Impact of Screencast Technology: Connecting the Perception of Usefulness and the Reality of Performance

Abstract

BACKGROUNDPrior research on the instructional use of screencasts (video of a computer screen output with realtime audio commentary) suggests that this technology is perceived by students as beneficial and results in improved course performance. PURPOSEThis study explores how and why students use screencasts, as well as why some students choose not to use them. The study also investigates whether the perception that screencasts are helpful aligns with the reality of students' course performance. DESIGN/METHODA quantitative study was conducted throughout two semesters in an undergraduate engineering survey course at a large public university. The investigation used a student perceptions survey and case study analysis to explore the connection between screencast use, the perception of having gained a deeper understanding of the course material based on this use, and actual course performance. RESULTSFindings indicate that students' preferred strategies for using screencasts are related to the frequency of use and the degree of understanding. Students who use the screencasts more and perceive them to have increased their understanding demonstrate increased competence on particular exam questions. Only those students who actively chose not to use screencasts (compared to those who forgot or ran out of time) show no detrimental effects on their performance. CONCLUSIONOur findings highlight both the perceived and actual value of screencasting to students and the ways this technology is used. This research suggests that screencasting may promote self-efficacy among undergraduate engineering students.

Would You Watch It? Creating Effective and Engaging Video Tutorials

“…In a Turkish study of undergraduate students learning spreadsheet applications, the use of screencasts positively affected not only comprehension and knowledge of concepts, but also achievement and performance of learned skills (Tekinarslan, 2013). In another study, Green et al (2012) report that students had a favorable perception towards screencasting, and attributed their improvements in course performance to screencast availability. This was particularly true in those students with the least familiarity with the concepts.…”

“…The format must be familiar and direct. Learners will come to tutorials with a wide spectrum of comfort levels and different learning styles (Mestre, 2010), and use tutorials to satisfy a variety of needs (Green, Pinder-Grover, & Millunchick, 2012).…”

Effects of using learners’ produced screencast as worked examples in learning

“…With the emerging technology, screencast is rapidly becoming a favourable instruction within different platform of education such as complementary to normal face-to-face lecture, e-learning and long distance learning due to the numerous advantages of screencast. In addition, screencast videos have been developed to improve learning gains in various domain knowledge such as mathematics [28], statistics [29], accounting [30], engineering [31,32] and also computer programming [33].…”

“…On the other hand, learners' perceptions regarding screencast videos have been documented in numerous research. Survey results indicate that majority of the learners perceived screencasts as beneficial to facilitate learning [28,29,31,33] as demonstrated in their final exam performance [30,32,33].…”

Experimenting E-Learning for Postgraduate Courses

“…Falconer et al [4] have compiled screencasts where a narrator goes over a particular chemical engineering concept or a detailed problem solution. Green et al [5] stated that students who use screencasts and perceive their benefit have better results on exams. Abulencia et al [6], discussed the teaching of concepts in an introductory thermodynamics course through video, considering that this generation of students is technology savvy, and regularly communicates by means other than face-to-face interactions.…”