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Assignment 7: Video as a Supportive Strategy in the Classroom

Frankie Garner

Department of Educational Technology and Foundations, University of West Georgia

MEDT 7490: Visual and Media Literacy for Teaching and Learning

Dr. Adriana D’Alba

November 13, 2022

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Article 1 - Description

           Slemmons et al. (2018) published their research in "The Impact of Video Length on

Learning in a Middle-Level Flipped Science Setting: Implications for Diversity Inclusions." All

the authors involved in the study were: Krista Slemmons, Kele Anyanwu, Josh Hames, Dave

Grabski, Jeffery Misna, Eric Simkins, and Perry Cook. Their joint research aimed to gather

quantitative research data to establish the appropriate video length to foster authentic learning,

increase retention, and support student motivation at the middle school level (Slemmons et al.,

2018). The study was conducted over two academic years and focused on science middle school

classrooms in a rural city in the upper Midwest. Data were collected pre and post-use of videos.

Students were assessed on their attitudes and perceptions of the video's impact on their

individual learning process. 

Summary of the Review Literature 

The researchers did an excellent job of reviewing the literature to support their research.

They started with research to affirm the theoretical back to support video use in the classroom.

They cited the Cognitive Theory of Multimedia Learning and Cognitive Load Theory for their

direct applications for instruction with video in classroom settings. The researchers then

addressed the “Value of Videos” research as a learning tool with positive impacts on verbal and

spatial intelligences. They cited studies on the “Value of Flipped Classrooms” and justified using

this instruction model as it increased teacher/student interaction and feedback given to students. 

The researchers referred to the importance of video length in existing research that

described the use of videos to chuck material to allow students to create schemas more

efficiently. They also quoted research that showed using shorter videos in instruction reduces
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cognitive load. The researchers referenced data that supported using videos to improve student

perceptions and engagement. 

Analysis of Methodology 

This study is a matched pairs design with all students experiencing both short and long

videos as part of their lessons. The participants were from 9 science classes in a rural city in the

upper Midwest over two years. For the 2014-1015 year, there were 106 females and 97 males,

and for the 2015-2016 year, there were 84 females and 94 males. The ethnic breaks downs were

approximately 85% Caucasian, 5% Hispanic, 5% Asian, 1% African American and 2% of two or

more ethnicities. About 36% of the students were economically disadvantaged, and 13% were

students with disabilities. 

Classes were divided into long and short video classes for the first unit. The classes then

switched video lengths for the second unit for the matched pairs comparison. The video length

types were full-length videos along with short videos that were the original video split into two

approximately equal parts. Students were given quizzes after the videos, as well as Unit Tests.

Test data were compared using a one-way ANOVA analysis. Students were also surveyed about

their perceptions and attitudes toward the videos viewed in each unit.

Summary of Results

The study did find that the assessments following the shorter videos were slightly higher

than, the longer videos but that the difference was not statistically significant. The study found

that males and students with learning disabilities showed improved content retention when

viewing shorter videos. The study so no significant gain or loss in the other student demographic

groups.

Opinion and Knowledge Gained

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I feel that this is a well-designed study and that their data collection methodology and

analysis are statistically sound. However, I would note that their research did not align precisely

with their stated question. The researchers stated in their abstract that the study "aimed to find

the optimal video length to enable learning." In their experiment, the procedure used the full-

length video and then defined the short video as videos approximately half of the total length.

They did not spend time measuring the impact of different video time lengths. The study's short

videos ranged anywhere from 4.23 min to 10.42 min. The long videos ranged from 9.22 min to

23.48. I found a design issue with the fact that there was an overlap between the short and long

videos used in the study.

This process did not truly seek to find an optimal video length, as stated in their article

title. I would suggest that the researchers readdress their stated aim to read more along the lines

of "the effects of chunking of longer videos into two parts to minimize cognitive overload and

increase retention." As a mother of a son who has ADD, this research supports my observations

of techniques I have developed to help my son learn to study for Honors and AP courses while

managing his attention span.

Article 2 – Description

Jamie Costley, Mik Fanguy, Christ Lange, and Mathew Baldwin researched "The Effects

of Video Lecture Viewing Strategies on Cognitive Load," published in April 2020. This study

sought to look for "the mediating effect of video lecture viewing strategies on the relationship

between extraneous load and germane load" (Costley et al., 2020). The researchers built off the

Cognitive Load Theory's premise that instruction should be delivered in ways that do not

overload students' cognitive processing. They extend this theory to address specific viewing

strategies aimed at reducing students' cognitive load as they watch educational videos. The
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researchers define viewing strategies as activities that students engage in to help themselves

better understand the material while actively watching a video. The study views extraneous

cognitive loads from videos as a representation of an instructional design. Germane cognitive

loads are seen as a reflection of proper design that leads to better student content retention.  

