Information Technology Reference
In-Depth Information
For teaching staff, and those designing learning resources and programs, it is
critical to design learning resources that are relevant and effective for the student in
this online learning space [1], [7], [8], [9]. To achieve this it would seem logical that
the teaching staff would look to using the common forms of online resources that
students are seeking out, including short entertaining videos, social media interaction
and others, as a means to deliver their resources and knowledge.
This research project implemented a study over a nine year period to identify
whether the increased use, by teaching staff, of popular forms of entertainment, in the
form of movies, interactive gameplay and social media had an impact on the
effectiveness of the learning environments they created.
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Online Learning Resources
Learning resources come in a range of possible forms and formats. For the purpose of
this study the focus was in the online delivery of resources based on popular forms of
entertainment. This approach included the use, and comparison of the effectiveness
of, several types of formats for this content. Key formats included, long and short
video and audio clips, interactive gameplay (in both game and social media platforms)
as well as the active and passive use of social media.
The short movie format, was a critical element in the trial as these items became
the most viewed and used (with more than three times the amount of interaction from
participants than any of the other forms). Each of these movies was designed to be
much like a short movie trailer only containing key and quite specific pieces of
knowledge. These clips were constrained to being no longer than five minutes in
length and were designed to be as informal as possible (including showing minor
errors and corrections). Several critical additions to each of these resources included
the removal of official branding, the inclusion of the person (teaching staff member)
in the clips themselves and the publication in personal (non official) locations on the
web. The intent of these elements was to help break down the barriers between staff
and student and reinforce the links and build rapport between the student and staff.
The same approach was applied to developing the interactive gameplay scenarios
and social media interactions. The focus being on short, very specific and helpful
“tips” being delivered in a non official format but by a person with whom the student
is comfortable, and has trust in the reliability of their information. Interestingly the
feedback from the study regarding the interactive gameplay indicated that the
teaching staff members willingness to engage in such “play”, outside of the content
and teaching scope, was the most highly rated item listed in the question asking
“Which activity helped you get to know your teacher better?” with 44 percent of
participants questioned listing gameplay as the most effective experience. This
demonstrated the power of interaction in building relationships, but also shows the
ability of a game, though the focus on a separate, and in these cases a shared task, to
remove many fears and barriers to communication. The focus on the game play
allows communication channels to open (about and in the game) and from that better
understanding and ongoing communication was most effectively generated.
