Assessing the Impact of Video-Based Assignments on Health Professions Students’ Social Presence on Web: Case Study

Abstract

BackgroundWeb-based education is one of the leading learning pedagogies in health professions education. Students have access to a multitude of opinions, knowledge, and resources on Web, but communication among students in Web-based courses is complicated. Technology adds a filter that makes it difficult to decipher the emotions behind words or read nonverbal cues. This is a concern because students benefit more from Web-based classes when they have a high perception of social presence. To enhance social presence on Web, we planned to use video-based assignments (VBAs) that encourage students to interact with each other.ObjectiveThis case study examines the impact of VBAs on health professions students and their experiences with the technology. This study aims to provide information to the growing body of literature about strategies to develop social presence on Web.MethodsA total of 88 students from various nursing programs participated in the study. While the control group comprised 36 students who submitted only written-based assignments (WBAs), the experimental group of 52 students submitted VBAs besides WBAs. No enrolled student had previously participated in the course, and there were no repeaters in either of the groups. Both groups participated in a weekly survey comprising 4 open-ended questions and 3 Likert items on a scale of 1-5 (1=strongly disagree and 5=strongly agree). The social presence questionnaire assessed by the experimental group comprised 16 items and a 5-point Likert scale in which higher scores represented higher levels of social presence. While quantitative data were analyzed using descriptive statistics, qualitative responses were analyzed using content analysis.ResultsNo significant differences were noted between the groups regarding the program (F1,87=0.36, P=.54). Regarding students’ engagement, no statistically significant difference was observed between the 2 groups (t14=0.96, P=.35). However, the experimental group’s average score for engagement was slightly higher (4.29 [SD 0.11]) than that of the control group (4.21 [SD 0.14]). Comparison of the total number of responses to the weekly engagement survey revealed 88.0% (287/326) as either strongly agree or agree in the control group, whereas 93.1% (525/564) in the experimental group. No statistically significant difference was observed between VBAs and WBAs weeks (t6=1.40, P=.21) in the experimental group. Most students reported a positive experience using VBAs, but technical issues were barriers to embracing this new approach to learning.ConclusionsThis study reveals that social presence and engagement are positively associated with student learning and satisfaction in Web-based courses. Suggestions are offered to enhance social presence on Web that could generate better learning outcomes and students’ experiences.

Pedagogical foundations of cybercivility in health professions education: a scoping review

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“…For example, many educators use personal digital assistants in clinical education to take advantage of the current technology to enhance care providers’ learning outcomes [22-24]. More recently, a video-based education program was shown to increase nursing students’ satisfaction and learning experiences [25]. Furthermore, the telehealth curriculum has suggested the inclusion of problem-based solving and telehealth site visits in the curriculum [26].…”

COVID-19 Pandemics and Impacts on Medical Educators in China

“…The novel coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID- 19) is one of the most unpredictable global public health crises of epic proportions in recent years [1,2,3], which has brought a profound impact on higher education [4]. Medical schools have been forced to dramatically restructure teaching and assessment to adapt to the effect of the COVID-19 pandemic [5].…”

“…The rapid technology advancement in education has resulted in the adoption of learner-centered methods employed for educational use beyond traditional lectures micro class, massive open online course (MOOC), and ipped classroom, collaborative team learning, problem-based learning (PBL), case-based learning (CBL) [12,13]. Importantly, many digital technologies have been considered or used in the educational eld, such as virtual simulation teaching forms supported by technology [14][15][16][17] and videobased social media platforms [18,19]. In recent years, some studies have proven that augmented reality (AR) and virtual reality (VR) can enhance students' engagement [20,21].…”