The African Journal of Information Systems The African Journal of Information Systems
Volume 9 Issue 4 Article 2
September 2017
An evaluation of educational values of YouTube videos for An evaluation of educational values of YouTube videos for
academic writing academic writing
Gbolahan Olasina
University of KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa
, [email protected]
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Olasina. Educational Value of YouTube Videos for Academic Writing
The African Journal of Information Systems, Volume 9, Issue 4, Article 2 232
An Evaluation of
Educational Values of
YouTube Videos for
Academic Writing
Research Paper
Volume 9, Issue 4, October 2017, ISSN 1936-0282
Gbolahan Olasina
University of KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa
[email protected]
(Received February 2017, accepted August 2017)
Abstract
The aim is to assess the impact of YouTube videos about academic writing and its skills on the
writing performance of students. Theoretical perspectives from constructivism and associated
learning models are used to inform the purpose of the research. The contextual setting is
matriculation students awaiting admission to higher institutions. The population is 40 students
belonging to a class aimed at assisting disadvantaged students in their academic writing in
Scottsville, Province of KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa. The students are broken into two groups –
control/traditional teaching and the treatment/YouTube facilitated groups. Consequently, a
dominant qualitative approach is adopted using focus group discussion, interviews and tests to
identify underlying patterns, methods and approaches to best fit academic writing guides and
videos to improve user experiences of the media for academic writing. The fundamental results
show that positive characterisations of user experiences include innovation, surprise, playfulness
and stimulation whereas the narratives that are not satisfying are categorised as dissatisfaction,
frustration, dissolution, disappointment, anger, confusion and irritation. Ultimately, the major
findings of the research have the potential to improve user experiences on the platform by
highlighting how and when the positive and negative experiences of users occur and a mapping of
the differences in the academic writing performance between the two groups and best practices.
Finally, the results have implications for pedagogy - the fitting of YouTube videos to academic
writing instruction.
Keywords: YouTube; digital media; informal learning; academic writing; South Africa.
Olasina. Educational Value of YouTube Videos for Academic Writing
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Introduction
Key features of the digital environment demand a set of appropriate skills, acceptability,
adaptability, usability, accessibility, and availability. For instance, for teachers, instructors,
mentors, tutors, and learners to best tap from the new media to impact knowledge creation,
discovery, and use require novel strategies and approaches. Moreover, learning in the digital age
is prompted by integration of digital forms into learning (Ifenthaler & Tracey, 2016). The
abundance of digital media has flooded classrooms with new tools such as Virtual Worlds (VWs),
gaming, social media, m-learning, Webcasts, podcasts and YouTube videos. Surprisingly, one of
the challenges is to train instructors and learners with skills to appropriate digital media across
multiple disciplines. For example, Bennett, Maton & Kervin (2008) analyze from a historic
standpoint the “immersion of young people in digital technologies such as computers, video
games, and the Internet.” The immersion landscape presupposes an in-depth and diverse role of
digital media in the lives of the youths. Davis (2013) provides evidence of a high rate of adoption
and use of digital media by young people. Conole (2015) reports the value of learning experiences
with MOOCs as disruptive tools and underlines a need for innovation and new trends to improve
learning experiences for users. Likewise, Lai & Hong (2015) state that new digital tools influence
the kinds and characteristics of experiences of users since they inform new ways of life,
communication, play and learning. The authors identify the themes of user experiences to include
loss of a sense of time, difficulties with self-awareness, consciousness and interactivity.
Fortunately, Oleson and Hora (2014) and Conole (2015) argue that little empirical work is
available in the way users gain knowledge and experience technological tools in the classroom.
Thus, the current research aims to improve the existing knowledge in this discipline. Whereas there
are reports that little is known in the literature about the experiences of users of new digital media
meanwhile, the popularity of the tools continues to explode. Also, Sharma, Lau, Doherty & Harbutt
(2015) and Guo, Philip & Rubin (2014) report there has been little evidence on the use of YouTube
videos and participatory culture for teaching and experiences of students. Nonetheless, the use of
online videos continues to soar. For instance, Oyedemi (2012) and Olasina (2016) illustrate a high
rate of use of digital media in Africa despite the challenges of the digital divide, social inequalities,
poverty, lack of access and poor digital infrastructure. Real as the claims may seem, there is little
evidence of the uptake of educational technologies such as YouTube for academic writing.
Meanwhile, current academic curricula pay a high premium for learning how to write, express,
communicate knowledge and to the early exposure of students to academic writing. In fact,
academic writing is at the foundation of higher education. The goal of academic writing goes
beyond the basic communication of information. Its aim is often to proffer an original thesis or
argument either in support or against a particular idea or position. Accordingly, academic writing
is demanding. After all, it requires that students understand proper formatting, language, style,
grammar, referencing, citations and methods to produce a paper. In other words, learning the skills
to writing can only be achieved by concise efforts, training, and experiences. It is assumed that
such capacities may develop through the internalization of videos on academic writing for further
stimulation of improved presentations.
