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Instructional videos for teaching second language (L2) vocabulary often feature an instructor onscreen. The instructor in the video may involuntarily produce beat gestures with their hands, as occurs in real teaching settings. Beat gestures highlight key information in speech by conveying the rhythm of the language, but do not themselves convey semantic meaning. However, little is known about how the instructor's beat gestures affect L2 vocabulary learning. We conducted two experiments on the effects of the instructor's purposeful (scripted) beat gestures in instructional videos that included an instructor and slides, with English L2 vocabulary as the topic. In Experiment 1, using a within-participant design, we tested the hypothesis that an instructor's gestures (beat gesture vs. no gesture) would improve learning performance. The results showed that the instructor's use of beat gestures increased learners' accuracy and reduced reaction time on an L2 learning performance test. In Experiment 2, using a between-participants design, we tested the assumption that the benefits of beat gestures in L2 vocabulary learning are in part due to reductions in cognitive load while learning. This assumption was supported by both a self-report measurement of cognitive load and electroencephalogram (EEG) data showing lower theta power and lower alpha power when the instructor used beat gestures. The results of this study have applied value for designing effective instructional videos on the topic of L2 vocabulary learning. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Given their easy accessibility and dual‐channel model of content presentation, instructional videos have become a favoured tool for EFL vocabulary learning tool among many students. Teachers often use various nonverbal behaviours to elicit social reactions and guide learners' attention in instructional videos. The current study conducted three eye‐tracking experiments to examine the circumstances under which a teacher's happy facial expressions are beneficial in instructional videos, with or without pointing gestures and mouse pointing. Experiments 1 and 2 demonstrated that the combination of happy facial expressions and pointing gestures attracted learners' attention to the teacher and hindered students' learning performance, regardless of the complexity of slides. Experiment 3 showed that in instructional videos with complex slides, using happy facial expressions along with mouse pointing can enhance students' learning performance. Teachers are advised to show happy facial expressions and avoid using pointing gestures when designing instructional videos. Practitioner notes What is already known about this topic Given easy accessibility and dual‐channel model of content presentation, instructional videos have become a favoured tool for EFL vocabulary learning. When teachers record instructional videos while standing alongside slides, they often use nonverbal cues to support their speech. Teachers' social and attentional cues interactively influence students' learning processes and performance. What this paper adds A teacher's happy facial expressions evoke more positive emotions and greater motivation in learners compared to bored expressions. A teacher's pointing gestures, when combined with happy facial expressions, divert students' attention away from slides and towards the teacher. A teacher's happy facial expressions enhance students' learning performance when no pointing gestures are used in videos with simple slides. Implications for practice/policy Teachers are advised to display happy facial expressions and avoid using pointing gestures in instructional videos, regardless of the complexity of the slides. Practitioners should consider how to incorporate teachers' facial expressions pointing gestures and mouse pointing effectively. What is already known about this topic Given easy accessibility and dual‐channel model of content presentation, instructional videos have become a favoured tool for EFL vocabulary learning. When teachers record instructional videos while standing alongside slides, they often use nonverbal cues to support their speech. Teachers' social and attentional cues interactively influence students' learning processes and performance. What this paper adds A teacher's happy facial expressions evoke more positive emotions and greater motivation in learners compared to bored expressions. A teacher's pointing gestures, when combined with happy facial expressions, divert students' attention away from slides and towards the teacher. A teacher's happy facial expressions enhance students' learning performance when no pointing gestures are used in videos with simple slides. Implications for practice/policy Teachers are advised to display happy facial expressions and avoid using pointing gestures in instructional videos, regardless of the complexity of the slides. Practitioners should consider how to incorporate teachers' facial expressions pointing gestures and mouse pointing effectively. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This meta-analysis explores the impact of positive instructors on learning from instructional videos. Both the contagion theory and the cognitive-affective theory of learning with media suggest that positive instructors can facilitate learning. This review analyzed 37 studies reporting various outcomes, including positive emotion, motivation, attention, cognitive load, learning experience, learning satisfaction, self-efficacy, and learning achievement. The overall findings revealed that positive instructors in instructional videos significantly enhanced learners’ positive emotion, motivation, learning experience, learning satisfaction, and learning achievement, and encouraged student attention to the instructor. However, no significant effect was found regarding attention paid to visual materials, cognitive load, and self-efficacy. A series of moderating effect analyses were also conducted. The results indicated that the impact of positive instructors is influenced by instructor characteristics and emotional expressions, as well as other factors independent of the instructors. These findings provide systematic evidence and practical insights for the design of effective instructional videos. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A video lecture instructor exhibiting positive emotion has been shown to induce similar emotions in students, improving the students' motivation and increasing their attention, thus improving their learning performance. However, little systematic research exists on which specific design features with regards to the instructor can induce such emotions. The current study aimed to test whether congruent body gestures boost the effects of an instructor's facial expressions (happy vs. bored) on learning from video lectures in terms of students' emotions, motivation, attention, cognitive load, and learning performance. There were four conditions: (1) a happy face without body gestures, (2) a happy face accompanied with happy body gestures, (3) a bored face without body gestures, and (4) a bored face accompanied with bored body gestures. One-way repeated ANOVAs showed that congruent body gestures strengthened the emotional effects, and strengthened the attentional split effects of the happy face; when the instructor did not produce body gestures, her happy face facilitated students' learning performance compared to the bored face. Our findings suggest that instructors should be encouraged to exhibit a happy face without body gestures when giving video lectures to increase students' learning. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Learning from video lectures with peers, that is, co‐viewing video lectures, is a common mode of learning across a wide range of ages and topics in the information age. Objectives: The present study tested the effects of learners' motivation on co‐viewing video lectures in terms of learning performance, mental effort, and interpersonal brain synchronization (IBS). Methods: The current study was quantitative experimental. In total, 142 participants were recruited and divided into 71 dyads to manipulate task motivation from three aspects: meaning, interest, and reward. Then, they were divided into three experimental conditions according to the level of task motivation: two low task motivation learners (LL condition), a combination of one low and the other high (HL condition), and two high task motivation learners (HH condition). Two participants in a dyad were asked to view a video lecture on a shared screen and not talk until the end of the video lecture, with both learners in full view. Simultaneously, we recorded the cortical hemodynamic activity of two participants in each dyad using functional near‐infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS). Results and Conclusions: The group‐level analysis showed that two high‐task motivation learners had better learning performance, greater mental effort, and stronger IBS than a combination of one low and one high‐task motivation and two low‐task motivation. The results from the individual assessment indicated that pairing a person with low task motivation with another with high task motivation resulted in benefits for the low‐task motivation learner in terms of their self‐perceived learning. However, it negatively affected the performance of the high task motivation learner. Implications: First, high‐task motivation learners were encouraged to co‐view video lectures. Second, instructors were encouraged to intervene between their interactions by providing timely feedback to avoid losses for high‐task motivation learners, as this composition benefits low‐task motivation learners. Lay Description: What is already known about this topic: Most studies consider viewing video lectures as an individual process and test the role of learners' motivation at the individual level.Co‐viewing video lectures is a common mode of learning across a wide range of ages and topics in the information age.Learners' task motivation is essential for optimal learning in various settings. What this paper adds: Having two high task motivation co‐viewers enhanced their learning, encompassing retention, transfer, and confidence in performing well.Having two high task motivation co‐viewers enhanced IBS in the rTPJ‐rTPJ and IPL‐SMA pairings.Pairing a low task motivation learner with a high task motivation learner could be beneficial for the low task motivation learner, but it may result in losses for the high task motivation learner. Implications for practice and/or policy: Future work should verify the conclusions of the current study in natural settings, allowing verbal interaction versus settings permitting only nonverbal interaction and avoiding experimenter expectations.Future research should continue to test the long‐term effects of pairing a low task motivation learner with a high task motivation learner.We encourage high task motivation learners to co‐view video lectures.Instructors are advised to intervene in the interaction of pairs of a low task motivation learner with a high task motivation learner, for instance, by providing timely feedback. