A questionnaire to assess teachers' knowledge about multimedia principles in instructional videos

Abstract

Learning from instructional multimedia material, such as videos, is known to be cognitively demanding. A large body of empirical studies have established that instructional video complying with multimedia principles support learners' cognitive processes and increase learning (Brame, 2016; Fiorella, 2021; Mayer, 2021). However, in classroom situations, teachers use instructional materials, such as videos, that rarely integrate these multimedia principles (La Torre, 2022; Oh et al., 2020). The research also indicates that teachers tend to select videos according to pedagogical content regardless of multimedia learning principles (Hobbs, 2006; La Torre, 2022). Furthermore, misconceptions about multimedia learning, as well as neuromyths, are prevalent among teachers (Dekker et al., 2012; Eitel et al., 2021; Tardif et al., 2015).

Little research has been conducted to systematically assess how teachers’ knowledge of multimedia learning principles and their beliefs in learning myths relate to the way they select and use instructional videos. To investigate this question further, a two-part questionnaire is being developed. The first part of the questionnaire is based on The Misconceptions Multimedia Learning Questionnaire from Eitel et al. (2021). The second part of the questionnaire, which seeks to investigate the declared use of instructional video by teachers, is based on Brame’s Principles and Guidelines for Maximizing Student Learning from Video Content (Brame, 2016). The questionnaire will be presented in a no (or not-so-perfect) data format in order to get insights and feedback from colleagues as well as inspire similar research.