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Unfortunately, academic writing is challenged by myths in second language writing by students
often leading to underachievement (Kamhi & Catts, 2013). Writing errors are common in the
writing abilities of university students. It is reported that there is a wide gap between teaching and
learning often demonstrated in the lack of creativity in the writing of students. As an illustration,
Abdulkareem (2013) investigated academic writing in English by postgraduate native Arab
speakers from the Arabic world. The methodology involves an identification of language and
writing errors reviewed by experts of English. The results underlined endemic problems and poor
academic writing performance of the Arabic-speaking students in English. The author concludes
by calling for new ways to employ effective teaching approaches to academic writing in a language
other than the mother tongue of a student. The current study aims at using the context of non-
native English students in South Africa to evaluate the influence of YouTube videos on the
academic writing of students. Likewise, Spaull (2013) explains the challenges of good academic
writing performance in South Africa from a perspective of apartheid. For instance, disadvantaged
students perform woefully academically based on a long abolished racist structure that refuses to
come to an end. In fact, black students have dysfunctional literacy skills which present challenges
for higher education.
Bharuthram (2012) and Kreek (2015) explain the essentiality of reading and writing to the success
of degree program completion in South Africa. Surprisingly, academic writing is a challenge to
non-native English students who are from disadvantaged backgrounds and thus exhibit limited
skills in reading and academic writing. In fact, the authors provide evidence of higher education
institutions in South Africa experiencing students’ poor academic performance, flat rates of
attrition and throughput, and disastrous academic writing pieces. Fortunately, the managers of
primary and higher education and individual universities in South Africa attempt to fight the
scourge of unhealthy academic writing by students. For instance, the University of KwaZulu-Natal
and more recently, the Durban University of Technology established academic writing divisions
and centers to enhance the improvement of academic writing. The facilities have experienced
tutors, mentors, and instructors who assist students in their writing. The teachers offer support,
advice, companionship to nurture creative and improved writing. Unfortunately, despite the
support structures, mentorship and peer assessment aimed at helping students to write better,
evidence of positive impact on academic writing performance is not well reported in the literature.
Because of the compelling reasons above, the current research employed an approach using
relevant YouTube videos to evaluate their educational value on the academic writing of students.
Thus, the purpose of the study is to assess the educational value of YouTube videos for academic
writing. After all, new digital media and tools are often used for amplification purposes only
(Drijvers, 2015; Hughes, Thomas & Scharber, 2006). Consequently, the study addresses the
approaches to orthodox teaching and learning of academic writing and those facilitated by digital
media. The aim of the comparison is to highlight potentials of new media for student interactions
and learning. The next section presents the critical questions of the study.
Research questions
1. What kinds and characteristics of experiences are present in student interactions with
YouTube videos for academic writing?
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2. Is there a difference in academic writing performance between the traditional teaching
group and the YouTube facilitated group?
3. To what extent can YouTube videos fit into improving academic writing performance?
The following section presents the literature review.
Literature review
The purpose of the section is to provide a context and give an evaluation of research on educational
technologies in developing countries in general and educational applications of YouTube videos
in particular. In other words, the review covers the description, clarification, summarization of
literature in the selected field of study and the choice of theoretical perspectives. Accordingly, the
analysis of literature identifies and articulates relationships across existing literature and the field
of research.
Challenges of educational technologies in developing countries
The issues of educational technology in developing countries are well reported in the literature.
For instance, Kremer, Brannen & Glennerster (2013) highlight the challenges of the adoption and
use of educational technologies in developing countries. Some of the identified issues include
diffusion of technology, supplies of computers and efficient use of ICT requiring the availability
of equipment and tools, pedagogy issues, accountability, access and quality. Likewise, Bhuasiri et
al., (2012) report the problems of innovative technologies in education in developing countries to
comprise software licenses, training, maintenance issues, hardware and software costs and learning
material development. Because of the broad scope of educational innovation and tools, several
studies focused on specific tools. For example, Liyanagunawardena, Williams & Adams (2013)
find that MOOCs in a developing country landscape are challenged by insufficient download
speeds of Internet connections, language, and computer literacy. The authors call for a better
understanding of MOOCs in developing countries. Hajli (2014), Pimmer et al. (2014), van Dijk &
van Deursen (2014) identify that little is known about the experiences of learners with new digital
media in the developing world. Meanwhile, Tarhini, Hone & Liu (2014) concentrate on the issues
of theory and practice regarding transformative pedagogical practices and need to develop and
execute sound technology educational practice for users in Lebanon. The essential conclusions
emphasize the social and individual factors as opposed to technological issues commonly reported
in the literature. Finally, educational technologies can be a very broad field covering a variety of
tools. Besides, a majority of the reviewed literature either use the lens of faculty or organizational
and formal contexts to view educational values of such practices, students’ views are not taken
into consideration. In other words, some of the essential problems of educational technology
include a lack of understanding of user experiences, limited empirical evidence of the effect of
new tools on student performance, and an absence of strategies and approaches to best fit digital
media to the learning processes of students (Saheb, 2014). Because of these compelling reasons,
the current study provides a clear and definite focus on the educational values of the YouTube site
in an informal learning context in South Africa.
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YouTube videos
YouTube is based on a video sharing platform allowing a customized upload of content by users
(Pinto, Almeida & Gonçalves, 2013). Usually, the channel allows for users to keep track and
manage a record of users that view the videos. The host of the videos is created by professionals
and amateurs. Put simply, YouTube is a modern mass medium commonly used in a new digital
age landscape. Cheng, Liu & Dale (2013) give a historical account of the establishment of
YouTube in 2005 and the enormity of the bandwidth it consumes. Perhaps, the popularity is based
on its facilitation of user-created video content. In fact, more than sixty hours of videos are
uploaded by users per minute on the platform (Wang et al., 2013). Even though the channel is
limited to the length of videos that can be uploaded, YouTube has a high rate of adoption and use
compared to similar online video services such as Vimeo, Hulu host and a host of online video
streaming platforms.