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Leaderboards are a highly popular gamification component used in student learning to enhance motivation, attentional engagement, and learning performance. However, few studies have examined the effects of individual leaderboard elements on English vocabulary learning through video lectures. Objectives: The present study aimed to examine how different leaderboard elements (i.e., points and rank) may affect students' English vocabulary learning through video lectures. Methods: A total of 34 students were assigned to groups using different leaderboard elements in a counterbalanced order. Participants' motivation, eye movements, and learning performance were measured and analysed. Results and Conclusions: Students' leaderboard rank was shown to increase their motivation regardless of whether other elements were present. Eye movement tracking revealed that the presence of the leaderboard increased students' saccades between the questions and the options, and lengthened their dwell time on the learning materials while reducing their dwell time on the non‐learning‐related screen areas. Presenting students' rank alone also improved their learning performance. Implications: Our findings strongly support the use of video lectures for English vocabulary learning, with the following recommendations: (1) Instructors should present students' rank on the leaderboard to enhance students' motivation and engagement; (2) Instructors should present only the students' rank on the leaderboard to also enhance students' learning performance. Lay Description: What is already known about this topic: While learning English vocabulary from video lectures, students might experience low levels of motivation and engagement, and pay less attention to the lectures.Leaderboards are a highly popular gamification component used in student learning to enhance motivation, attentional engagement, and learning performance.It remains unclear which leaderboard elements (i.e., points or rank) contribute most significantly to the effectiveness of the leaderboards. What this paper adds: Leaderboard elements have different effects on English vocabulary learning.The rank on the leaderboard benefited students' motivation and engagement.The rank also enhances students' confidence and learning performance. Implications for practice and/or policy: Instructors should present students' rank on the leaderboard to enhance students' motivation and engagement.Instructors should present only the students' rank on the leaderboard to also enhance students' learning performance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study aimed to understand the effect of task motivation on online group creative performance and interpersonal interaction. A total of 150 university students were recruited to collaborate online on creativity tasks in dyads. The Mmembers' task motivation was manipulated, resulting in three groups that differed in their motivation composition. Ratings of creative performance (fluency and originality), hemodynamic inter-brain synchronization, and lag sequential analysis were compared among the three groups. The results showed that groups comprising two highly motivated members conducted an efficient communication mode and achieved the best creative performance. Contrastingly, groups composed of one high- and one low-motivation member demonstrated the closest interpersonal interaction among members. The findings of this study suggest that it is essential to ensure that every member is highly motivated to improve creative performance in online groups. However, this may result in reduced interpersonal interaction. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The present study examined whether students' prior knowledge moderated the effects of their motivation compositions on learning performance (ie, retention and transfer) and interaction (ie, interpersonal brain synchronization (IBS) and behavioural pattern) in learning from video lectures. The results confirmed the benefits of the composition of two high motivation students on their knowledge transfer. The results also showed that students' prior knowledge had a moderating effect on interaction. For low prior knowledge students, high motivation composition increased their IBS in the temporoparietal junction‐inferior parietal lobule (TPJ‐IPL), temporoparietal junction‐supplementary motor area (TPJ‐SMA), inferior parietal lobule‐supplementary motor area (IPL‐SMA) and anterior prefrontal‐anterior prefrontal cortex (aPFC‐aPFC) regions during co‐explaining and enhanced their regulating‐related behavioural sequences and decreased disagree‐related behavioural sequences. However, for high prior knowledge students, a high motivation dyad composition decreased their IBS in the supramarginal gyrus‐anterior prefrontal cortex (SMG‐aPFC) while co‐viewing the video lecture, and in the TPJ‐IPL, TPJ‐SMA, IPL‐SMA and SMG‐aPFC during co‐explaining, cognitive communication, argumentation‐related and regulating‐related behavioural sequences but enhanced off‐task‐related behavioural sequences. Our findings suggest that instructors should encourage high motivation students to co‐view video lectures, and scaffold students with low prior knowledge to enhance regulating‐related behavioural sequences and scaffold students with high prior knowledge and high motivation to enhance cognitive communication, argumentation‐related and regulating‐related behavioural sequences and decrease off‐task‐related behavioural sequences. Practitioner notesWhat is already known about this topic Co‐viewing video lectures is a common form of learning across a wide range of ages and topics.Students' motivation is essential for optimal learning in various settings (eg, face‐to‐face classroom and online learning).Students' prior knowledge moderates the effects of their motivations on learning from video lectures from the individual perspective.What this paper adds The composition of two high motivation students benefits their knowledge transfer.For low prior knowledge students, the composition of two high motivation students increased their IBS in the TPJ‐IPL, TPJ‐SMA, IPL‐SMA and aPFC‐aPFC regions, enhanced their regulating‐related behavioural sequences and decreased their disagree‐related behavioural sequences.For high prior knowledge students, the composition of two high motivation students decreased their IBS in multiple brain regions, as well as their cognitive communication, argumentation‐related and regulating‐related behavioural sequences, but enhanced their off‐task‐related behavioural sequences.Implications for practice and/or policy High motivation students are encouraged to co‐view video lectures.Instructors should scaffold students with low prior knowledge to enhance regulating‐related behavioural sequences.Instructors should scaffold students with high prior knowledge and high motivation to enhance cognitive communication, argumentation‐related and regulating‐related behavioural sequences and decrease off‐task‐related behavioural sequences. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Much effort has been put into the design of video lectures, but little attention has been paid to the social environment in which learning takes place. The present study addressed this gap by assigning Chinese undergraduate and graduate students who had passed the College English Test-4 to learn easy or difficult English vocabulary words in three different conditions: alone, in the presence of a peer spectator, or in the presence of a peer co-actor. In Experiment 1, participants learned difficult vocabulary words and the effects were measured by both neural activity (EEG signals, measured while participants watched the video lectures and during the generative learning activities) and behavioral evidence (learning performance assessed after having watched the video lectures: immediate and delayed test scores, cognitive load, and motivation). Repeated measures ANOVAs showed that learning alone was more beneficial than learning in the presence of a peer, as indicated by better learning performance and reduced EEG theta band power. In Experiment 2, participants learned easy (rather than difficult) English vocabulary words and outcomes were measured by immediate and delayed learning performance. Repeated measures ANOVAs showed that the presence of a peer was more beneficial than learning easy content alone. Combined data from both experiments showed that difficulty moderated the effect of social context. Participants performed best when students learned the difficult content alone, and when they learned the easy content with a peer present. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study tested the mutual effects of the instructor's eye gaze and facial expression on students' eye movements (i.e. first fixation time to the slides, percentage dwell time on the slides, and percentage dwell time on the instructor), parasocial interaction, and learning performance in pre-recorded video lectures. Students (N = 118 undergraduate and graduate students) were assigned to watch one of four videos in a 2 (gaze: direct, guided) × 2 (facial expression: surprised, neutral) between-groups design. Contrary to our hypotheses, eye movement data showed that students who watched the video lecture with the instructor's guided gaze and surprised face showed longer first fixation time to the slides and lower dwell time on the slides; these students also had lower learning scores. Instructor eye gaze and facial expression did not influence students' ratings of parasocial interaction. Our results suggest that in reference to social cues during video lectures with slides, "more" is not necessarily "better." The findings have practical implications for designing pre-recorded slide-based video lectures: An instructor is cautioned against using multiple social cues simultaneously, especially in video lectures in which the instructor and the visual learning materials compete for students' attention. