P157 Video, Written, or Combination? A Pilot Study Discovering Which Type of Engagement Students Preferred for Online Discussions

Abstract

<h3>Objective</h3> To determine the level of collaboration, social presence, and satisfaction with online discussion assignments. <h3>Use of Theory or Research</h3> With advances in technology, student driven-learning demands, coupled with the Covid-19 pandemic, more higher-education institutions are offering asynchronous online courses. While highly effective, engagement is challenging. Graded student discussions are often incorporated to facilitate student engagement. <h3>Target Audience</h3> Students (n = 74; 84% Health Science majors) enrolled in a 16-week asynchronous online undergraduate life cycle nutrition course (Spring 2021). <h3>Course/Curriculum Description</h3> During the first 3-weeks, all students completed 1 video-only and 1 written-only discussion assignment before being equally randomized into a video-only (VO), written-only (WO), or written-video only (WVO) discussion group. Each group completed 6 discussions over 9-weeks on nutrition-related topics requiring an initial and response post. WVO students completed 3 written and 3 verbal discussion assignments in alternating format. <h3>Evaluation Methods</h3> Consenting students (n = 25 pre-; 26-post study) voluntarily completed the Collaborative Learning (CL), Social Presence (SP), and Satisfaction (SATIS) questionnaires during week 4 (n = 8 WO, 8 VO, 9 WVO) and weeks 13-15 (n = 6 WO, 7 VO, 13 WVO). Comparison of means, descriptive statistics, and Pearson χ2 analysis were conducted (IRB # 2012010996). <h3>Results</h3> No significant differences were observed between or within groups for CL, SP, and SATIS scores. However, the CL score increased the most in the WO compared to the VO group (12.8%-vs-3.3%) while SATIS scores increased 2.5% in the WVO and 9.7% in the WO groups but decreased 12.4% in the VO group. SP declined in all groups with the WVO group decreasing the most at 28.6%. <h3>Conclusions</h3> Video assignments are a viable option for student engagement, even though this pilot study was unable to match student's pre- and post-scores. This data suggests a decreased trend in satisfaction with video-only compared to written-only or a combination of the written-video in discussion forums, but larger studies are needed to further address this question. <h3>Funding</h3> None