This study provides an insight into the preferred length of videos in the online course ICTMOOC aimed at the development of professional digital competence with pre- and in-service teachers in Norway. The one-way ANOVA test (Field, 2013) was used for the analyses of participants' responses about the preferred length of videos in the ICTMOOC. Findings reveal that the learners preferred the videos in the range of 5-10 min. These findings have therefore implications for the design of videos for MOOCs and online courses.
This study examines the length of videos that was preferred by the students engaged in learning in the online course ICTMOOC offered at Ostfold University College in Norway. The ICTMOOC is aimed at the development of professional digital competence with pre- and in-service teachers as a part of their teacher training and professional development programme. Since 2014 when the ICTMOOC was offered for the first time, the course has become increasingly popular with pre- and inservice teachers, which may indicate contemporary demand for flexible online education that intends to bridge the educational journey from theory to practice.
In online learning, as well as other types of learning, student engagement is
considered a necessary prerequisite for learning
RQ1: What length of videos was preferred by the participants in the ICTMOOC? 1.1
In studies on the use of lecture videos, students report enjoying the videos and
finding their classes engaging
The length of the educational videos in MOOCs is a widely discussed topic. Some
researchers argue that short videos are most suitable for educational purposes
Although the observations outlined here indicate that videos can be a powerful resource to enhance students’ engagement in learning, the discussion on the length of videos in online courses is lacking consensus. We addressed this knowledge gap by examining participants’ preferred length of videos in the ICTMOOC. 2 2.1
Data collection was conducted through the questionnaire administered to all the pre- and in-service teachers engaged in the ICTMOOC in 2014 – 2018. The questionnaire aimed to examine participants’ experiences in the ICTMOOC. In total 501 participants responded to the questionnaire in 2014-2018. The majority of participants in the ICTMOOC in 2014-2018 were females, in-service teachers and they were either strongly satisfied (M=28.82%, SD=4.71) or very strongly satisfied (M=67.67%, SD=6.42) with the ICTMOOC. 2.2
The ICTMOOC was first introduced in Norway in 2014. The course was
developed by the researchers and development specialists from Ostfold University
College. The online course ICTMOOC has a structure of an xMOOC
Each Module contains textual information, videos, individual tasks, and multiplechoice quizzes. In total, there are 223 videos in the course, 174 of them have been produced by the course developers and stored at the YouTube Channel. 179 videos are tutorials (so-called ‘How To’ videos) and forty-one videos discuss the pedagogical aspects of the use of digital tools. The total length of all videos in the course is 22h 29min 39sec and the average length of a video is 6min 3sec. In several Modules, in addition to textual information, videos and multiple-choice quizzes, students are expected to complete practical exercises, give and receive peer feedback and submit examination tasks. On successful completion of the ICTMOOC (evaluated to passed or failed), participants are awarded 15 ECTS Credits (European Credit Transfer and Accumulation System). Over 80% of enrolled students passed the ICTMOOC in 2014-2018. 2.3
To address the research questions in this study, the following questions were included in the questionnaire administered to the participants in the ICTMOOC in 2014-2018: Q11: What is your overall experience about the use of videos in the ICTMOOC? (applied a Likert scale from one to five (one = ‘very weakly satisfied,’ two = ‘satisfied,’ three = ‘somewhat satisfied,’ four = ‘strongly satisfied’ and five = ‘very strongly satisfied’), Q12: What do you think about the length of the videos in the ICTMOOC? (applied a Likert scale from one to five (one = ‘too short,’ two = ‘short,’ three = ‘appropriate,’ four = ‘long’ and five = ‘too long’); and Q13: What length of videos do you think is the most appropriate for the ICTMOOC? (participants were to mark one of the suggested lengths: 0-2 min, 3-4 min, 5-6 min, 7-10 min, 1115 min, 16-20 min, 21-30 min, and 31-45 min)
The data consisted of 501 participants’ responses to questions 11, 12 and 13. The
one-way ANOVA test
The analysis of participants’ preferred length of the videos in the ICTMOOC starts by examining students’ responses about their overall experience of using videos in the ICTMOOC (Q 11: What is your overall experience about the use of videos in the ICTMOOC?) (Table 2).
The one-way ANOVA test
The data indicate the difference between the participants’ experiences of the
length of videos in the ICTMOOC. The one-way ANOVA test
Table 4 presents participants’ responses about the preferred length of videos in the ICTMOOC (Q13: What length of videos do you think is the most appropriate in the ICTMOOC?)
The data show the differences between the participants’ preferences about the
length of videos in the ICTMOOC. The one-way ANOVA test
The analyses performed in this study focused on examining the preferred length of videos in the ICTMOOC by addressing the research question: What length of videos was preferred by the participants in the ICTMOOC?
First, the pre- and in-service teachers expressed their satisfaction with the videos: the majority of participants were very strongly satisfied (M=67.66%, SD=6.42) with the videos in the ICTMOOC in 2014-2018. This may indicate that the videos were used by the participants extensively for various types of support. However, by doing so, the learners may have demonstrated their dependency on the videos and the support the videos provided.
Second, while the participants were very strongly satisfied with the videos in the ICTMOOC, the majority of students (M=82.46% SD=12.45) considered the length of videos appropriate (average length of videos in the ICTMOOC is 06min 03sec). Specifically, the students reported that the videos in the range of 5-6 min (M=37.34% SD=6.03) and the videos in the range of 7-10 min (M=40.74% SD=3.08) were preferred in the ICTMOOC.
In sum, the majority of participants were strongly satisfied with the videos in the ICTMOOC. In addition, the learners indicated that the videos in the range of 5-10 min were preferred in the ICTMOOC in 2014-2018.
There are several pedagogical implications for designing videos facilitating students’ learning in digital environments.
First, the preferred length of videos in the range of 5-10 min might have implications for the design of videos in MOOCs and online courses aimed at the development of professional digital competence with the participants.
Second, the pre- and in-service teachers' strong satisfaction with the videos may indicate that videos are useful resources to facilitate learning in online environments. This may also emphasise the importance of the types of support videos provide to learners. Further research will, therefore, benefit from a mixed method study, providing qualitative and quantitative evidence about the types of support videos provide to the participants in online environments.
These findings, therefore, inform practitioners, MOOC, online courses’ developers and educational video producers about the length of videos preferred by the participants in the ICTMOOC aimed at the development of digital competence with pre- and in-service teachers. They also emphasise the crucial importance of practitioners’ awareness about the suitable length of video resources for the purpose of integrating these resources to enhance pedagogy and students' learning.