eye-opening, but very accessible and an exciting way to revise.

“Nicholas Stern gave the best explanation of Opportunity Cost I have ever heard.”

With each talk offering expert insight into a specific part of the subject, the talks are being used by HSF teachers to help support their teaching in lessons.

However HSF principal Jonathan Godfrey also hopes that the level of passion and perception on show from, for example, eminent climate change authority Nicholas Stern, will also encourage long-term interest for a subject.

He said: “On one level, it shows students what’s out there – but it also show them that even world-leading thinkers have an interest in what they are doing.

“I have been overwhelmed by the positive response to these short films.

“The introductory video by one of our students, Lily Stubley-Adje has already had over 7000 hits and the short films are being viewed by sixth formers all over the country.

“I am confident they will be a fantastic resource.”

More videos are being added each month, and the chief executive of the Sixth Form Colleges Association, David Igoe, is among those pushing for the multimedia resource to be used by as many students as possible – in an age when young people increasingly look online to learn.

The videos span the A-Level curriculum, bringing to life elements English Literature and mathematics alike.

HSF student Olivia Hutton said: “Sarah Churchwell on The Great Gatsby was very insightful and certainly offered new perspectives in a simple way without being patronising.”

Fellow student Pawel Opalach added: “The maths films by Marcus du Sautoy showed that content drilled into us for maths examinations was relevant to the real world.”

You can view the videos on the Hay Levels Youtube page here http://bit.ly/1A7W9Wg .