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Video lectures which include the instructor's presence are becoming increasingly popular. Presenting a real human does, however, entail higher financial and time costs in making videos, and one innovative approach to reduce costs has been to generate a virtual speaking instructor. Objectives: The current study examined whether the use of a virtual instructor in video lectures would facilitate learning as well as a human instructor, and whether manipulating the virtual instructor's characteristics (i.e., voice and appearance) might optimize the effectiveness of the virtual instructor. Methods: Our study set four conditions. In the control condition, students watched a human instructor. In the experiment conditions, students watched one of (a) a virtual instructor which used the human instructor's voice and an AI image, (b) a virtual instructor which spoke in an AI voice with an AI image made to speak using text‐to‐speech and lip synthesis techniques, or (c) a virtual instructor with used an AI voice and an AI likable‐image of an instructor. Results and Conclusions: The AI likable instructor condition had a significant positive effect on students' learning performance and motivation, without decreasing the attention students paid to the learning materials. Implications: Our findings suggest that instructional video designers can make use of AI voices and AI images of likable humans as instructors to motivate students and enhance their learning performance. Lay Description: What is already known about this topic: Video lectures which include the instructor's presence are becoming increasingly popular.Presenting a virtual instructor (i.e., a pedagogical agent) in video lectures has been shown to reduce costs of video production, both financially and in terms of time. What this paper adds: An AI‐generated voice and an AI‐generated image facilitated more students' transfer performance than a human instructor.The AI likable instructor condition had a significant positive effect on students' learning performance and motivation, without decreasing the attention students paid to the learning materials. Implications for practice and/or policy: We encourage instructional designers to use AI‐generated voices and AI‐generated images connected to a virtual instructor instead of a human instructor in video lectures.We encourage instructional designers to use likable human images (as defined by the students themselves) as a way to motivate students more and enhance their learning performance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study tested whether seeing others' typed messages while viewing video lectures affected learners' attention and learning performance. Participants viewed one of three versions of a video lecture: (a) conventional video lecture as control; (b) video lecture with others' programmed messages appearing onscreen when the instructor was giving demonstrations on course content; (c) video lecture with others' programmed messages appearing onscreen when the instructor was posing questions. In Experiment 1, participants viewed video lectures without pause and could not post messages themselves. Eye tracking data revealed that although seeing others' messages did not decrease learners' attention to the learning content in the video, greater attention to others' messages was associated with lower retention. Furthermore, learners who viewed the conventional video lecture showed higher transfer than those who viewed either of the video lectures that included others' messages. In Experiment 2, participants viewed self-paced lectures and could post messages themselves. Experiment 2 duplicated the results of Experiment 1 in a realistic educational setting. Overall, these findings suggest that seeing others' messages during a video lecture has negative effects on learners' attention and learning. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Generating written explanations is a popular learning strategy in an online learning environment. Students can explain to themselves (ie, self‐explanations) or a peer‐student (ie, instructional explanations). However, for improving learning from video lectures, it is unclear whether writing self‐explanations is more beneficial than writing instructional explanations, and whether writing both types of explanation is more beneficial than writing only one type. We compared the learning‐related outcomes of students who wrote explanations under one of four conditions: self‐explanation (n = 30), instructional explanation (n = 30), self‐explanation then instructional explanation (n = 30) and instructional explanation then self‐explanation (n = 30). We assessed the participants' external and internal attention, explanation quality, and immediate and delayed learning performance. Students in the conditions that included self‐explanations showed higher internal attention, as well as better immediate and delayed performance than those in the instructional explanations condition. In addition, students in the two combined conditions showed a higher level of organization and elaboration than those in the instructional explanations condition. These results suggest that students should write explanations to themselves while learning from video lectures. Practitioner notesWhat is already known about this topic Generating explanations is a beneficial learning strategy.It is unclear whether explaining to oneself (self‐explanations) is more beneficial than explaining to a peer (instructional explanations).The benefits of writing instructional explanations on learning performance were not consistently found across diverse areas.What this paper adds Self‐explanations, both in oral and written form, were more effective for learning performance than instructional explanations.Students in the conditions that included both self‐explanations and instructional explanations demonstrated a higher level of organization and elaboration than those in the instructional explanation condition.When compared to the self‐explanations condition, additional instructional explanations had no effect on learning performance or internal attention.Implications for practice and/or policy Self‐explanations was an excellent approach for learning from video lectures.Students should write explanations to themselves while learning from video lectures. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Co-viewing video lectures, where students watch lectures simultaneously with one or more remote peers and engage in interpersonal communication on learning tasks online, is becoming increasingly popular. However, there is a dearth of studies examining students' behavioral and cognitive patterns during the co-viewing process. This study employed eye-tracking and screen recording methods to examine undergraduate students' learning processes in co-viewing video lectures. It specifically focused on how students used video lectures and engaged in discussions to complete a design task. Lag sequential analysis of learning behaviors revealed that, compared to low-performers, high-performers were more engaged in behavioral sequences involving clarifying learning tasks. Furthermore, epistemic network analysis of conversations revealed that high-performers demonstrated stronger connections between deep-level knowledge and a high level of uptake in design skills. In contrast, low-performers exhibited more connections between superficial-level knowledge and a low level of uptake in these skills. The findings suggest that in co-viewing video lectures, it's crucial to engage students in clarifying behavioral sequences. Furthermore, the co-occurrence of deep-level knowledge, design skills, and a high level of uptake in shared ideas significantly enhances learning. Our research on learning processes suggests important strategies for students during co-viewing of video lectures: teachers are encouraged to design effective interactive activities and create suitable support interventions to enhance student learning performance in video lectures. • High-performers were more engaged in clarifying behavioral sequences. • Low-performers adjusted their artifacts by viewing their peers' artifacts. • High-performers demonstrated strong connections between deep-level knowledge and high levels of uptake. • Low-performers demonstrated strong connections between superficial-level knowledge and low levels of uptake. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study investigated the effects of open- and closed-book learning conditions either accompanied by visual aids or without on learners’ attention, drawing accuracy, and learning performance. Participants were 127 undergraduate learners randomly assigned to view either an open- or closed-book prompt, who then watched either a video lecture accompanied by visual aids or one without (i.e. visuals provided vs. no visuals). The results showed that for learners who were provided with visual aids, compared to the open-book condition, those in the closed-book condition demonstrated higher eye blink rate as well as improved immediate and delayed test scores. However, this advantage was not observed in the condition with no visual materials. Mediation analysis showed that increased immediate test scores in the visuals provided condition was due partly to improved drawing accuracy. Multiple mediation analyses showed that the open-book with visuals provided condition led to lower eye blink rate, increased fixation count, and improved drawing accuracy, which collectively resulted in decreased immediate test performance. These findings have implications for educators and instructional designers regarding how to tailor effective learning strategies; specifically, educators could consider using closed-book learning conditions with visual aids to enhance learners’ attention and improve their learning performance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