Furthermore, little is known about general applications of YouTube videos (Thelwall, Sud & Vis,
2012). There is no clear understanding of the applicability of interactivity standards associated
with digital media in the series of steps involved in academic writing. Fortunately, there are calls
for new models and approaches to teaching and learning in a digital environment. As an
illustration, originators of various models of education have highlighted the importance of
collaborative learning tools, the reconstruction of ideas and the co-construction of knowledge.
Many of them (models) trace their beginnings to constructivism as a theoretical foundation. In
contrast, many theorists have condemned existing approaches to explain digital media facilitated
instruction based on theoretical foundations that were born before the digital revolution (Twining
et al., 2013; Conole, 2015). In the light of these, one of the goals of the current study is to evaluate
approaches to fit educational writing videos on YouTube to improve experiences and performance
of academic writing by students.
Whereas Cheng, Liu & Dale (2013) consider videos on the channel as entertainment-based, other
researchers categorize the platform as broadly based with potentials for education and life-long
learning. In fact, traditional media contents are not new to primary and higher education. However,
there is a need to improve knowledge by focusing on the effect of YouTube videos on users and
devise strategies to integrate them best to learning.
YouTube videos as educational innovations
Gabarron et al. (2013) state the potential of YouTube videos in the context of health promotion
and education. Nevertheless, the authors raise safety concerns about the environment of online
videos and the volatility of the video sharing service. Likewise, Kay (2012) gives a broad review
of research on video podcasts to provide a framework for an educational approach to the new
media. The review covered fifty-three articles highlighting the potentials and the problems and
methodological concerns related to the research area. The main conclusions of the research show
the possibilities of videos to include positive attitudes, learning control, enhanced reading and
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study behavior, and the students’ improved performance. Unfortunately, the researcher explained
some downsides of the integration of videos in the learning process to include reduced class
participation, preference for orthodox teaching, and technical problems. Consequently, the author
raised methodological issues concerning research in the field. Some of these include limitations of
sampling, lack of rigor in the demonstration of statistical conclusions and data quality. In
conclusion, Kay (2012) calls for future research to focus on a provision of empirical evidence on
the impact of online video and new media, and the need to improve the understanding of user
experiences in learning contexts. Meanwhile, Michikyan, Subrahmanyam & Dennis (2015)
propose models for the best fitting of social media to academic performance. The authors tested
the nature of relations between the use of Facebook and improved academic performance of
students. Their results show overwhelming positive influence of the social medium on academic
performance suggesting that academic pursuits may determine students’ use of social media
beyond what is commonly reported. However, the report by Michikyan et al. (2015) is limited.
For instance, it is lacking in paradigmatic orientation and is the report is not informed by any
theoretical perspectives to drive data. Also, the report did not collect data to test the models
proposed. Accordingly, the aim of the current study is to add to the pool of knowledge and improve
the understanding of best fitting YouTube videos to academic writing performance. The approach
of the current study is based on the foundations of methodological and theoretical choices to add
breadth and scope to the research. In contrast, Al-Mukhaini, Al-Qayoudhi & Al-Badi (2014) and
Kim et al. (2014) provide evidence of existing difficulty in the process of fitting the use of
technology into the learning experiences of students resulting in a mismatch leading to poor
academic performance and additional frustrations for learners. In fact, Sadaf, Newby & Ertmer
(2016) and Hew & Brush (2007) shed some light on the fitting of a broad spectrum of Web 2.0
tools to teaching specific subjects in the contexts of teachers and pupils. The current research
explores the perspectives of students and further adds breadth by conducting the study using less
formal settings. In other words, there is not enough compelling empirical evidence of the effect of
new media on student performance. The current research uses the context of students in an informal
learning environment empirically to evaluate the effect of YouTube videos on academic writing
skills and performance. The choice of methodological framework is informed by the purpose of
the study and need to cover the critical questions of the research.
Duncan, Yarwood-Ross & Haigh (2013) explain the importance of video sharing sites and argue
that YouTube videos are valuable to practical, medical and clinical science education, and
research. The authors report that the videos on YouTube may be used in ways to stimulate student
participation to counteract the students’ lack of interest often reported in traditional learning.
Whereas many authors and the media are over-enthusiastic about the possibilities of new digital
media in primary, intermediate, higher education and life-long learning other researchers hint at
caution by highlighting the negative impact of YouTube videos and digital media on learning. For
example, Tess (2013) warns that social media may negatively affect a student’s performance. In
fact, the author used structural equation modelling and provides evidence of a significant negative
relationship between the use of new media and academic pursuits.
As a matter of fact, Wood et al. (2014a) argue that new media and technology including short
message service (SMS), instant messaging (IM) and texting, and the use of slangs do not seem to
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affect the spelling performance of pupils negatively. However, the researchers report an
association between the impact of text messaging and an understanding of grammatical
procedures. Ultimately, it appears there are negative implications of the use of instant messaging
services on academic writing. After all, some social network platforms require the use of a
maximum of 140 characters requiring users apply a shorthand approach. In other words, Wood et
al. (2012b) emphasize the negative impact of multi-tasking on students who are studying and
texting at the same time. The researchers suggest that multi-tasking may be responsible for reduced
rates of academic performance. As an illustration, Cingel & Sundar (2012) state negative
associations of word adaptations based on text messages to grammar assessment in schools by
students. Nevertheless, some researchers argue that text messaging and social media do not hold
negative implications for users. Accordingly, arguments and counter-arguments remain over
individualistic and competitive learning, as well as orthodoxy thinking versus new digital media
in the classrooms (Kivunja, 2015). Consequently, the present research verifies the effects of a
YouTube facilitated approach to enhancing students’ academic performance. Perhaps, the
affordance of digital media such as YouTube videos for academic writing is worth a try.
