Publication Date

2024

Document Type

Dissertation/Thesis

First Advisor

Rhode, Jason D.

Degree Name

Ph.D. (Doctor of Philosophy)

Legacy Department

Department of Educational Technology, Research and Assessment (ETRA)

Abstract

Purpose. Researchers have recommended using comprehensive visual materials in engineering courses, as visuals instill more information in students than auditory information and they have the ability to engage students more effectively than other types of content and to convey the nuances of non-verbal communication. The purpose of this study was to explore the perceptions of engineering students on incorporating technologically advanced video course materials (TAVCM) created with lightboard technology on their engagement in learning. Theoretical Framework. The theoretical framework was based upon an integrative learning environment that incorporated many theories of cognitive learning. The Cognitive Theory of Multimedia Learning (CTML) was the most pertinent learning theory to take into account while analyzing the characteristics and efficacy of lightboard technology. The Cognitive Load theory (CLT) was the next hypothesis on which the lightboard technology was built. Finally, the other learning theory that was pertinent to examine the potential of lightboard was Social Agency Theory (SAT). Methodology. A mixed-methods case study design was employed and for the purpose, a case was identified where the perspectives of both faculty and student were equally important to establish the research findings. The case, included every faculty participant and the entire engineering student population that participated in this research (student, n=191; faculty, n=5). The process of convenient sampling was used to select the participants. Multiple forms of data were collected for the case and the data were analyzed within and across the data collected from faculty and student participants. Findings and Conclusions. The major findings emerged from analyzing both quantitative and qualitative data collected from the faculty and student participants were that lightboard videos help students to be engaged in studies, faculty’s body gesture and facial expression help students follow the content, lightboard videos offer a traditional classroom experience, lightboard videos made content easier to understand, short duration lightboard videos were more useful, recording requires intelligent use of color contrast and recording lightboard videos were easy and required no additional training. The findings clearly showed that engineering students' learning engagement was stimulated by lightboard videos. The lightboard videos were deemed relatively easy to view and comprehend by the participants. It made studying new subjects easier by summarizing key ideas and providing information visualization to complement them. One of the best ways to get students engaged and participating in the classroom was to use visually appealing and functional technology. It was simpler to pay attention because of the faculty's handwritten notes, facial expressions, and body language. Recommendations. This study recommended the following to enhance the application of lightboard videos. • Create shorter length videos. • Pay attention to the color contrast while recording lightboard videos. • Avoid recording lightboard videos for text savvy courses. • Select the attire carefully and marker color so that the text does not blend with presenter’s image. • Provide some kind of marked boundary for writing on the glass board. • Integrate software to digitally wipe the glass board off. Future research should be conducted to investigate if adding lightboard videos to the course materials can help students perform better academically and compare the learning engagement of lightboard videos with other methods of producing audio-video course materials.

Keywords: Body gesture, Case study, Cognitive load, Facial expression, Faculty, Learning engagement, Lightboard, Mixed-methods, Qualitative data, Quantitative data, Student, Traditional classroom

Extent

255 pages

Language

en

Publisher

Northern Illinois University

Rights Statement

In Copyright

Rights Statement 2

NIU theses are protected by copyright. They may be viewed from Huskie Commons for any purpose, but reproduction or distribution in any format is prohibited without the written permission of the authors.

Media Type

Text

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