Summary of Review Literature

           The researchers reviewed a plethora of literature for this study, beginning with research

supporting the need for clear and effective instruction in digital environments. They cite a wide

range of research, including Sweller and Mayer's theories. The literature discussed the limited

capacity for long-term storage in students' working memory. They cover the definitions and

relationships between extraneous, germane, and intrinsic loads. There are multiple study citations

on the problems with extraneous loads and their negative impact on students' cognitive load. The

literature discusses the need to present germane load information in appropriate chunks to

manage student cognitive loads. The research reviewed also focused on lecture-viewing

strategies. Viewing strategies include pausing the video, skipping ahead, rewatching portions,

looking away to listen carefully, dividing attention between text and images, and scanning form

information.

Further literature covered studies of poorly designed online instructions that caused students

to resort to alternative viewing strategies. Existing research showed that students frequently

paused videos in areas where they encountered view problems. They found a correlation between

more extended rewatching periods indicating a higher perceived difficulty level for a video.

Research also defined a lapse in attention while video watching as a "vigilance decrement."

Videos longer than 20 min are seen to be less effective. Existing literature supported that

students were more likely to finish shorter videos.

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Analysis of Methodology

           The study was an observational study with student participants from the Open Cyber

University in South Korea. A total of 2689 participants participated, but only 2012 were valid

responses. The demographic breakdown was 52% female and 48%, male. Costley et al.'s (2020)

research hypotheses consisted of “1. Extraneous load is negatively correlated with germane load,

2. Viewing strategies are positively correlated with germane load, 3. Extraneous load is

positively correlated with viewing strategies, and 4. Viewing strategies mediate the relationship

between extraneous load and germane load.”

The study had participants watch videos and then answer a survey about the viewing

strategies they utilized while watching. Students were specifically questioned on five particular

video viewing strategies. They were asked to identify which strategies they used while watching

the video and to what level by rating their use on a 5-item Likert scale. Students were then asked

questions to establish perceived cognitive load. Three of the questions pertained to extraneous

load, and four to germane load relative to their video viewing experience. The researchers cited

existing research as the basis of their cognitive load question designs.

Summary of Results

The researchers used a three-equation method to test for mediation between the variables. Their

data showed that higher levels of extraneous cognitive load were negatively associated with

germane cognitive loads. The results also found a positive relationship between viewing

strategies needed to watch videos with higher extraneous loads. Lastly, the study showed that the

more viewing strategies students actively engaged in while watching a video, the higher the

students' germane load was perceived to be. These three equation results then allow for the

further conclusion that the negative correlation between the extraneous cognitive load and
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germane cognitive load can be mitigated by students engaging in viewing strategies. The

researchers concluded that their data supports that viewing strategies are not only coping

mechanisms for poor instructional design but also a key part of learning and increasing germane

comprehension.

Opinion and Knowledge Gained

      I felt that this study was very comprehensive, and the design is statistically sound. There are

limitations as this study relies on self-reporting of subjects' experiences. A lab setting where

researchers recorded participants watching videos, tracking eye movements, video pauses,

rewinding, etc., would open up more research potential. This study further supports the

importance of educators following Sweller and Mayer's design principles when they create video

content. 

Reducing extraneous content in design is a very achievable goal on the educator's part, with a

significant payback on student comprehension of the material. I also feel that educators who use

videos should provide video view tips or training, so students realize that it's a standard practice

to pause and replay part or all of a video. I know that many of my students feel that if they play

an assigned video once, they are good, even if they only partially listened. After studying this

article, I realized that I need to be more proactive in teaching my students to actively engage with

an assigned video vs. playing it simply to check the figurative completion box.

Article 3 – Description

Wael Almurashi published his research on "The Effective Use of YouTube Videos for English

Language in Classrooms as Supplementary Material at Taibah University in Alula." In 2016. The

researcher sought to examine the potential influential role of YouTube videos in improving

English language learners' comprehension. The researcher aims to answer the question: Is
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YouTube a helpful tool for teaching English in classrooms? Additionally, the study looks to

determine to what extent multimodal text in YouTube videos improves learners' understanding

of the English language.

Summary of the Review of Literature

      Almurashi builds his case for his research by citing numerous prior studies. He quotes

literature that shows that English learners can benefit by viewing authentic life situations for

content comprehension. Almurashi cites priors works on the popularity of YouTube, along with

its vast content of free educational videos. Several studies mentioned cover research on the

emerging use of videos in the classroom and positive results seen in student learning for social

studies and science courses. Almurashi states that he identified a gap in research that reviewed

the effectiveness of incorporating videos into overseas langue instruction.