Meanwhile, Guo, Kim & Rubin (2014) provide empirical evidence of student engagement with
video materials in informal settings over and above podcasts or pre-recorded classroom lecture.
The methodological approach using both quantitative and qualitative data measured the length of
time students used watching each video in correlation to the output of assessment. The conclusions
recommend a framework to support the appropriation of online video formats for instructors and
video producers. As a matter of fact, the current study contributes to a comprehensive framework
to include academic writing. After all, an evaluation of the impact of technology on learners and
academic performance often does not focus on academic writing per se. Also, previous studies’
respondents suffered memory and retrieval bias as they reported past experiences. However, the
current research addresses time-dependent concerns of user experiences of YouTube videos in real
time on a project.
In fact, many academic institutions use YouTube to record and disseminate course modules for
classes with the videos available via the e-learning systems and the Internet. For instance, Jafar
(2012) reports that 98% of students used YouTube videos as an online information resource with
86% of students confident that the platform helped their learning of anatomy. Because of the
significant findings, the authors conclude that the videos were a useful tool for instruction.
Meanwhile, there are reports of continued explosion in the number of users of social and new
digital media globally, including Africa because of improved Internet penetration and mobile
technology. Surprisingly, the use of new digital media by academics and students for educational
purposes remains limited (Lenhart, Madden, Macgill & Smith, 2010; Al-Aufi & Fulton, 2014).
Furthermore, Chapman (2015) raises concerns about the best fitting of YouTube videos to
academic teaching because of misinformation.
Thelwall, Sud & Vis (2012) report an analysis of large samples of text commentary on YouTube
videos. The results shed light on identity patterns of positive and negative comments and a density
of discussion in proportion to replies to user comments. This rare user study shows that the highest
rates of comments are triggered by themes such as religion and overviews of life, whereas videos
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on subjects such as fashion, style, entertainment, and music attracted minimal comments posted.
In conclusion, the authors claim a categorization of YouTube users by themes of the videos.
Fortunately, Kousha, Thelwall & Abdoli (2012) prove that online videos are applied for teaching,
informal scholarly communication and citation in academic journals. The authors’ inquiry was to
determine the disciplinary scope of the citations of YouTube video. Based on content analysis of
a broad array of Scopus publications, the researchers state that the arts and human and social
sciences were the most common to have cited YouTube videos. In other words, the most mentioned
themes are culture, history, news, politics, and documentaries. The following section presents the
theoretical perspectives used to underpin the research.
Constructivist perspective
Several theoretical perspectives and models are applied to explain learning and its approaches.
Recently, the emergence of new digital media and technologies continue to stretch the fabrics of
theory to fit technologies appropriately to pedagogy. In many ways, most learning models and
approaches originate from constructivism. The theory holds that there is a real world that we
experience (Duffy & Jonassen, 1992). The interchange of ideas between constructivist learning
and the technology of instruction is essential. For instance, Duffy & Jonassen (1992) argue that
the value of learning theory rests in the ability to predict the impact of instructional practices on
what is learned. Thus, the current research is underpinned by the constructivist perspective to shed
new light on opportunities and challenges to the practice of designing instruction for academic
writing using YouTube videos. Put simply, the arguments and assumptions of the theory are that
meanings are imposed on the world by us and that there are many ways to structure the world.
Constructivism suggests there are many meanings and perspectives for events and concepts. In
summary, constructivists argue that there is no correct meaning. The theory emphasizes meaning
and experience-cognitive experiences in authentic activities. Speed (1991) and Winn (1993)
examine the implications of constructivist perspectives for instructional theory and learning
practice. The philosophical positions of the theorists provide a justification for the choice of
constructivist perspectives to inform the research questions of the current research.
In summary, faculty members need to evolve new approaches not only to engage and motivate
learners, but to enhance teaching by using media such as YouTube videos and exploit their viability
to supplement traditional learning spaces. Previous studies examined the general role of social
media in primary and higher education and the affordances of digital media for student
performance.b It is important to improve the understanding of how YouTube videos can best fit
academic writing training in informal learning contexts. It is also critical to employ theoretical
perspectives from constructivism and relevant learning models to inform the research and address
the research questions of the study. The approach may be vital as most of the previous studies are
not underpinned by theoretical frameworks. Ultimately, an understanding of user experiences of
YouTube videos for academic writing will be enhanced, and the context of South Africa is used to
improve the knowledge of educational values of digital media. Finally, the constructs such as
meaning and experience from constructivism are used to guide the design of instrumentation and
data based on the methodological choices of the study. The details of the latter are presented next.
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Methodology
A pretest and post-test were conducted involving two groups of students. All lesson plans are
aligned to standards of core competencies in academic writing. Two experts of academic writing
offered critical feedback on the lesson plans, project activities, and blended approach to learning.
