Featured Research Article
"Effective Educational Videos: Principles and Guidelines for Maximizing Student Learning from Video Content"
Cynthia J. Brame
CBE–Life Sciences Education , edited by Kathryn E. Perez, vol. 15, no. 4, Dec. 2016, p. es6. DOI.org (Crossref),
https://doi.org/10.1187/cbe.16-03-0125.
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Effective use of video as an educational tool is enhanced when instructors consider three elements: how to manage cognitive load of the video; how to maximize student engagement with the video; and how to promote active learning from the video.
This no-nonsense article clearly explains three principles underlying effective educational videos and provides practical advice for realizing their potential. This page will summarize a dozen recommendations around following cognitive load theory, fostering active engagement, and designing for active learning. These broad recommendations are explained in greater detail on the next three pages ("More about Effective Design"). The gallery exhibit videos we have chosen exemplify these qualities well.
Cognitive Load Theory is likely an unfamiliar theory to many teachers, yet is crucial for successful learning design. This series of four brief videos from the 3 Minute Ed Theory Youtube channel will get you up to speed quickly:
As Brame points out, the Cognitive Theory of Multimedia Learning builds on the Cognitive Load Theory. Watch this video (4:29) from the University Center for Teaching and Learning: Cognitive Theory of Multimedia Learning.
Signaling is the use of on-screen text or graphics to highlight important information
as it is introduced or emphasized in the narration. Some examples:
Bear in mind that signaling can be strengthened verbally also: "Look at the floor plan of this cathedral."
The benefits of signaling in a video are complemented by breaking lecture content
down into smaller chunks (segmenting). Think of these as a series of "mini lectures":
a 50-minute lecture might consist of 8-10 topical segments.
Weeding is the elimination of interesting (but extraneous) information that does
not contribute to the learning goal. Beyond "nice to know" content, things like music,
complex backgrounds, or extra features within an animation all increase extraneous
load and can reduce learning.
Maximize the effectiveness of your video lessons by matching the sensory channels
(auditory, visual) to your content. In short, allow the narration to carry the informational
load while simultaneously providing visuals that exemplify, illustrate, compare and
contrast, etc.
Want to learn more? See "Follow Cognitive Load Theory" for explanation in more detail.
If students don't watch all or part of a video, that instruction is lost to them.
Video duration is an important design consideration. Research gathered from massive open online courses (MOOCS) found the following:
While we know that a personable, approachable delivery correlates with a big impact on student learning, we cannot account for it precisely. The author conjectures that a conversational style may "encourage students to form a sense of social partnership with the narrator, leading to greater engagement and effort."
To keep students' attention, you should speak relatively quickly (185 to 254 words per minute) and with enthusiasm.
As much as possible, create the video to meet the needs of the students you are teaching now. Create it chiefly for them in their learning modality (distance, hybrid, in-person), rather than repurpose a captured classroom lecture from five years ago.
Want to learn more? See "Foster Student Engagement" for explanation in more detail.
Design implication: It is crucial to augment a video with a learning
activity. Incorporate questions into (or following) the video to help students process
the information, progressively build a mental model, and continuously test that model.
Note that the following four methods are not mutually exclusive; the more of these
you use, the stronger the active learning becomes. An ideal design would use all
four.
Software like H5P can pause a video and interject a question(s) requiring a student response before proceeding. However, if your video is properly segmented for short duration, you can also easily pose self-check questions after the video (next item on the page).
Students report the following:
Students who are able to control movement through the video, reviewing specific information on demand, repeating portions, go backward, etc., demonstrate better achievement of learning outcomes and increased satisfaction. While a standard video player provides much of this, adding "bookmarks" or "chapters" allows students to locate specific content more precisely.
An established strategy for improving comprehension of reading assignments also works well with video. Before watching the video, students should be provided with a set of questions that serve to focus attention on the important ideas. If students answer those questions while watching the video, they score significantly higher on a subsequent test than students who do not answer them.
Research shows that the videos that most benefited students were highly relevant to associated assignments, because students could more readily see their value and were more likely to replay them and engage more strongly with them. The bottom line is that watching videos can be as passive an experience as reading; the key is to provide students with opportunities for active processing and self-evaluation.
Want to learn more? See "Design for Active Learning" for explanation in more detail.