Video Technology in the Classroom and Student Achievement

Introduction and Research Problem

This action research proposal examines the impact of integrating video technology into classroom lessons on student achievement. Consideration is also given to students' perceptions of the impact of integrated video on their achievement, as well as gender-based differences in achievement related to the integration of video into classroom lessons.

Today's students have grown up in an ever-changing visual world. With the evolution of television, video cameras, cell phones, GPS navigational systems, and gaming systems, video is present in virtually every environment. Students in the twenty-first century have been exposed to some form of video technology in almost every aspect of their lives. It follows naturally that the use of audio/visual technology in the classroom might help improve student achievement.

Importance of the Study

Contrary to Jon Stewart's assertion that "the Internet is just a world passing around notes in a classroom," educators and information and communication technology (ICT) experts are rapidly advancing knowledge about the potential positive impact that technology can have on the efforts of instructors to teach and students to learn (Dogra, 2010). On March 1, 2012, Bill Gates spoke to attendees at the National Association of Independent Schools (NAIS) Conference in Seattle specifically about technologies that can help increase the impact of teaching and learning (Gates, 2012). Gates argued that technology can be used to make learning more interesting and to help teachers be more effective.

Gates cited one success indicator: the number of K–12 students enrolled in at least one online class increased from 45,000 in 2000 to 3 million in 2009 (Gates, 2012). A second indicator of the promise technology holds for improving teaching and learning is a United States Department of Education research study demonstrating that blended learning — a combination of online learning and classroom instruction — increases student achievement by 14% (Gates, 2012).

Review of Prior Literature

Taking Clayton Christensen's idea of disruptive innovation into the educational system is a natural extension in a world where the very nature of education is changing in tandem with technology (Christensen et al., 2008). Christensen described disruptive innovations as technological inventions, products and services, concepts, and processes that disrupt the status quo (Christensen, 1997; 2000). In collaboration with Michael Raynor, Christensen applied the concept of disruptive innovations to business (Christensen & Raynor, 2002). Although a disruptive innovation might not gain immediate acceptance or perform well initially — except for fringe customers or in a niche market — over time it will out-perform earlier products and services, satisfy the mainstream market, and businesses that have adopted the disruptive technologies will displace those still dependent on prior technologies (Christensen, 1997; 2000).

The ramifications of disruptive innovations are increasingly being felt in the field of education, and this disruption is also being fed by recent scientific studies. Research in neurobiology and psychology indicates that the way people learn is often not a good match for the way they are taught (Christensen et al., 2008). The implications are significant: the nation's ability to be academically, technologically, and economically competitive depends on the capacity of educators to re-evaluate instruction, redefine learning, and reinvigorate the systems that bring educators and students together (Christensen et al., 2008).

The literature largely proposes the integration of technology in the classroom, offering a wide continuum of configurations for consideration. In a few short years, educators have built a substantial body of knowledge about the use of technology in classrooms, including recommendations for wireless technology, five computers in every class, and response mechanisms on student desks for interactive lecture presentation (Roberts, 2005; Rogers, 2005). Moe and Chubb (2009) argue that cyber charter schools will enable virtual and real-time classrooms where staff is reduced and each student co-constructs a personal curriculum — a process Gates refers to as building an individualized learning map (2010).

Fullan (2007), renowned for his work in educational change theory, reminds us that "educational change depends on what teachers do and think — it's as simple and complex as that" (p. 107). In order for technology to be successfully integrated into classroom lessons, teachers must be comfortable and fluent with the technology and must be willing to "allow it to change their present teaching paradigm" (Bitner & Bitner, 2002). Volumes have been written about implementing educational change and providing professional development for teachers in the use of technology. That said, teachers in ordinary schools in modestly funded school districts are liable to lack good models for the effective integration of technology into classroom lessons.

The models that appear to be most readily adaptable to typical classrooms — those without extensive investments in integral technology — are being created, tested, implemented, and disseminated by teachers themselves. For instance, a professor of advanced mathematics developed QuickTime videos for teaching multivariable calculus (Levine, 2002). His pedagogical format consisted of lecture presentation of mathematical concepts interspersed with appropriate video. Levine (2002) asserts that he "found that this sort of back-and-forth instruction between the lecture and demonstration is an effective method of presentation" (p. 1).

A different approach to the use of video in classrooms is taking shape with the assistance and support of Vidyo, Inc. Vidyo for Education is working with schools in the United States to provide video conferencing that brings real-world interactions into libraries and classrooms, creating virtual classrooms and virtual field trips that have historically been too costly for most public school budgets (Raman, 2011). These video conference programs are designed to supplement K–12 curriculum (Raman, 2011). For instance, students at the San Carlos Charter Learning Center (SCCLC), one of the oldest U.S. charter schools, experienced a virtual science class presented by the Denver Museum of Nature & Science on the heart and circulatory system (Raman, 2011). A video conference showing the dissection of a sheep's heart was presented on a desktop, and students accessed supplementary lessons on iPads (Raman, 2011). The Vidyo platform enables interactive video learning with virtually any computer or mobile digital device from anywhere in the world with an Internet connection, or even with a lower-bandwidth public network in remote areas (Raman, 2011). Using the platform, teachers can establish whiteboard functionality and share documents, video clips, and other types of media in their virtual classes (Raman, 2011).

Although models for the use of video are emerging, there is a dearth of formal assessment of the impact on student achievement. The use of action research to explore the impact of integrating video technology in the classroom holds promise, particularly since it naturally embeds the perceptions of participants in the structure and implementation of the study (Lewin, 1943; 1997).