The two project groups completed the same tests. Because of the purpose and critical questions of
the study, a dominant interpretive paradigm is adopted. Accordingly, both qualitative and
quantitative approaches are employed to adequately address the purpose of the research. The
research design is semi-experimental to highlight the difference in the academic writing between
the control/traditional teaching and treatment/YouTube facilitated groups. In fact, a focus group,
in-depth interview and tests (quantitative strands) are the data collection methods used to identify
underlying experiences, relationships, patterns and explain context-specific issues that are critical
to the research. Consider that the students in the traditional teaching and YouTube facilitated
groups are both subjected to a focus group and interviews. Ultimately, the themes for the data
collection instruments are framed by the critical aspects of academic writing such as grammar,
vocabulary, organization, referencing, and group work. The adopted methodological choices are
not without criticisms. However, the justification for the use of focus group is based on Mao (2014)
providing evidence that it is valuable in studying the use of technology by learners. Furthermore,
the in-depth interviews and tests are used to address the context-specific issues raised by the
research questions of the study. After all, the individual interviews and focus group discussion
provide evidence of ambivalence, inconsistency and conformance (Fielding, 2012). Consequently,
the use of multiple methods of data collection particularly in a dominant qualitative study is to
complement, validate, draw on the strengths of each tool and add scope and breadth to the research
(Kidd & Parshall, 2000). Also, five raters are involved in the assessment design process to
underscore objectivity. Ultimately, inter-rater reliability was based on the framework by Miles &
Huberman (1994). Because of the growing call for a demonstration of academic rigor in qualitative
research, the current study pays attention to analytical precision, data, approaches and the use of
content and thematic analysis by Braun & Clarke (2006). The adopted framework for the
presentation of the reliability and validity of the data collection tools are guided by Anderson
(2010) and Creswell (2013). The guideline provides that procedures to establish the reliability and
validity of conclusions are presented alongside the presentation of the results and in-text where
relevant, as opposed to dedicating a stand-alone section for that purpose. This is expected to make
reading easier. Finally, the following section presents the details of the participants.
Participants
A total of forty participants were recruited from over a hundred matriculated students who recently
completed their high school education and are awaiting university admission. The implication is
that twenty respondents belong to each of the two teams of participants regarding the traditional
teaching and YouTube facilitated groups. The students belong to a community service initiative to
help train poor students. The aim of the cohort is to improve the academic writing of students in
Scottsville, Pietermaritzburg, Province of KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa. The facility is equipped
with trained tutors and instructors who are postgraduate students who assist students in improving
their writing skills, oral and slide presentations, reading, reporting, and review of the literature
capabilities. The participants are drawn from a larger pool of students who attend the free writing
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classes holding in the form of workshops. The criteria for selection include regular attendance,
commitment, and basic proficiency in English. It was after the exploratory analysis that twenty
students each were retained respectively for the control and test group and for the YouTube groups.
Each team is made up of eleven females. The control and test groups are made up of nine males
each. All the students have no basic experience to moderate skills of ICT use and only five are
familiar with the use of Virtual Worlds (VWs) such as Second Life, Active Worlds, IMVU, World
of Warcraft, and multiplayer online games. Exploratory data collection shows that twenty-one of
the participants have accounts on social media and have viewed YouTube videos for
entertainment, social engagements and religion. They access the platform’s videos mostly on their
mobile devices, in public cafes, at school, and on friends’ devices and church devices. Four
respondents indicate using YouTube videos to learn how to keep the pacifier in a baby’s mouth
and learning how to drive a car. Finally, twenty-one students have used social and new digital
media in school related activities in their primary education. Ten participants share their
experiences of updating live videos of violent protests, events in the church, dance parties, and
rugby matches onto online platforms of news channels. Finally, the age range of all the participants
was 19-24 years, and seven of them work part- time. It is typical for a study that is predominantly
qualitative to have a sample size between 5 and 20 (Petty, Thomson & Stew, 2012). Whereas a
sample size of forty is considered large for qualitative research, a quantitative approach will find
forty as inadequate. Consequently, forty is retained to meet the requirements of the quantitative
strand; this is further justified by Antenos-Conforti (2009), Holotescu & Grosseck (2009) and
Ebner et al. (2010) who have used sample sizes ranging from 10-50 with success in a related IS
research. The control group was taught using conventional strategies such as marker boards,
program outline, guide, classroom teaching, handouts, and assignments. The framework that
guided both groups was based on the academic writing curriculum at the writing center of a South
African University. The framework emphasizes the following: grammar, vocabulary, organization,
referencing, pre-writing, drafting, revising, editing and proofreading and group assignment
writing. Meanwhile, the test or YouTube group’s education used strictly learning techniques
facilitated solely by selected YouTube videos including YouTube Edu for ten weeks. The
framework that guided the selection of YouTube videos is provided by Kousha, Thelwall & Abdoli
(2012) and Guo, Kim & Rubin (2014) and it met the requirements for the academic writing
curriculum stipulated by the academic writing center framing the instructions for the two groups.
After that, the selected videos are presented to two experts who are managers of academic writing
divisions at two South African universities. The selection criteria were to eliminate misinformation
and to establish accuracy. After all, Internet resources should be evaluated for their educational
values and authenticity. Meanwhile, class outline and activities for the control group included
instruction on grammar, vocabulary, organization, referencing, pre-writing, drafting, revising,
editing and proofreading. Also, tutors used lesson notes, textbook reading lists and handouts. The
class lessons span a period of ten weeks.
