When recording videos for online learning, is it better to have the instructor’s talking head appear in the video or not? The question is a popular one for research, and the results are mixed. While the instructor’s face can be valuable for increasing presence, it alone will not make videos effective.
In their 2014 research study using data from four different edX MOOCS, Guo, Kim, and Rubin found that students watched videos with the instructor’s talking head interspersed longer than those with PowerPoint slideshows or screencasts alone. Videos can also make students feel more connected to their instructor (Borup, West, & Graham, 2012), improve recall on easy topics, and increase learner satisfaction (Wang & Antonenko, 2017). However, other studies have shown that having a face on screen does not necessarily improve learning (van Wemeskerken, Ravensbergen, & van Gog, 2018) and may increase extraneous cognitive load (Mayer, 2014) or simply be distracting (Kizilcec, Bailenson, & Gomez, 2015). A 2019 study by Fiorella, Stull, Kuhmann, and Mayer suggests that instructor presence alone is not enough to improve learning, but by leveraging other proven techniques like eye contact and handwriting, it can have a positive impact.
When recording your videos, make sure you’re not just relying on your presence to make them effective. Plan carefully to make sure you are using all the tools in your toolbox. Certainly be on camera to film personal stories and build connections with your students. But when teaching particularly complex or intricate visual concepts or complicated skills, consider staying off camera to reduce the chance of distraction.
Borup, J., West, R. E., & Graham, C. R. (2012). Improving online social presence through asynchronous video. The Internet and Higher Education, 15(3), 195-203. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.iheduc.2011.11.001
Fiorella, L., Stull, A. T., Kuhlmann, S., & Mayer, R. E. (2019). Instructor presence in video lectures: The role of dynamic drawings, eye contact, and instructor visibility. Journal of Educational Psychology, 111(7), 1162–1171. https://doi.org/10.1037/edu0000325
Guo, P. J., Kim, J., & Rubin, R. (2014). How video production affects student engagement: an empirical study of MOOC videos. Proceedings of the first ACM conference on Learning @ scale conference (L@S ’14). https://doi.org/10.1145/2556325.2566239
Kizilcec, R. F., Bailenson, J. N., & Gomez, C. J. (2015). The instructor’s face in video instruction: Evidence from two large-scale field studies. Journal of Educational Psychology, 107, 724 –739. http://dx.doi.org/10.1037/edu0000013
Mayer, R. E. (2014). Principles of multimedia learning based on social cues: Personalization, voice, image, and embodiment principles. In R. E. Mayer (Ed.), The Cambridge handbook of multimedia learning (2nd ed., pp. 345–368). New York, NY: Cambridge University Press. http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/CBO9781139547369.017
van Wermeskerken, M., Ravensbergen, S., & van Gog, T. (2018). Effects of instructor presence in video modeling examples on attention and learning. Computers in Human Behavior, 89, 430 – 438. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.chb.2017.11.038
Wang, J., & Antonenko, P. D. (2017). Instructor presence in instructional video: Effects on visual attention, recall, and perceived learning. Computers in human behavior, 71, 79-89. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chb.2017.01.049