Learning science with YouTube videos and the impacts of Covid-19

Abstract

This study investigates student and teacher use of online instructional YouTube chemistry videos in the context of the Covid-19 pandemic. Data were collected from a global sample of students (n = 1147) subscribed to the first author’s popular chemistry education YouTube channel. Participants were in secondary school or college and reported having learned science in a variety of contexts including completely online, blended, or completely in-person. The data collection instrument, an online questionnaire, was designed to detect both quantitative and qualitative changes in the use of instructional video. In addition, statistics for the overall YouTube chemistry education channel for 2018 through 2021 were compiled to provide evidence of video viewing trends with a large sample (98.6 million video views) over a timeframe encompassing before and during the Covid-19 pandemic. Findings indicate that students’ personal use of video for learning science increased substantially during the pandemic. However, for the majority of teachers, the use of video to support online learning during the pandemic either remained the same or declined. Post-pandemic, students plan to continue using science videos for learning and want teachers to do the same.

Students' Pre- and Post-COVID-19 Perception of Mathematics Videos in Higher Education

“…Another possibility to explain this is the fact that some students were forced to use videos to study due to the confinement, so they had the opportunity of trying a new form of study and recognized their usefulness. This reinforces the positive aspects of the learning videos, reported in the literature [21][22][23][24]. The effect of the COVID-19 pandemic on the use of videos to learn, observed in the last results (Tables II and III), was also confirmed in a question of the survey: 46.2% started using educational videos more frequently to study since the pandemic and 47.1% indicate that the pandemic made no difference and that they use the learning videos just as often.…”

“…In 2022, even with 38 b-Mat@plicada videos, the medium is even lower (3.74). The pandemic led to a higher demand for online learning videos, as concluded in other studies [23,24].…”

“…One of their conclusions is the great importance of lecture videos as a learning source. In the research work of Breslyn and Green [24], in which a comparison is made before, during and after the pandemic, the majority of the 1147 students who responded to the online questionnaire would like to continue to use the videos in a post-pandemic phase.…”

Experiences of engineering thermodynamics students during online learning: Lessons for post-pandemic

“…The time that should be taken for students to scan and upload their test documents must be increased because some students may experience problems regarding network connectivity. Some want lecturers to refer students to YouTube links for that particular concept taught that that relate with the lecture (Breslyn & Green, 2022). This is because the students feel that they want more information for them to understand that lesson.…”

Cognitively Loaded: An Investigation of Educational Chemistry YouTube Videos’ Adherence to Mayer’s Multimedia Principles

“… , There are three assumptions regarding a cognitive theory of multimedia learning based on Mayer’s framework . First, the dual-channel assumption states that learners process visual and auditory information using separate information processing pathways in the brain. , Second is the limited capacity assumption, in which the amount of information that learners can process in each channel at once is limited. , Finally, the active processing assumption states that learners engage in active learning by attending to, organizing, and integrating incoming information with their existing knowledge structures to build a mental representation of a phenomenon or experience. , Accordingly, learners must undergo five cognitive processes for meaningful learning to occur:…”