Results
The research procedures involved meetings and discussions with tutors and instructors engaged by
the researcher to serve as observers and moderators to enhance an understanding of the overriding
purpose of the study and to address the critical questions of the research. Meanwhile, the academic
writing tutors and mentors are PhD candidates and experienced moderators and observers.
Consider that the study is drawn from a larger project to employ the context of South Africa to
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explore user behavior in virtual environments. After all, some of the wider objectives of the project
have been published in journals elsewhere. Accordingly, the 10- week time span guided the lesson
plans and class activities for the two groups. Each of the class sessions lasted an hour and held at
least twice in a week. In other words, the groups had the same instructional goals of improved
academic writing performance. Meanwhile, the non-formal learning space coupled with deliberate
efforts was a setting for exciting mood, risk-free domain, flexibility for students to choose their
writing topics compatible with participants’ interests and to self-regulate. From the get-go, the
test group was facilitated after traditional teaching by academic writing videos on YouTube in
week one onwards. Also, the two groups were subjected to pretest and post-test analysis. The
exploratory study informed the selection of forty students split into the groups based on
exploratory data and willingness to participate. The exploration was done through interviews to
examine student behavior in the world of social and digital media, and how and why the students
use the tools. The exploratory data collection helped to identify particular media used, frequency
and purpose of use. Also, the exploration contributed to determining the common barriers, past
experiences, and factors that discourage/encourage the use of digital media. Also, the two groups
were subjected to pretest and post-test analysis. The pretest involved two experts measuring and
evaluating the validity and effectiveness of the questions to guide the focus group and interview
sessions. The focus group discussion held once for the two groups while the in-depth interviews
lasted approximately 20 minutes each for participants. The fall outs from the focus group meeting
informed the questions for the interviews. In fact, based on the briefings and meetings held with
tutors, moderators and reviewers a sample size for the in-depth interviews for the two groups was
drawn. Finally, the post-interviews were held at the end of the ten weeks of classes. Quantitative
data were analyzed using IBM SPSS version 24. The research questions guide the presentation of
the next section.
Experiences of YouTube videos for academic writing
Narrative analysis of experiences of the use of academic writing YouTube videos is conducted to
address the first research question.
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Figure 1: Illustration of one of the videos used to facilitate academic writing group
The student sessions facilitated with YouTube videos involved asking participants to report their
experiences. The narratives extended beyond class sessions to cover self-use of the videos outside
of class. The Web link to relevant videos was made available to the students. Some of the
significant statements of the test group captured are presented below:
“I identify videos with relevant academic writing subjects from the recommended feature on the
YouTube home page.”
“Based on the links to academic writing videos provided by tutors, YouTube offers suggestions of
similar videos that I can view.”
“I use YouTube to view work and general study-related activities.”
“I find it difficult to download and save videos on the platform.”
“Acquiring South African content and information on academic writing videos is hard.”
“I like to explore the YouTube environment for academic writing videos.”
“I think YouTube is for socials, arts and entertainment.”
“I just play around and often see videos that are not academic writing based.”
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“YouTube videos helped my understanding of formats of written assignments, structural and
technical formatting of my assignments.”
“The videos positively influenced my experiences.”
“The exposure to YouTube for teaching and understanding academic writing seem like an
unfamiliar terrain.”
“The YouTube video activities are critical for my academic writing.”
“The videos often offer me crucial information that helps me to write better.”
“I often suffer malfunction of video, missing a video or some other technical problem when I try
to access YouTube on my phone at home.”
“From watching the videos, the strategies of academic writing such as paraphrasing and mind
mapping are clear to me.”
Meanwhile, the research exploited group dynamics to highlight the differences between group and
individual interviews conducted, and how these impacts the analysis and guide the interpretation
of focus group data. Several critics of qualitative methods have demanded a demonstration of rigor
to ensure data quality and validity of conclusions (Toomela, 2011). As a result, practical steps are
taken such as conducting and analyzing the focus group, recruitment of participants, logistics and
making sense out of data. For instance, environmental conditions are made convenient for the test
group to find the YouTube videos for academic writing to be stimulating. Also, the discourse in
the session of the focus group and interviews depended on moderator/interviewer skills leading to
casual conversations. The researcher and assistants were at the focus group meeting and interviews
for the corresponding groups. The participants are well known to the researcher and associates
who are tutors and mentors of the academic writing cohort. In other words, the recruitment
procedure and familiarity with respondents’ characteristics and a high emotional stake on
academic writing skills were an advantage. For instance, during the focus group session, there
were agreements and disagreements on the satisfying and unsatisfying experiences using the
prescribed YouTube videos for academic writing. In fact, the mixed experiences are critical
moments that influence the nature and content of responses. Unfortunately, the experiences
involved negotiation, criticisms, commiseration and modification. Fortunately, the mixture of
experiences was subjected to group moderation, structuring and the design of interview guides to
ensure data analysis and conclusions are sound. Also, peer reviewer comments were solicited after
the briefings and meetings held by the researcher, assistants, and tutors. Specific analytical
approaches were used to increase confidence in focus group data and involve a theoretical
understanding of user behavior in the application of YouTube videos for academic writing.