An emerging body of research has focused on students' creativity in group contexts, with the assumption that students could be inspired by peers' ideas. Although students' openness and attention to peers' ideas are claimed to play important roles in their creativity in group settings, there is little empirical research that tests this assumption. This study examined the moderating effect of attention to peers' ideas in the relation between openness and creativity in electronic brainstorming. Participants were 91 undergraduate students who took about 10 min to complete a creative idea generation task during electronic brainstorming. Regression analyses found that students who were characterized by high openness were more creative, but only when they showed more attention to peers' ideas. This suggests that electronic brainstorming can be useful for enhancing the creativity of some students. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study tested the interaction effect of the instructor's eye gaze (direct gaze vs. averted gaze) and facial expression (happy face vs. neutral face) on students' attention and learning performance in slide-based video lectures. University students (N = 120) participated in the experiment in a laboratory setting. The results of ANOVAs showed that students in the conditions that included the instructor's direct gaze paid greater attention to the instructor's face and paid less attention to the video lecture slides. However, direct gaze predicted better learning when the instructor had a happy facial expression. Our results suggest that the effects of an instructor's eye gaze are modulated by her facial expression in this educational context. The findings have practical implications for designing slide-based video lectures: an instructor is encouraged to look straight towards the camera with a happy expression. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Instructors' speech and gestures are tightly integrated. However, little is known about the neural mechanisms by which different types of gestures affect learning. We conducted two experiments on the effects of gestures in video lectures that included an instructor and slides, with English vocabulary as the topic. In Experiment 1, we manipulated the instructor's gestures (beat gestures vs. pointing gestures vs. depictive gestures) on neural oscillations and learning performance. The electroencephalogram results showed that students had higher alpha power and higher beta power when the instructor used pointing gestures, suggesting lower sensorimotor involvement in processing. Pointing gestures produced lower learning performance than beat gestures and depictive gestures. In Experiment 2, we manipulated the instructor's pointing gestures and the richness of visual materials in video lectures. The results showed that the effectiveness of pointing gestures was moderated by the richness of the visual materials on the slide. Specifically, pointing gestures were more effective for complex versus simple learning materials. The findings suggest that electroencephalogram oscillations and learning performance vary with the type of gesture the instructor uses and the richness of visual materials in video lectures. This study has applied value for designing effective video lectures in many disciplines: (1) When a video lecture includes simple visual materials, a beat gesture and depictive gesture would be better; (2) when a video lecture includes complex visual materials, the instructor can produce pointing gestures to single out the learning content they are talking about. Practitioner notesWhat is already known about this topic Instructors commonly produce gestures while they teach, and their gestures and speech are tightly integrated.Instructors often use three types of gestures: beat gestures, pointing gestures and depictive gestures.Different types of gestures influence learning via different neural mechanisms.What this paper adds Students' alpha power and beta power had lower amplitudes when observing an instructor's beat gestures, compared to pointing and depictive gestures.Students showed higher learning performance after viewing the video lectures with the instructor's beat and depictive gestures.An instructor's pointing gestures facilitated learning performance primarily in video lectures with complex visual materials (CVM) rather than simple visual material (SVM).Implications for practice and/or policy When a video lecture includes SVM, the instructor is encouraged to produce beat gestures and depictive gestures rather than pointing gestures.When a video lecture includes CVM, the instructor is encouraged to produce pointing gestures to single out the learning content they are talking about. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Recently, integrated science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) education has gained sustained attention in K-12 settings, and engineering design-based pedagogy has become a key issue. Compared with rich research in higher education, relatively few studies are performed on engineering education in K-12 schools. In this study, we combined Conceive-Design-Implement-Operate (CDIO) model with the engineering design process (EDP), naming EDP-CDIO, aiming to promote high school students' STEM competence and compare its effects with the conventional CDIO approach. A pretest–posttest nonequivalent group design was conducted among 64 eleventh-grade students with eleven lessons. Quantitative data were collected via a pretest and posttest, and qualitative data were collected via artifacts and semistructured interviews. The repeated-measures analysis of variance and epistemic network analysis revealed that, compared with the conventional CDIO approach, the EDP-CDIO model significantly improved students' STEM knowledge, skills, and attitudes and developed more comprehensive epistemic networks in STEM competence. These findings provide a reference for K-12 STEM teachers, encouraging them to implement the EDP-CDIO model more frequently in the classroom, especially with the iterative design process. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The current study examined the influence of teacher and peer camera usage on the attention and learning performance of primary school students in video conferencing. The study further investigated the interplay between peer camera usage and various forms of social comparison, assessing their impact on the learning of primary school students in video conferencing. Consequently, the study designed two experiments, recruiting a total of 74 primary school students in Experiment 1 and 41 students in Experiment 2. Consistent with our hypothesis, Experiment 1 demonstrated that peers turning on their cameras in video conferencing enhanced student learning performance. Moreover, Experiment 2 revealed that when employing upward and parallel social comparison strategies, students showed similar learning performance regardless of peer camera usage; whereas when employing downward social comparison strategies, students showed better learning performance in the peers-cameras-on condition than in the peers-cameras-off condition. This suggests that the introduction of upward and parallel social comparison strategies can effectively counterbalance the negative impact on student learning resulting from peers turning off their cameras. The main results of the present study have significant implications for camera use in video conferencing. First, students are advised to turn on cameras during video conferencing. Second, teachers are encouraged to design an environment conducive to upward and parallel comparison in video conferencing when peers turn off their cameras. • A teacher turning on the camera in video conferencing promoted student learning. • Peers turning on their cameras in video conferencing enhanced learning outcomes. • When peers turned off camera, upward social comparison benefited learning outcomes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Intrinsic motivation is seen as the principal source of vitality in educational settings. This study examined whether intrinsic motivation promoted online group creativity and tested a cognitive mechanism that might explain this effect. University students (N = 72; 61 women) who volunteered to participate were asked to fulfill a creative task with a peer using online software. The peer was actually a fake participant who was programed to send prepared answers in sequence. Ratings of creativity (fluency, flexibility and originality) and eye movement data (focus on own vs. peer's ideas on the screen) were used to compare students who were induced to have high intrinsic motivation and those induced to have low intrinsic motivation. Results showed that compared to participants with low intrinsic motivation, those with high intrinsic motivation showed higher fluency and flexibility on the creative task and spent a larger percentage of time looking at their own ideas on the screen. The two groups did not differ in how much they looked at the peer's ideas. In addition, students' percentage dwell time on their own ideas mediated the beneficial effect of intrinsic motivation on idea fluency. These results suggest that although intrinsic motivation could enhance the fluency of creative ideas in an online group, it does not necessarily promote interaction among group members. Given the importance of interaction in online group setting, findings of this study suggest that in addition to enhancing intrinsic motivation, other measures should be taken to promote the interaction behavior in online groups. Practitioner NotesWhat is already known about this topic The generation of creative ideas in group settings calls for both individual effort and cognitive stimulation from other members.Intrinsic motivation has been shown to foster creativity in face‐to‐face groups, which is primarily due the promotion of individual effort.In online group settings, students' creativity tends to rely on intrinsic motivation because the extrinsic motivation typically provided by teachers' supervision and peer pressure in face‐to‐face settings is minimized online.What this paper adds Creative performance in online groups benefits from intrinsic motivation.Intrinsic motivation promotes creativity through an individual's own cognitive effort instead of interaction among members.Implications for practice and/or policy Improving students' intrinsic motivation is an effective way to promote creativity in online groups.Teachers should take additional steps to encourage students to interact more with each other in online groups. