“It feels like she’s talking to me”
In this study, Dr. Mirjam Brady-Van den Bos from the School of Psychology shares her innovative approach of using assignment videos to improve consistency and clarity in instructions for first-year students. The videos not only address the what, why, how, and when of assignments but also have unexpected positive impacts, prompting a deeper exploration of student learning experiences. Through an explorative study, the effectiveness of assignment videos, their influence on learning, preferences for written versus video instructions, the importance of lecturer presence in videos, and criteria for good assignment videos are all examined. Open and rating-scale questions delve into student attitudes, adaptation to teaching methods, and social adjustment within the university.
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Presentation Transcript
It feels like shes talking to me Lecturer-videos on MyAberdeen Dr. Mirjam Brady-Van den Bos School of Psychology
I had a problem. I solved it. But the solution created side-effects. The investigation continues
Background My course: Introductory Psychology - Methods and Applications Almost entirely coursework based 196 first-year students Spread over 9 practical classes, they meet weekly Each class has their own tutor (8 postgraduate students + me)
My problem: Each class gets told different things about the assignments, which isn t fair
My solution: Assignment videos They explain: - What students have to do - Why they have to do it - How they have to do it - When it needs to be done by - FAQs (let me show you )
Was it effective? Yes How do I know? The negative SCEF comments about inconsistency mostly disappeared I receive only very few emails about the assignments now
However, something interesting happened I LOVE LOVE LOVE the assignment videos! Apart from creating consistency in explaining the assignments across classes, what else did these videos do?
The current study Explorative Did you make use of the assignment videos? Does it influence your learning? Does it matter whether instructions are written or in video? Does it matter whether the lecturer shows their talking face ? What makes a good assignment video? In other courses that don t have assignment videos, do you study differently? Do you feel differently about courses that don t have videos? Open questions Rating-scale questions - Attitude towards assignment videos - Adaptation of Trigwell & Prosser s Approaches to Teaching inventory - Social adjustment and attachment to (this) University
Rating scale analysis (1-7, 1 = strongly disagree, 7 = strongly agree) Focus of interest: correlations between the 2 Attitude measures and the other 3 measures Attitudes towards assignment videos -> Assignment videos are important for my learning -> I wish all courses had assignment videos What the attitude scales correlate with, tells me something about what the videos do for students Adaptation of Approaches to Teaching inventory 7 Q s where agreement means preference for student-centered teaching (a) 7 Q s where agreement means preference for teacher-centered teaching (b) -> Student-centered preference score created by subtracting (a) from (b) Social adjustment e.g., I initiate informal contact with staff , Attachment to this University e.g., I would rather be at a different university
Correlational analysis Spearman s rho, N = 65 Assignment vids important for learning Wish all courses had them Endorsement of I wish all courses had them is positively correlated with a preference for student-centered teaching, e.g.: Preference for student-centered teaching .107 (ns) .325, p = .008 I prefer teaching staff who: encourage us to develop our thinking process try to engage in a conversation with us about the topics help me find my own learning resources Social adjustment -.028 (ns) .055 (ns) Attachment to university .300, p = .036 .384, p = .006
Correlational analysis Spearman s rho, N = 65 Assignment vids important for learning Wish all courses had them Preference for student-centered teaching .107 (ns) .325, p = .008 Social adjustment -.028 (ns) .055 (ns) Endorsement of I wish all courses had them is positively correlated with their attachment to university, e.g.: Attachment to university .300, p = .036 .384, p = .006 I m pleased with my decision to go to university I expect to finish my degree at this university
Correlational analysis Spearman s rho, N = 65 Assignment vids important for learning Wish all courses had them Preference for student-centered teaching .107 (ns) .325, p = .008 Social adjustment -.028 (ns) .055 (ns) Attachment to university .300, p = .036 .384, p = .006 Endorsement of Assignment videos are important for my learning is positively correlated with their attachment to university, e.g.: I m pleased with my decision to go to university I expect to finish my degree at this university
Analysis of open questions Did you make use of the assignment videos? Does it influence your learning? Does it matter whether instructions are written or in video? Does it matter whether the lecturer shows their talking face ? What makes a good assignment video? In other courses that don t have assignment videos, do you study differently? Do you feel differently about courses that don t have videos?
How do students use the videos to help me understand how to do the assignment a lecturer on demand I use them before, during and after to make sure I m doing everything right when I needed confirmation I used them to help me mark my work after I d completed it
Do assignment videos influence your learning? (no) (yes) Not sure if they influenced my learning, but they definitely influence my assignments yes, it showed me what I didn t know, then I was able to read up on those topics they don t give me extra knowledge, but they help with getting higher marks it makes me more confident about learning, they push me to get the work completed no, but they helped us to do what they wanted us to do. The clearer the lecturer, the better the students will do it helps us understandwhat we re supposed to do, and hence makes us better at it yes, they got me closerto the material it doesn t influence my learning, it just helps me understand the task better no, but it s relaxing to know that it s there
Do you prefer written instructions or videos? (preference for one) (strategic use) it adds to the experience to have both with writteninstructions it s faster to find information I d say videos for details and to go in-depth, and written slides to search for specific queries Videos are easier, the info is there, I don t have to look for it videos are nicer in the beginning, written slides are easier to refer back to later on Videos. Written words are not flexible videos are clearer and more engaging, but there should also be written instructions for checking little bits videos are more interactive, I grasp information better when someone is physically telling me
What do you think about the talking face? I can see they are engaged and wanting to help us. Without a face it would feel distant, like a lecture It feels like she is talking to me it feels more like a lecture, it s easier to follow It feels like the instructions were personalizedfor me It makes it feel more like a class, it makes me pay more attention it adds to the experience as it feels more like real guidance It provides a 1-to-1 atmosphere It makes me pay attention, maybe because I can see the emotions I seem to understand it better. Maybe just because it s the face of an authority there s more of an interaction It makes it more personal, and thus secure Dr. Mirjam is very enthusiastic, which livens up the assignment It allows students to feel closer to the tutor Having the face there creates warmth
Comparisons with other courses (without vids) I feel more confused and frustrated if the answer I need can t be found easily other courses feel more distant, as if I am just one of many I do more research and reading on my own courses with videos make me feel closer to the lecturer, they seem more approachable In other courses it s more trial and error I don t have access to constant explanations It feels like the lecturer who makes videos wants me to do better I just read the course guide, which isn t that helpful I feel more stressed that I m not completing tasks correctly It feels like you re left alone and the teacher doesn t care as much about helping I have to plan my work, which I think wastes a lot of time I feel connected with this lecturer and feel supported and appreciated because she takes time out to prepare detailed instructions
How does this relate to the literature? Pedagogy - esp. distance learning literature, importance of teaching presence (Garrison & Alkyol, 2012) - Teacher-student relationships influence achievement (Cornelius-White, 2007) Psychology - Processing of social information in the brain - Nonverbal communication - Gaze cueing