As an illustration, the analysis of interaction in focus discussion shows some of the following:
shared language on the integration of YouTube videos to academic writing, emerging data on user
issues taken for granted with the use of new media and user myths and beliefs about YouTube
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videos. The analysis reveals arguments and feedback from participants on the use of educational
videos and highlights their best practices. Finally, the observation of the voice tone, emotional
engagement, and body language of participants about the discussion around the adoption and the
use of YouTube videos for academic writing are included in the analysis. The coding procedure
involved the organization of data to enhance analysis and interpretation. In fact, data are fractured
by working on the transcript to identify the kinds and characteristics of user experiences with the
application of YouTube videos for academic writing. For instance, user experiences are tracked
from the start to the end through the transcript using marker pens. Accordingly, user experiences
are coded or labeled based on a spectrum of dimensions such as practices, learning activities,
characteristics of experiences and related YouTube videos for academic writing features, emotions
evoked, unsatisfying and satisfying experiences. The focus discussion and interviews were
conducted after the 10-week long exercises in academic writing. The following quotes are drawn
from the transcript of the discussion session for the YouTube group. The quotes are in the context
of the research question 1.
Moderator: (in response to a general discussion on what it is like to view academic writing videos
on YouTube)
Fantasy1: “I am fascinated by the fact that the videos are not only recreational and entertaining
to follow, but everything felt relaxed, informal and enjoyable.”
Moderator: (as the group proceeds with participant discussion on their experiences, other
responses include the following: -)
Day1: “I would describe my experience as interesting.”
Moderator: (specifically which aspects were interesting and which ones were not?)
Moderator: (experiences from other participants….)
Flower1: “Apart from the remarkable but reinforcing experience of learning academic writing
through the videos is the rather big surprise of a ‘subscribe’ feature on YouTube that enables
notifications of new videos from content creators. I think during one of our last classes the tutor
demonstrated in class how to get up to date using the subscriber notification alert by email and
mobile devices.”
Flower2: “It is satisfying to view the accredited videos as they help to resound the key topics
learned from the academic writing classes and guidelines from the tutors.”
Moonlighting1: “I find the selected videos introduced by the tutors very easy to understand and
interact with more so as we had received foundational classroom teaching on the basics of an
excellent essay and grammar.”
Moonlighting2: “I was able to understand better the information the tutor provided in class and
the feedback from a previous assignment only after replaying the YouTube videos over and over.”
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Bunny1: “My experiences with the YouTube videos are meaningful as new ways to learning
academic writing skills and enhance improvements.”
Bunny2: “I was able to identify that viewing the videos before writing my draft assignments
improved my academic writing performance.”
Rainfall1: “Mine is a feeling of power over my writing as a result of the YouTube tool to access
educational information.”
Winter1: “My experience is shaped by the promise of availability of the YouTube videos 24/7, and
this is useful as I can learn even when I am mobile.”
Flower3:” I prefer to write the draft of my assignments, pause, view videos relevant to the lesson’s
topic, reflect on the videos and afterwards review, modify and refine my writing.”
Summer1:”I observe that the tutors emphasize that academic writing is a process involving pre-
writing, drafting, revising and a whole lot more. Surprisingly, the videos highlight a process as
fundamental to successful academic writing performance.”
Moderator: (in what specific tasks have you had the experiences that you share?)
Summer2: “My observation is that the YouTube videos help more with pre-writing activities,
specifically, influencing my thinking, brainstorming, and broad pre-writing strategies.”
Grassland1: “I eagerly long for the tutors to send links to YouTube videos.”
Moderator: (why so?)
Grassland2: “I guess I am fond of sharing my views of the videos with peers and tutors.”
Airforce1: “The videos are not easy to forget. Besides, I can always go back to see them online if
I did not download them.”
The analysis of the illustration and the review reports of meeting, briefings and observations by
the researcher and assistants show the characteristics of satisfying experiences and related
YouTube videos’ features. Indeed, the group discussion was critical to the bond and exchange of
stories of participant experiences. The interactions were coded for all the members to formulate
the following themes. For instance, the analysis of satisfying themes from the narratives above
mentioned demonstrates substantial and practical experiences. In fact, distinct experiences have
their characterizations as fascination, surprising and entertaining, as well as social. In other cases,
some of the narratives provide broad interest in new media, innovations, new ideas and approaches.
Fortunately, the features of some of the experiences show positive surprise, attitudes and
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perceptions, playfulness and stimulation. The in-depth analysis of the interview and focus
discussion data above, shows users view the application of videos as efficient and empowering.
The significant statements show broad interests towards engaging YouTube videos in improving
their performance of academic writing. In other words, the efficiency spans from memory retention
and 24/7 availability of the videos. The key results suggest high perceptions of ease of use and
usefulness of the videos to improved academic writing performance. After all, the value of the
videos is narrow to specific content such as pre-writing procedures and features such as subscriber
notification and comments that users post. The narratives suggest that the YouTube videos
complement traditional teaching. The in-depth analysis shows that the satisfying experiences result
from positive emotions and high arousal associated with an urge to play, to explore and interact
with the selected YouTube videos. The significant excerpts support an argument that students
establish a view that the videos may be most useful after the foundations of academic writing are
traditionally taught by tutors in class and by reading handouts. Also, a few of the key narratives
highlight social contexts. For example, subscription to features and services, posting/reading
comments on the platform, online interaction with other users and evidence of collaboration.
New issues that emerge from the data reveal in few explicit statements on matters such as viewing
of the videos repeatedly and obsessive use even though the students still attended physical classes.
