Keeping the attentions of students in an online learning environment is a challenging proposition. To combat this, instructors are embracing online learning tools and methods that not only perks the interest of their students but also keeps them engaged.
One proven and effective multimedia tool higher learning instructors are embracing is video. However, even videos need considerable planning and presented in a specific manner to optimize learning, according to Judy Brooks, Director of EdTech & Design at the Eberly Center, Carnegie Mellon University, who presented during the “Creating Multimedia that Works” session at the REMOTE: The Connected Faculty Summit virtual event.
“I consult with faculty on the design of instruction and using technology for education. And in our current context of remote hybrid teaching, more and more instructors are turning to video,” Brooks said. “I like to use my Zoom lectures or recreate those zoom lectures, to have students watch those outside of class. Now, the key word there from my perspective is “watch”. Watch indicates a really passive experience for students Do we really expect that students will watch a 50-minute lecture or a number of 50-minute lectures and maintain motivation?”
Brooks suggested asking these questions when creating a video for online learning.
1, How is this working for learning?
2. How could it be improved?
3. What questions does it raise regarding good uses of instructional videos.
With that, Brooks showed a video example simulating an instructor reading a passage to the students. While reading along with the students is a good idea because the student then hears the story in another voice and key parts can be emphasized, the speaker’s background was unprofessional and therefore ultimately distracting.
“If you are using video as a teaching strategy, it needs to align with your learning objectives and assessments,” Brooks said. “What is the added value beyond something like reading.”
It all comes down to how we process information and short-term memory has limited capacity. There are differences between novices and more experienced learners and what they retrieve from prior knowledge stored in long-term memory, Brooks said, adding there are separate channels for processing visual and verbal information.
“These channels of working memory can become easily overloaded. So, what happens for example, when we are reading? Brain imaging research has shown that the part of your brain that's active when reading is the same part as when you're listening to someone talk,” she said.
Therefore, when someone is reading to you, your brain is actually doing double duty. “Learning occurs when a learner builds coherent mental representations in the verbal system and the visual system and builds systematic connections between them,” she said, adding that when creating multimedia for learning, instructors want to minimize these challenges.
There are three different ways instructors can build learning videos, but they are not all received the same way.
- Spoken word + written text + images
- Spoken word + written text
- Spoken word + images
“The best practice here is to minimize text when talking and to use images to convey concepts as much as possible. When [using] just spoken word plus images, you're minimizing the interference of the channels and managing cognitive load,” Brooks said. “The written words are interfering with our ability to listen and integrate the audio content.”
Students naturally build sparse knowledge structures and might not see the connections and relationships that you as an expert see and want them to identify and apply. To help with this, instructors can create a big picture view for their students and use it repeatedly.
Brooks then gave three design principals to follow when creating online learning videos.
- Eliminate extraneous content.
- Make sure that text and graphics are integrated.
- Use verbal and visual queuing.