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the present study, we tested the effectiveness of three learning strategies (self‐explanation, learning by teaching and passive viewing) used by students who were learning from video lectures. Effectiveness was measured not only with traditional measures, but also with electroencephalography (EEG). Using a within‐subjects design, 26 university students viewed three sets of short lectures, each presenting a different set of English vocabulary words and were asked to use a different learning strategy for each set of lectures. Participants' EEG signals were assessed while watching the videos; learning experience (self‐reported motivation and engagement) and learning performance (vocabulary recall test score) were assessed after watching the videos. Repeated measures ANOVAs showed that the self‐explaining and teaching strategies were more beneficial than the passive viewing strategy, as indicated by higher EEG theta and alpha band power, a more positive learning experience (higher motivation and engagement) and better learning performance. However, whereas the teaching strategy elicited greater neural oscillations related to working memory and attention compared to the self‐explanation strategy, the two groups did not differ on self‐reported learning experience or learning performance. Our findings are discussed in terms of potential application in courses using video lectures and in terms of their heuristic value for future research on the neural processes that differentiate learning strategies. Practitioner NotesWhat is already known about this topic Watching video lectures does not always result in learners actively making sense of the learning material.Self‐explaining facilitates deep learning from viewing video lectures and in traditional educational settings.Learning by teaching also facilitates deep learning in traditional educational settings.What this paper adds Learning by teaching resulted in the highest theta and alpha band power in EEG assessment while viewing video lectures.Compared with passive viewing, learning by teaching enhanced students' motivation to try to understand the material; in addition, both learning by teaching and self‐explaining enhanced the amount of mental effort students put into understanding the material.Learning was increased via both self‐explaining and teaching strategies after viewing video lectures.Implications for practice and/or policy Learners are encouraged to generate explanations during pauses in video lectures or after viewing them, in order to increase learning.Learners are also encouraged to learn by teaching, as this strategy can increase learning and also increase neural oscillations associated with memory and attention. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study focused on how an instructor's pointing gestures and depictive gestures differentially affected learners' retention, transfer, and visual attention allocation. Eighty-five Chinese undergraduates were randomly assigned to view one of three video lectures in a laboratory. The videos varied in terms of the instructor's use of gesture: pointing gestures, depictive gestures, or no gestures. As hypothesized, the results showed better learning performance after the videos that included either pointing gestures or depictive gestures relative to the no gestures video; interestingly, the effect of gestures in video lectures was greater for participants with low and medium prior knowledge. In addition, the type of gesture differentially affected learners' visual attention allocation: pointing gestures directed attention to the relevant learning content of the PowerPoint slides, and depictive gestures drew learners' attention to the instructor. The findings have practical implications: instructors are encouraged to use pointing gestures and depictive gestures in video lectures. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Students are often encouraged to explain recently-taught information to others to enhance their learning in various settings including face-to-face in the classroom, through text, or in educational videos. However, nearly all studies on the impact of explaining things to others have focused on the effects of explaining to a less-knowledgeable peer, and have not considered the students’ own prior knowledge. The current study tested the interaction effects of students’ prior knowledge and the social identity of their audience on the students’ learning via explaining their new knowledge to others after viewing educational videos. We observed interaction effects on immediate learning performance, monitoring accuracy, and theta power while the students both watching videos and prepared to explain, but not on delayed learning performance or motivation. The current study highlights the fact that students with low prior knowledge learn more from an educational video when explaining the lesson to a peer than they do when explaining to a teacher after viewing. Our findings have implications on learning strategies which can be adopted when using educational videos in educational settings, specifically that students, especially those with low prior knowledge, should be encouraged to generate explanations of the lesson to share with their peers rather than with their teachers, as this will better enhance their working memory activity as they prepare to explain the educational videos. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

There has been growing interest in the possibility that peers' ideas can stimulate students' creativity in group contexts. However, empirical research on this issue is limited. This study tested the hypothesis that peers' ideas and students' openness to experience would predict student creativity and attention to peers' ideas. Undergraduate students (n = 60) completed creative tasks in an online collaborative group in which the ideas of "peers" were pre‐programmed. Mixed ANOVAs showed support for the hypothesis. Specifically, students with higher (but not lower) openness, when exposed to a high (but not low) rate of peers' original ideas, paid greater attention to those ideas and were more creative. The implication for education is that teachers should encourage students to share more of their original ideas and to pay more attention to peers' ideas in online collaborative groups. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Instructor behaviour is known to affect learning performance, but it is unclear which specific instructor behaviours can optimize learning. We used eye‐tracking technology and questionnaires to test whether the instructor's gaze guidance affected learners' visual attention, social presence, and learning performance, using four video lectures: declarative knowledge with and without the instructor's gaze guidance and procedural knowledge with and without the instructor's gaze guidance. The results showed that the instructor's gaze guidance not only guided learners to allocate more visual attention to corresponding learning content but also increased learners' sense of social presence and learning. Furthermore, the link between the instructor's gaze guidance and better learning was especially strong for participants with a high sense of social connection with the instructor when they learned procedural knowledge. The findings lead to a strong recommendation for educational practitioners: Instructors should provide gaze guidance in video lectures for better learning performance. Lay Description: What is currently known about the subject matter: Learners reported that they had to be far more focused when watching video lecture, and the learning effectiveness of video lectures was not satisfactory in educational practice.Attentional cues are non‐content information that can timely guide learners' visual attention to the information instructor mentioned.Human cues in video lectures not only inferred instructor's gestures but also inferred eye guidance. What their paper adds to this: The instructor's gaze guidance not only increased learners' level of social presence but also timely guided learners to allocate more visual attention to corresponding learning content.The instructor's gaze guidance facilitated learners' performance when learning via video lectures. The implications of study findings for practitioners: Instructor should provide gaze guidance in video lectures for better learning performance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract Empirical research to date has not distinguished the effects of the instructor's pointing gestures from directed gaze in video lectures. This study tested the hypothesis that the pointing gesture is superior to directed gaze in enhancing video lecture learning. Participants (n = 120) watched one of four types of video lecture in which the instructor either (a) looked straight into the camera with no gaze shift and without pointing gesture; (b) made occasional gaze shifts and without pointing gesture; (c) looked straight into the camera with no gaze shift and pointed to the relevant areas of the slide; or (d) made occasional gaze shifts accompanied by pointing gestures towards the slides. ANOVAs found that students in the conditions that included the instructor's pointing gesture showed better learning performance, more efficient visual search, and greater attention to the learning content that the instructor was referring to, regardless of her use of directed gaze. The implication for education is that instructors should use pointing gestures, with or without directed gaze, to guide students' attention and improve their learning in video lectures. Highlights • Students viewing the video lectures with instructor's pointing gestures showed better learning performance. • Students viewing the video lectures with instructor's pointing gestures were more efficient visual search. • Students viewing the video lectures with instructor's pointing gestures paid greater attention to the essential learning content. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Video lectures are being widely used in online and blended learning classes worldwide, and their learning effectiveness is becoming a focus of many educators and researchers. This study examined the cognitive load and learning effectiveness of video lectures in terms of the type of knowledge being taught (declarative or procedural) and instructor visibility. Video lectures with and without an instructor were used to teach each type of knowledge. Sixty Chinese undergraduates were randomly assigned to two of the four lectures. They completed a cognitive load questionnaire and learning tests after viewing the lectures. The results oft-tests revealed that adding the instructor in a video lecture increased learners’ cognitive load only when learning procedural knowledge; adding the instructor only facilitated declarative knowledge learning. The results suggest that the learning effectiveness of video lectures varies depending on the type of knowledge being taught and the presence or absence of an instructor. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Vocabulary learning is basic for mastering a foreign language. Many students learn foreign language (FL) vocabulary via instructional videos outside of traditional classrooms, as there is no limit to time or space. Cues (e.g. coloring, highlighting, arrows, and text) are design features in instructional videos that not only guide learners’ attention, but also facilitate the organization and integration of information. However, little is known about how visual cues and text cues influence FL vocabulary learning from instructional videos. In Experiment 1, we tested the effects of synonym text cues presented before the instructional video and visual cues during the video. Effects were measured in terms of participants’ judgments of learning and objective measures of learning performance (indicated by accuracy on immediate and delayed tests). Learners showed highest accuracy in the text cues condition, followed by the visual cues condition, and finally the no cues condition. In Experiment 2, we tested the neural oscillatory correlates of cues in FL vocabulary instructional videos based on electroencephalogram (EEG) evidence of frontal theta and frontal-parietal alpha power. Compared to visual cues during the video, text cues before the video elicited higher frontal theta power, suggesting higher working memory processing, at the early stage of learning from instructional videos. The results of this study have implications for designing effective FL vocabulary instructional videos with cues. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

