The Effects of Videocasts on Student Learning in Medical Health Science Discipline

This quantitative study examines the effects of videocasts on student learning in a medical healthcare science discipline. The didactic nature of educational strategies is necessary in preparing future healthcare professionals. However, the manual skills cannot be reviewed once the student has left the classroom. Incorporating the use of videocasts into the resources for student learning adds another means for the students to follow and retain the skills acquired during class. Athletic training students in two accredited programs performed two class presentations over the course of one semester, one in the traditional format and one with the use of videocasts. The instructors, peers and the presenters evaluated each of the two presentations and their formats via survey. The surveys assessed the presenters’ skills, understanding of the topic, and relevance of the information being presented based on the format. Comparing the scores of the three evaluations helped to determine the students’ mastery of the knowledge between the two presentation formats. Based on these findings, recommendations to incorporate more videocasting into the classroom may be made in order to further the retention of hands-on skills taught in medical healthcare science programs