The purpose of this paper is to provide a summary and analysis of the article entitled Effect of

Instructor-Personalized Multimedia in the Online Classroom published at International Review of

Research in Open and Distance Learning. The researcher, B. Jean Mandernach focused on the topic of

students' engagement concerning the use of multimedia in an online course.

Summary

Nowadays, as technology advances a variety of multimedia formats are being utilized in education.

Multimedia is the integration of more than one media format such as text, images, animations, and

videos (Amarin, 2012). And all these various multimedia formats are commonly used to improve

learning outcomes. However, there is only a limited number of research conducted to examine the role

of multimedia in motivational attributes in online learning, specifically the students’ engagement. Online

learning is different from traditional classroom settings since the social factor is often lacking,

minimizing the importance of engagement in learning. Hence, the reviewed article aims to investigate

the effects of multimedia, specifically the use of the instructor’s voice or face on the student’s

engagement and learning in their online course. The author’s assumption regarding this research is

there would be a report of an increase in students' engagement for their online course using the

supplementary instructor-personalized multimedia while there would be a report of low engagement

for students who also completed an identical course but without the additional instructor personalized

multimedia.

The researcher utilized a quasi-experimental research method to test the effect of instructor-

personalized multimedia on students’ engagement and learning about an introductory course in General

psychology in Blackboard, an online application for teaching. To examine the role of instructor-

generated multimedia on students' participation, students' in the control group obtained the set of

materials for the course but without the additional multimedia materials. The first experimental group

received a three to five-minute video each week to highlight the topic along with the same set of
materials received by the control group. In the second group, a video and instructor’s audio narrated

PowerPoint video was provided to the students while in the third group, the collection of all the

supplementary multimedia materials presented in the first and second experimental group was

provided to the students. After the completion of the 10 weeks online course, a final exam was

administered to the students to determine the learning outcomes and a student course engagement

questionnaire was only directed to voluntary students. Moreover, the data from the result of the final

exam and a student engagement questionnaire along with the course grade of each group served as the

basis for the statistical analysis of this experiment.

The result of the statistical analysis reported that any of the conditions of instructor-personalized

multimedia had no significant effect on students’ learning outcomes and engagement. However, the

quantitative data revealed the mean score for the engagement factors of the students (e.g., skill,

emotional, participation, and performance) in the different conditions with the instructor personalized

multimedia have minimally increased while the lowest score in student’s engagement was noted in the

control group. The researcher suggested that the difference in mean score can be attributed to the

degree of significance of the course to the students’ educational goal since it was a general elective

course. Nonetheless, the researcher conducted further examination to determine the possible

difference in engagement of the student because of voluntary feedback sent in the email and solicited

comments as part of the course evaluation. The qualitative data from the group with instructor-

personalized multimedia reported that the materials utilized were significant which increased their

interest in a psychology course. Additionally, the report included that the use of multimedia materials

made the online course more personal for the students in comparison to their past experiences. On the

contrary, a minimal response in the control group was noted. The researcher explained that the minimal

feedback in the control group can indicate a low engagement in the online course. To conclude,

qualitative data from the feedback of the students signifies greater engagement as a result of the
instructor-generated multimedia supplements whereas quantitative data reported no significant

differences in engagement or learning of the student in the group with the addition of the multimedia.

Analysis

The contradicting result from the qualitative and quantitative data affirms the complexity of designing,

consolidating, and improving multimedia to support online learning and student engagement. Firstly,

this reviewed research presented the significance of multimedia in learning, not just as an instructional

tool but as an approach to increase the student’s engagement in learning. The student’s participation in

planned activities is an essential element in the success of learning through its support in the acquisition

of learning outcomes. Given the qualitative findings indicating that instructor-personalized multimedia

made the online course more personal indicates a positive student-instructor relationship. It is essential

to consider all the feasible approaches using online technologies to create interactions. Similarly,

research reported that interaction, along with communication and availability is an essential element to

improve the experience both of the instructor and student in online and blended learning (Roby, Ashe,

Singh, & Clark, 2012). And both of these research continuously remind 21st-century instructors to create

or innovate adequate opportunities for student’s involvement in activities that are purposeful for the

intended learning outcomes. And this can be delivered using multimedia. The use of multimedia with

the presence of the instructor in the form of video or audio narrated PowerPoint, like the method used

in this research can be applied to cover the missing component involving human interaction in an online

classroom.

Secondly, this research proposes a further exploration of the use of instructor-generated multimedia to

achieve optimal learning. The quantitative result reported a lack of significant effect of instructor

personalized multimedia to learning outcomes and with these, it suggests that several factors should be

considered to possibly address the inadequacy of the multimedia. The researcher named creativity,

communication skills, attractiveness, charisma, and personality of the instructor as possible contributors
to the effectiveness of the multimedia. To illustrate, incorporating “as” and “we” pronouns and using

students’ names in the instructor-generated multimedia are some representations of the

communication ability that can increase the likelihood of a successful learning experience (Dixson,

2010).

Narrations, animations, infographics, or videos are commonly used as instructional materials however,

these multimedia materials can also be utilized by the students to represent their acquired knowledge

and skill. With authentic assessment, the product in the form of multimedia serves the purpose of

demonstrating the knowledge they received over a course of time. Additionally, through this type of

assessment, students can evaluate their learning and create their interpretations based on their

capabilities and environment (Way, Burrell, D’Allura, & Ashford-Rowe, 2020).

In conclusion, multimedia integration serves a purpose in the delivery of instruction, students’

engagement, and assessment. The reviewed article suggests that multimedia with the instructor’s

presence (e.g. visual or auditory) supports student’s engagement in online learning however the depth

of multimedia use in improving learning outcomes in various population groups (e.g. post-secondary

level; students enrolled in blended learning) is yet to be studied. Nonetheless, this reviewed research

offers a different perspective that can assist in designing, consolidating, and improving multimedia

materials.
 References

Amarin, N. (2012). Strategic Approaches to Instructional Multimedia Design. Journal of

Teaching and Education, 1(6), 109-115.

Dixson, M. (2010). Creating effective student engagement in online courses: What do

students find engaging? Journal of the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning, 10(2), 1 – 13.

Mandernach, J. (2009). Effect of Instructor-Personalized Multimedia in the Online

Classroom. International Review of Research in Open and Distributed Learning, 10(3), 1-19.

https://doi.org/10.19173/irrodl.v10i3.606.

Roby, T., Ashe, S., Singh, N., & Clark, C. (2012). Shaping the online experience: How

administrators can influence student and instructor perceptions through policy and practice.

Internet and Higher Education, 17, 29-37.

Way, K., Burrell, L., D’Allura, L., & Ashford-Rowe, K. (2020). Empirical investigation

of authentic assessment theory: An application in online courses using mimetic simulation

created in university learning management ecosystems. Assessment & Evaluation in Higher

Education, 1-19.