Experiences on the Design, Creation, and Analysis of Multimedia Content to Promote Active Learning

• Published in: Journal of science education and technology Vol. 28; no. 5; pp. 445 - 451
• Main Authors: Rengel, Raúl, Pascual, Elena, Íñiguez-de-la-Torre, Ignacio, Martín, María J., Vasallo, Beatriz G.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Dordrecht Springer Science + Business Media 01.10.2019; Springer Netherlands; Springer; Springer Nature B.V
• Subjects: Active Learning; Analysis; Collaborative work; Education; Educational Methods; Educational Strategies; Educational Technology; Electronics; Employee motivation; Handheld Devices; Instructional Design; Introductory Courses; Learning; Motion pictures; Motivation; Multimedia; Multimedia Instruction; Science Education; Science Fiction; Science fiction & fantasy; Science fiction films; Science Instruction; Smart phones; Smartphones; Student Motivation; Students; Teaching Methods; Technology Uses in Education; Telecommunications; Video Technology; Smartphones; Engineering; Screen capture; Cinema in education; Multimedia content
• ISSN: 1059-0145; 1573-1839
• DOI: 10.1007/s10956-019-09777-9

In an educational context, multimedia content can be created by the students, by the faculty, or by a third party. With the aim of improving the lab work, motivation, and active learning in introductory electronics courses, several innovative technologies and instructional strategies were considered involving these three possibilities: real-time screen capture, video recording with smartphones, and technical analysis of science fiction films. Factors such as ease of use, fast production, or no need of expensive tools were critical for the choice of these technologies, which were introduced on activities (lab sessions, collaborative work) where traditional strategies required too much time or could not be applied properly due to a large number of students and/or time constraints. We found that video lab reports made by the students using smartphones are a very adequate and straightforward assessment method, combining the advantages of oral assessment and written reports. The technical analysis of science fiction films proved to be helpful to reinforce the motivation of some students towards the subject, although it requires some degree of maturity to reach this end. Video tutorials made with screen capture technology proved to be easy to record and produce, and they constitute a fast and convenient way to produce new multimedia resources adapted to the specific needs of the subject.