Analysis of methodology 

      Students from Taibah University in Alula were used in this match-pairs design as students'

before and after video-watching opinions were compared. There were 53 learners, and they were

split into two groups. All participants were enrolled in courses studying English as a second

language and had studied English at the university for at least four months. These research

groups were used to divide learners based on their current course of instruction, with 30 in Group

A and 23 in Group B. All participants were interviewed and asked about their thoughts and

experiences on YouTube as an instructional strategy for learning English. Then the study played

videos for the students, surveyed them on their experience, and quizzed them on the accuracy of

what they viewed. The quiz focused on examining the effectiveness of the multimodal text in the

YouTube videos used for an English language instructional lesson. The videos watched were an

"Advertising lesson" and "Buying at a supermarket." The researchers looked to see if there was a
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change in student opinion between their thoughts on YouTube in the initial interview and the

post-watching video with multimodal text. 

Summary of results

The researchers found that most students were familiar with YouTube from the initial interview

and had a positive view of the platform. Approximately 65% of students reported believing that

YouTube can improve performance and understating in their English lessons. And about 60% of

the sample percentage stated that YouTube could simplify their English lessons. In the post-

video survey, all students were able to answer the content correctly learned questions. The

researchers noted that after students had experienced a video lesson designed with multimodal

text, 85% of respondents felt that YouTube could help improve their understanding of English.

The other two post-video questions they asked did not directly tie back to the questions asked in

the original interview. Those questions' results showed that 80% of students "felt that YouTube

was helpful and interesting," and 85% found that there "were advantages to watching YouTube

clips."

Opinion and Knowledge Gained

      I was very interested in this study as I believe that short video clips are an essential

integration in classrooms. I feel the study had a significant design flaw in that the pre and post-

questions did not align, so the researchers introduced unnecessary bias with differently worded

questions that they were attempting to compare. It could be argued that some of the initial seven

questions in the interview acted as leading questions and potentially overinflated the response to

the post-video questions. Specifically, the questions asking students if they "feel bored in their

traditional English class" and "do you believe adding technology to English lessons will help

you." By asking these questions, the researchers have primed the subjects' minds to think of
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lessons as boring and that the study is looking for technological ways to remedy this boredom

while improving student learning. I also found that their graph data percentages did not match

the rates referenced in their study's body. For instance, the report stated that 60% of the sample

percentage felt that YouTube could simplify their English lessons, and the graph shows 65%.

And then, 85% of respondents felt that YouTube could help improve their understanding of

English, while their chart showed 90%.

My friends who are bilingual and speak Spanish at home frequently turn on closed

caption so they can ensure that they are improving their English skills and that their children are

continuing to learn English simultaneously with the Spanish spoken in the home. My friends find

that spoken language is easier to master than written and that closed captions help them

continually improve their English reading skills. I do feel that the study, even with its issues, is

on the right path. It seems reasonable that using YouTube's multimodal feature would be

advantageous for an English language learner classroom and that further research could establish

this connection. It would be interesting to see the effect of multimedia text in YouTube videos on

non-native English-speaking students in other academic subjects. Particularly students who are

fully bilingual and English is not their first language. 

Reflection

While initially looking for articles to review, I was a little disappointed with some of the

research I found. I would be drawn in by their promising research titles, only to find the titles did

not accurately describe the study that was actually conducted. In hindsight, I believe a portion of

this issue was probably due to translation issues. I was also surprised by how many articles

would draw conclusions that went beyond the scope of their research and empirical data.
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However, the articles in this review made me realize that I can make several improvements in

my classroom. Specifically, I need to break up some of the longer videos I use in my lessons into

smaller chunks. I also plan to talk with my non-native English speakers and encourage them to

try YouTube’s multimedia options if they choose to watch any of the many support videos I post

in Statistics. This strategy could be helpful for that course, as Statistics is heavy on vocabulary

content. Overall, I found this to be a beneficial assignment as I feel strongly about the

importance of incorporating video clips in classroom lessons.

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References

Almurashi, Wael. (2016). The effective use of YouTube videos for teaching English language in

classrooms as supplementary material at Taibah University in Alula. International Journal

of English Language and Linguistics Research, 4(3) 32-47.

Costley, J., Fanguy, M., Lange, C., Baldwin, M. (2020). The effects of video lecture viewing

strategies on cognitive load. Journal of Computing in High Education 33, 19–38.

https://doi.org/10.1007/s12528-020-09254-y

Slemmons, K., Anyanwu, K., Hames, J., Grabski, D., Mlsna, J., Simkins, E., & Cook, P. (2018,

May 16). The impact of video length on learning in a middle-level flipped science setting:

Implications for diversity inclusion - journal of science education and technology.

SpringerLink. Retrieved November 8, 2022, from

https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s10956-018-9736-2