While teaching, instructors will use unplanned, spontaneous facial expressions and body gestures to express their emotions. There is a growing consensus that an instructor's emotional expressions can trigger students' emotional and psychological responses, thus enhancing or inhibiting their learning in both face-to-face and online teaching contexts. However, little systematic research exists on which specific design features of an instructor's movements can induce emotions in video lectures. Three experiments were conducted in this study. Experiment 1 aimed to test the congruency/incongruency effects of an instructor's facial expressions (happy vs. bored) and body gestures (happy vs. bored) on student learning from video lectures in terms of students' emotions, motivation, cognitive load, and learning performance. Results of Experiment 1 showed that the instructor's happy facial expressions induced more positive emotions, enhanced motivation, and improved learning performance in students than the bored facial expressions, regardless of the instructor's body gestures. Experiment 2 sought to build upon the unexpected finding from Experiment 1 by increasing the frequency of body gestures, seeking evidence from both self-reports and eye movements. Results of Experiment 2 showed that the instructor's happy facial expressions enhanced students' learning performance when the instructor did not use body gestures, but not when they used increased body gestures. Experiment 3 was conducted to further expand upon findings from Experiment 1 and Experiment 2. Results of Experiment 3 confirmed the emotion-motivational and cognitive benefits of the instructor's happy facial expressions. The results have implications for designing features of instructors in video lectures: if instructors are visible, they should be encouraged to exhibit happy facial expressions, using body gestures less frequently or even avoid body gestures entirely. • An instructor's happy facial expressions induced students' more positive emotions, compared with the bored face. • An instructor's happy facial expressions enhanced students' motivation, compared with the bored facial expressions. • An instructor's happy facial expressions in isolation from body gestures directed students' more attention to the slides. • An instructor's happy facial expressions accompanied by less frequent or no body gestures improved learning performance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Video podcasts have become one of the fastest developing trends in learning and teaching. The study explored the effect of the presenting mode of educational video podcasts on the learning process and learning outcomes. Prior to viewing a video podcast, the 94 Chinese undergraduates participating in the study completed a demographic questionnaire and prior knowledge test. The learning process was investigated by eye-tracking and the learning outcome by a learning test. The results revealed that the participants using the video podcast with both the instructor and PPT slides gained the best learning outcomes. It was noted that they allocated much more visual attention to the instructor than to the PPT slides. It was additionally found that the 22 min was the time at which the participants reached the peak of mental fatigue. The results of our study imply that the use of educational technology is culture bound. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Is metacognitive ability a predictor of creative performance? Previous studies have produced conflicting findings. To clarify whether this relationship exists, the current study used eye tracking techniques and vocal thinking reports to explore creativity differences in individuals with different levels of metacognitive ability. One hundred and twelve participants completed the Metacognitive Ability scale, and were divided into two groups (with thirty participants in each group) based on their metacognition scores (the highest and lowest 27% of metacognitive ability scores). Then, participants in both groups completed two creative thinking tasks (AUT and CCRAT) while their eye behaviors were recorded by eye tracking. The results showed that participants with high metacognitive ability were better at divergent thinking, as evidenced by greater fixation and saccade counts, as well as smaller saccade amplitudes in the AUT task. In addition, Bayesian analyses provide anecdotal evidence that participants with high metacognitive ability tended to be better at convergent thinking. Furthermore, eye tracking results demonstrated that they exhibited longer fixation duration and more fixation count on the materials in the CCRAT task. These findings reflect an important role of metacognition in creative thinking, especially in divergent thinking. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The present study examined whether different types of teacher feedback in a university flipped classroom pre-class activity could improve students' self-regulated learning skills, learning performance, and learning satisfaction. In a repeated measures design (N = 31) the teacher gave a different type of feedback (no feedback vs. cognitive feedback vs. praise feedback vs. mitigating feedback) to questions that students posted on the course discussion platform. At the end of each week the students completed a self-regulated learning questionnaire, learning satisfaction questionnaire, and learning performance test. Repeated measures ANOVAs revealed that all forms of teacher feedback enhanced students' learning performance and self-regulated learning skills, especially the cognitive feedback and praise feedback but not their learning satisfaction. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Instructors often show rhythmic movements with speech in video lectures. However, the effects of these movements have not been tested in video lectures with an instructor and visual learning material. Results of Experiment 1 showed students in the beat gestures and head nods conditions showed significantly less attention to the visual learning material, more attention to the instructor, whereas in the beat gestures + head nods condition drew significantly more attention to both. In Experiment 2 we tested whether the complexity of the visual learning material moderated the effects of rhythmic movements on students' learning. When the presentation was simple, students in the head nods + beat gestures condition showed more positive interaction, and significantly better recall and transfer. The results have implications for video designing: if an instructor and simple learning material are visible, she is encouraged to show beat gestures and head nods to mark important information. • An instructor's rhythmic movements affected students' attention allocation. • Rhythmic movements facilitated learning from the videos with simple material. • Rhythmic movements had no benefits in the videos with complex material. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Finding effective ways to improve students’ learning from video lectures will not only improve online education efficacy, it will also play an important role in the digital transformation of education. Generating written explanations has shown some benefits for learning, and peer presence may be an implementation-related boundary condition. This study tested the impacts of virtual peer presence (presence vs. absence) and generative tasks (generating explanations vs. no generation) on students’ learning in a video-based learning context. Students’ attention, meta-comprehension accuracy, motivation, cognitive load, learning achievements, and explanation characteristics were measured. Results showed some benefits of having a virtual peer, and of generating written explanations on students’ learning. Moreover, mediating analyses revealed the mediating role of motivation between peer presence and learning achievement, and moderated mediating analyses revealed the moderating role of explanation characteristics between peer presence and motivation. Our findings not only extend the understanding of the positive effects of generating written explanations in video-based learning contexts, they also provide implications for improving students’ learning from video lectures as well as optimizing online video lectures. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Filial piety in traditional Chinese culture is an essential variable in explaining intergenerational interaction. However, previous studies have not clarified whether older adults' filial responsibility expectations matched children's filial support and the effects of the filial discrepancy on their life satisfaction and loneliness. The latent profile analysis showed that older adults were divided into two groups: (1) high expectations and support, and (2) low expectations and support. The results showed that compared with older adults with low expectations and low support, those with high expectations and high support reported higher life satisfaction and lower loneliness. Additionally, social support played a moderating role in the effect of the groups of older adults on life satisfaction and loneliness. Our conclusion shows that filial support is an essential factor influencing older adult life satisfaction and loneliness, and social support is an effective supplement to filial support. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Language learning has long been a topic of interest, and instructional videos which allow students to learn anywhere and anytime have become an important language learning tool. However, the emotional characteristics of both instructors and students, which have the potential to influence students' second language learning from instructional videos, have yet to be fully explored. The current study investigated the interaction effects of an instructor's emotions (positive vs. negative vs. neutral) and students' emotional intelligence (low vs. high) on students' second language vocabulary learning from instructional videos with consideration of attention paid to the learning material (i.e., average fixation time, referring to the duration of each fixation on the learning material), learning experience (i.e., motivation, engagement, interaction), and learning performance (both immediate and delayed). Results showed that (1) only the interaction effect on attention was verified, and that (2) students with high emotional intelligence showed a larger average fixation time in the positive condition than in the negative condition, while (3) students with low emotional intelligence showed a smaller average fixation time in the neutral condition than in the negative condition. Furthermore, the results verified the benefits of the instructor's positive emotion on students' motivation, interaction, and immediate performance. Our findings shine a light onto the influence of an instructor's emotions and students' emotional intelligence on second language learning, and provide practical implications for the design of instructional videos and second language learning. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Although more and more online courses use video lectures that feature an instructor and slides, there are few specific guidelines for designing these video lectures. This experiment tested whether the instructor should appear on the screen and whether her position on the screen (left, middle, right of the content on the slides) influenced students. Students were randomly assigned to watch one of four video lectures on the topic of sleep. The results showed that the video lectures with an instructor's presence (regardless of position) motivated students more than the video lecture without an instructor presence did. Learning performance and satisfaction were highest when the instructor appeared on the right side of the screen. Furthermore, eye movement data showed that compared to students in all other conditions, students in the middle condition paid more attention to the instructor and less attention to the learning content, and switched more between instructor and learning content. The findings highlight the positive effects of the instructor appearing on the right side of the screen in video lectures with slides. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The instructor's on-screen presence, rather than just voice, has rapidly become a popular feature in video lectures. Eye gaze and body orientation are core indicators of an instructor's attentional focus in classroom settings, but it is not well known how these factors influence learners' attention allocation and learning performance in video lectures with the on-screen presence of instructors presenting slides. This study tested the effects of the instructor's eye gaze and body orientation on attention and learning from a video lecture in a sample of 174 undergraduates. Specifically, the instructor's presence was manipulated in terms of eye gaze (direct, guided, or averted) and body orientation (frontal or lateral). Eye tracking data revealed that regardless of an instructor's body orientation, learners who viewed the video lectures with the instructor's guided gaze paid greater attention to the slides, and those who viewed the video lectures with the instructor's direct gaze paid greater attention to her face; paper-and-pencil assessments showed that learners who viewed the video lectures with guided gaze showed better retention and transfer. These results held regardless of body orientation, suggesting that an instructor's eye gaze has a stronger influence than body orientation on attention and learning from video lectures. The findings suggest that an instructor should not look directly at the camera continuously throughout the lecture, and should instead use guided gaze to draw learners' attention to the learning materials. • Learners viewing the video lectures with an instructor's guided gaze paid greater attention to the slides. • Learners viewing the video lectures with an instructor's guided gaze achieved better learning performance. • Learners gained more benefits from an instructor's guided gaze when learning from video lectures with slides. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study was to investigate the relationship between metacognition and the mathematical modeling skills of high school students, as well as the mediating role of computational thinking. A cluster sampling method was adopted to investigate 661 high school students, using the metacognition scale, computational thinking scale, and mathematical modeling skill test questions. The results showed that metacognitive knowledge and metacognitive monitoring had a direct and positive correlation with high school students' mathematical modeling skills. Additionally, the critical thinking dimension of computational thinking mediated the relationship between metacognitive knowledge, experience, monitoring, and mathematical modeling skills. These findings indicated that sufficient metacognition could improve the critical thinking of high school students' computational thinking and enhance their mathematical modeling skills. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study investigated the effects of two types of oral explanations (ie, self‐explanation vs. instructional explanation) and drawing activity (no drawing vs. drawing) on video learning outcomes. These outcomes were measured by visual attention to the video (indexed by fixation time on text and diagram areas), explanation quality (indexed by personal references, concepts, and elaborations), drawing quality, behaviour patterns and overall learning performance gain. A total of 116 undergraduate and graduate students watched a 4‐min video on the human body's respiratory system. They were randomly assigned to one of four conditions (explanation generation: self‐explanation vs. instructional explanation × drawing activity: no drawing vs. drawing). Results indicated that without a drawing requirement, students in the self‐explanation condition displayed fewer personal references and exhibited a lower learning performance gain than those in the instructional explanation condition. Conversely, when drawing was required, self‐explanation students demonstrated higher drawing quality and better learning performance gain. Additionally, students in the drawing condition directed more attention to the diagram area than those in the no drawing condition. These findings suggest that in video learning (1) educators should encourage students to produce oral instructional explanations and (2) if the goal is for students to generate self‐explanations, they should also be prompted to draw to bolster their self‐explanation efforts. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Instructional videos risk overloading learners' limited working memory resources due to the transient information effect. Learner control is one way to mitigate this concern, but has shown almost zero overall effect and considerable heterogeneity. Consequently, it is essential to identify when learner control is most beneficial. The present study examined the influence of cues on learners' behaviour, cognitive process, metacognition and learning performance in an interactive learning environment. Employing a 2 (temporal cues: without vs. with) × 2 (organizational cues: without vs. with) between‐subject design, 117 participants were randomly assigned to one of four conditions: no cues, temporal cues, organizational cues and temporal cues + organizational cues. Among these, temporal cues (ie, progress bar) serve as time‐related signals designed to regulate pacing, and organizational cues (ie, table of contents) provide a structural framework for the content. Significant cueing effects were observed for both cue types at germane cognitive load and transfer. Notably, our results indicate that organizational cues effectively guide learners' attention towards the underlying structure, thus promoting cognitive processing. These unique benefits are evident in improved topic recall, retention and monitoring accuracy. Importantly, combined temporal cues and organizational cues were seen to not only allow learners to exhibit more engagement behaviours (ie, skimming) but also assist learners in accurately judging their learning. These findings strongly support the recommendation to use cues to enhance the effectiveness of learner control. Practitioner notesWhat is already known about this topic Instructional videos may overload limited working memory resources due to the transient information effect.The overall effect of including learner control within educational technology was almost zero (g = 0.05) but showed higher heterogeneity.It is unclear whether embedding various cues in an instructional video improves the effectiveness of learner control.What this paper adds Both temporal and organizational cues aided in increasing learners' germane cognitive load and enhancing their transfer.Organizational cues helped learners understand the underlying structure, thus facilitating deeper cognitive processing, improved metacognition and ultimately boosted learning performance.Combined temporal and organizational cues lead to engagement behaviours and accurate self‐monitoring.Implications for practice and/or policy Providing instructional support is important in assisting learners with the complexities of learner‐controlled instruction.Embedding cues help learners process the content deeply by giving learners control over the instructional video. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To address the limitation of lacking interactivity in conventional peer assessment, this study proposed an interactive peer assessment approach and examined its effectiveness in an undergraduate course for preservice teachers (PSTs). Seventy-two PSTs were randomly assigned to the interactive or conventional group. The results indicated that the interactive group outperformed the conventional group with regard to technology-enhanced learning design skills, feedback quality and feedback uptake. Furthermore, feedback uptake was identified as a mediating factor to the effectiveness of the interactive approach. The study advocates for the integration of an interactive peer assessment approach into future online teacher educational settings. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Exercise training has been proposed as a method for improving cognitive function. However, it is unknown whether chronic physical activity promotes divergent thinking and its underlying mechanism. Ambiguity tolerance has been considered relevant to divergent thinking. Therefore, this study sought to investigate whether individuals engaging in different types of exercise training differed in divergent thinking and to examine the mediating role of ambiguity tolerance underlying the training effect. The study was conducted in a sample of 492 university students who completed the unusual use task and the ambiguity tolerance questionnaire. The results revealed that individuals who underwent physical training proposed more creative ideas than non‐physical training individuals did. Individuals engaging in multiple movement training scored higher in fluency, flexibility, and originality than their counterparts engaging in single movement training. Furthermore, ambiguity tolerance fully explained the difference in divergent thinking fluency between the physical and non‐physical training groups. These findings provide preliminary evidence for the benefits of physical training on divergent thinking. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Nurturing twenty-first-century competency is one important agenda in this era, especially in developing collaborative learning and critical thinking skills. Yet, facilitating such a computer-supported collaborative learning (CSCL) environment is challenging. Although several technological platforms from past research studies were developed to support collaborative learning, having a system that comprises a collaboration script, and graph-based workspaces to facilitate explicit externalization of cognitive processes, at the same time, armed with learning analytics to monitor the collaboration and cognitive processes is rare. In this paper, the AppleTree system is presented to illustrate three unique features. Firstly, the AppleTree system is designed with a graph-based workspace to facilitate explicit externalization of knowledge co-constructions and argumentation. Secondly, the system is embedded with a four-phased switch to structure the CSCL process. Thirdly, the system possesses real-time learning analytics, including contribution counts, social network analysis, and the learning artifacts' argumentation structure to promote the development of arguments. An exploratory case study was conducted to examine the design of the AppleTree system in an authentic classroom. Empirical findings showed that the AppleTree system helped regulate effective collaboration and supported learners in developing strong arguments. These results could address the social participation and interaction issues related to collaborative learning and enable the development of students' argumentation skills. The implications of the study to educational technology and the CSCL research field are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The empty nest is a phase of life that most parents will experience when their children grow up and leave home. However, little attention has been given to changes that take place in empty nesters' daily patterns of interaction. This study aimed to examine the differences between empty nesters and non‐empty nesters in relation to their daily interactions and the affect of various social partners. A total of 208 participants were recruited via convenience sampling; they were asked to record their daily interactions using the Rochester Interaction Record and to rate their affect after each interaction using the Positive Affect–Negative Affect Scale. The results showed that daily interactions were related to a higher increase of positive affect in empty nesters than in non‐empty nesters when interactions were with adult children. In contrast, daily interactions of non‐empty nesters were related to a higher decrease in negative affect when the interactions were with friends, neighbors, and strangers. These findings indicate that the patterns of daily interactions differ between empty nesters and non‐empty nesters. Specifically, the daily interactions of empty nesters were seen to be more related to a higher increase in positive affect, whereas the daily interactions of non‐empty nesters were seen to be more related to a higher decrease in negative affect. This study showed the differences in daily interaction patterns between empty and non‐empty nesters across diverse social partners. The findings on the daily interaction patterns have some implications for older adults: (1) empty nesters can improve daily interaction with adult children, relatives, and colleagues for a higher positive affect; (2) non‐empty nesters can improve daily interactions with friends, neighbors, and strangers to relieve their negative affect. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

With the infusion of information technology into society, incorporating technology into everyday life has become instrumental for older adults. Recent studies have emphasized the importance of adult children's information support in older adults' daily lives and filial responsibility expectations in the information era. However, few measurements of filial responsibility expectation include information expectation. We aimed to introduce a modified version of the Filial Responsibility Scale (FRS) for use with Chinese older adults. The results showed that the revised Chinese version of the FRS included four factors: emotional expectation, instrumental expectation, contact expectation, and information expectation. The overall reliability was good, structural validity was good, and criterion-related validity was satisfactory. Thus, the four-dimensional structure of the FRS is suitable for use in Chinese cultural settings and is an effective instrument to evaluate the filial expectation of older adults in the information era. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Virtual reality, as an excellent supportive instructional technology, has gained increasing attention from educators and professionals, where desktop‐based virtual reality (DVR) is broadly adopted due to its affordability and accessibility. However, when evaluating students' learning experiences such as flow experiences in DVR environments, most studies adopt a single construct (the total score of flow experience) rather than multiple constructs (enjoyment, engagement, concentration, presence and time distortion). This study implemented desktop‐based virtual reality for a STEM bridge designing program with a total of 254 undergraduates to investigate the relationship between self‐regulation skills, five dimensions of flow experience, learning satisfaction and continuous intention when engaging in a DVR learning environment. The results revealed that self‐regulated learning exerted a dominant impact on students' learning attitudes in DVR learning, in which students' flow experience had a significant mediating effect. Notably, although DVR exhibited poor time distortion, higher satisfaction and continuous intention were still predicted by the mentality of flow experience (ie, enjoyment, engagement, concentration and presence). The findings of this study contribute to the consideration of learning experiences and attitudes, which has insights for the future design of desktop‐based virtual reality environments and related instructional activities. Practitioner notesWhat is already known about this topic Students are different in self‐regulation skills, which influences their satisfaction and continuous intention in learning.Students' self‐regulation skills are one of the important variables in predicting their flow experience.A high level of flow experience contributes to a coherent and efficient learning experience within desktop‐based virtual reality (DVR) environments.What this paper adds Students' self‐regulation skills positively predicted their flow experience and satisfaction in DVR environments.The components of flow experience (enjoyment, concentration and presence) partially mediated the relationship between self‐regulation skills and satisfaction.Students' self‐regulation skills indirectly affect continuous intention by the enjoyment and engagement of flow experiences.Implications for practice and/or policy When delivering DVR‐based learning activities educators should be supportive of students with low levels of self‐regulation skills.Emphasis on promoting flow experiences such as enjoyment, engagement, concentration and presence in designing a DVR‐based classroom could enhance student satisfaction and continuous intention.Embedding scaffolding or feedback in DVR settings would support self‐regulated learning and subsequently improve student satisfaction and persistence through enhanced flow experience. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We conducted a field study using Tobii Glasses 2.0 eye-tracker to assess 11 experienced university teachers' eye gaze patterns in classrooms, and the impact of these patterns on 293 students' engagement, motivation and satisfaction. Independent-samples t tests showed that compared to teachers who gazed primarily at students, teachers who showed a balance of eye gaze towards students and teaching content had students who were more engaged, motivated and satisfied. Furthermore, mediation analyses indicated that there were significant mediating roles of engagement and motivation in the association between teachers' eye gaze pattern and students' satisfaction. Our results have practical implications for educational practice: teachers are encouraged to allocate their attention both to students and teaching content to enhance students' learning experience. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The study tested achievement motivation as a moderator of the relationship between pre-interpolated questions and learning from video lectures. Participants were 63 university students who were selected from a group of 123 volunteers, based on having high (n = 31) or low (n = 32) scores on the Achievement Motivation Scale. The students in each group were randomly assigned to view an instructional video with or without interpolated pre-questions. Visual attention was assessed by eye tracking measures of fixation duration and first time to fixation, and learning performance was assessed by tests of retention and transfer. The results of ANCOVAs showed that after controlling for prior knowledge, students with high achievement motivation benefitted more from the pre-questions than students with low achievement motivation. Among students with high achievement motivation, there was longer fixation duration to the learning materials and better transfer in the pre-questions condition than in the no-questions condition, but these differences based on video type were not apparent among students with low achievement. The findings have practical implications: interpolated pre-questions in video learning appear to be helpful for highly motivated students, and the benefit is seen in transfer rather than retention. • Interpolated pre-questions enhance visual search efficiency. • Interpolated pre-questions promote attention and transfer for students with high achievement motivation but not for low achievement motivation students. • Interpolated pre-questions do not facilitate retention. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]