Five Strategies to Increase the Effectiveness of Video Lectures

With the move to remote teaching, many more instructors are recording video lectures. But, studies on their effectiveness are still emerging. Regardless, the research to date is clear that applying a few best practices to video lectures can improve the likelihood that students will not just watch them, but learn from them too! Fortunately, many recommendations for video lectures are the same for in-person lectures, instructors simply have to adapt these best practices to a new medium.

1. Divide Large Lectures Into Smaller Segments

Studies suggest that students’ attention may be more limited in online lectures than during face-to-face lectures (Szpunar, Moulton, & Schacter, 2013; J. Kim et al., 2014; Guo et al., 2014). Recommendations for the maximum length of video lectures found in the literature range from 5-15 minutes. While this may help students stay focused on your lecture, shorter videos are also easier to update and generate smaller file sizes. Consider, breaking larger lectures down into shorter segments, to better organize information and identify connections across concepts. Shorter video segments also provide an opportunity for students to regain focus between videos or quickly replay an entire video if necessary.

2. Use Visuals Strategically

Visual materials should be used to complement verbal instruction. The challenge is to use visuals strategically without creating excessive distractions. A potential problem in multimedia learning is cognitive overload, which occurs when “the processing demands evoked by the learning task may exceed the processing capacity of the cognitive system” (Mayer & Moreno, 2003, p. 45). Techniques to reduce cognitive load in multimedia learning include simple strategies such as 1) reducing on-screen text; 2) removing all extraneous content; and 3) including only keywords or images that reinforce the lecture content. Additionally, try not to read your slides exactly and consider providing cues to the learner that introduce the content and explain the organization of the material—a technique called signaling (Mayer & Moreno, 2003).

Adhering to basic principles of visual literacy can also be helpful when creating visual aids to accompany a video lecture. For example, a background and font color that have high value contrast increases readability. A solid color or a white background is preferable to a pattern. Likewise, larger font sizes are key. Whereas no font smaller than 28 points is recommended for a face-to-face classroom, even larger font sizes are recommended for videos that will be viewed on a mobile device (Schwabish, 2016). Using the same fonts and colors throughout a slideshow also creates a sense of unity within the video.

3. Incorporate Active Learning Techniques

Although many students watch online videos quite regularly, they may not have learned how to interact with video content in an academic environment. Using active learning techniques within videos or as an accompaniment to the videos encourages students to intentionally engage with video lecture content and may help them develop self-regulated learning strategies and positive academic habits. Several strategies to promote active learning from video lectures have developed in response to the need to hold students accountable for viewing them.

Two common methods include:

• assigning students to complete homework or discussion questions before and/or after watching a video lecture (M. Kim, Kim, Khera, & Getman, 2014)
• requiring students to submit a written summary of the lecture or ask students to create a “cheat” or “crib” sheet from the video lecture (Bergmann & Sams, 2012).

4. Assess Students' Understanding

Students are often overconfident in their perception of how much they understand after watching lecture videos. By embedding videos with questions or quizzing students after they watch video lectures, both students and instructors obtain a better idea of what students learned (Szpunar, Jing, & Schacter, 2014). Additionally, providing low-stakes quiz questions on lecture material encourages students to revisit areas of the lesson based on questions that they miss.

5. Avoid Common Pitfalls

Video lectures can be time intensive to develop; however, they do not need to be complex productions to be effective pedagogical tools. Nevertheless, a few pre-production considerations can go a long way toward improving the quality of video lectures. Before jumping straight to the recording phase, develop a basic outline. Keep in mind, one of the most important characteristics of an engaging video is an authentic speaker who acts naturally. A common mistake instructors make is speaking too slowly or over-enunciating their speech in video recordings. Research suggests that students are more engaged when instructors maintain a normal speaking pace and display enthusiasm for the content (Guo et al., 2014).

Another common pitfall in videos featuring the instructor's face is poor lighting or distracting backgrounds. Recording in a location with a simple background and avoiding bold-patterned clothing can prevent the distractions and visual noise that can compete with lecture content. Just as it is important to avoid visual distractions, it is also a best practice to avoid auditory distractions. Audio should be clear and free of distortion. When possible, consider recording videos in a quiet space and using a USB microphone to improve sound quality.