The element of surprise underlines that respondents find the videos relevant and useful for their
academic writing needs whereas many think the videos are purely for entertainment. The not so
satisfying experiences are presented next.
About experiences characterized as not so satisfying were some narratives in the analysis.
Narratives that were not satisfying experiences are categorized as the following: dissatisfaction,
frustration, dissolution, disappointment, anger, confusion, and irritation. These originated from
respondents not finding selected videos, missing videos, failure to meet expectations, technical
issues – video not playing well, limited access to the internet (data related), and reduced display
on mobile phones. Some significant narratives are given below:
Sunshine1: “Access to the videos outside of class is challenging as I do not have data to browse
on my phone.”
Moderator: (remember that internet access is provided in the classroom and tutors share the
information on how to save to your devices content that has a “download” or similar link displayed
by the platform)
Sunshine2: “In many cases half way through the download process, it stops and sometimes when
I am successful, I am unable to play the downloaded video as my device either does not have
enough memory space or app to play the files, disappointing.”
Moderator: (cuts in, YouTube has Terms of Service, remember, and such ethics should not be
broken)
Pond1:” Over 80% of attempts to view the videos outside of the class are usually problematic and
unsatisfactory due to network related problems either on my device or GSM service provider.”
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Pond2: “The screen of my mobile device is smashed and terrible to view the diagrammatic
representations on the marker boards presented in the videos and many times the audio only does
not suffice when I see YouTube resources at home.”
Moderator: (do you have difficulty listening to the videos? Tell us more about your experiences)
Station2: “I know one or two videos presented at earlier classes were in the context of South
Africa and the rest of Africa but what I am saying is that why do we not have more content close
to our environment?
Station3: “I will relate more with contents of the videos if closer to the South African life.”
From the reports of the not so satisfying experiences, they seem to be very similar and demonstrate
grades of dissatisfaction. Many of the experiences are a result of technical factors and
shortcomings. The next section presents the analysis for research question 2.
Difference in academic writing performance between traditional and the YouTube
facilitated groups
The second research question aims to observe differences in the academic writing performance
between the control group that received regular training in academic writing and their counterparts
whose training included facilitation by selected YouTube videos. Also, qualitative and quantitative
analysis methods are used to address this research question. Consider that the traditional mode of
instruction classes involved lessons from tutors, paper-based assignments, handouts and a tutorial
discussion. On the other hand, the test group, also, was facilitated using selected YouTube videos
in and out of class. In other words, the latter group had to combine viewing of videos, post
comments online, complete video related assignments, focus group discussion and interviews.
A set of essay writing tests was developed by the researcher based on the project’s lesson plans
and reviewed by two experts in the academic writing division of a South African university.
Besides, an expert in evaluation and measurement examined the essay criteria checklist for
technical and content consistency and validity. In fact, the composition criteria list focused on
grammar, vocabulary, organization, referencing, and group writing based on the framework
provided by Dempsey, PytlikZillig & Bruning (2009) and Knoch (2009). The entire essay writing
tests are 100 marks. The two groups completed the same lesson plans, a period of classes and
assignments, and tests (see methodology section). For instance, the procedure for both groups at
the 10th week involved being asked to write 500 and 1000-word essays. Individually, the essays
are evaluated for correct expression, use of words, illustration and examples to support a position
or an argument, proper use of grammar, vocabulary, use of words, appropriate use of citation, and
referencing. Also, the students were expected to compare and contrast, synthesize, organize, and
present coherent essays.
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The evaluation of the compositions was done by the tutors, rated and reviewed independently for
each group by two experts of academic writing using a structure criteria checklist. In fact,
measuring essay assessment involved rater reliability of the vital decisions made by the essay
writers. Thus, raters (n= 5) who evaluated the essays are experts of academic writing. The students
who wrote the essays in control (n= 20) and the test groups (n= 20) to test their writing skills were
compared. The measurement results show 1000 ((5 raters x 20 essay papers) x 10 independent
sessions) for each group. In other words, the ratio of agreement among raters had to be significant
to the number of raters who agree as per each criterion/total number of evaluators. Accordingly,
the evaluators are subjected to standardized open-ended interviews by the researcher. For instance,
some of the question stems are the following: What do you think of the assessments that you made
based on the essay criteria checklist? What are some of the recognized assumptions? What is your
evaluation of the arguments? The answers to these questions show the reflections and
interpretations of the evaluators based on the adopted rating process.
Meanwhile, the approved procedure involved each student’s essay to be assigned a random code
for each rating, based on the pseudo names of the respondents. Emphasis is placed on the
differences in the scores based on the traditional academic writing class and the group facilitated
by YouTube videos. Consequently, a process of person-to-rater-essay was conducted to minimize
the variation of marks scored due to potential effects of person and evaluator. Ultimately, the rating
process was deemed consistent and valid based on Miles & Huberman (1994).
The summary statistics in Table 1 describe the means, standard deviation and adjusted means of
the three tests for the two groups. Both groups show improvement on the post-test when compared
with pre-test scores. The statistics in Table 1 suggest that the academic writing group that was
facilitated in class (and outside of class) by YouTube videos performed better (mean values of
57.14 and 73.56).
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Table 1: Summary statistics of academic writing tests
Sub- total score (20) Traditional teaching group YouTube video facilitated group
Pre-test Post-test Pre-test Post-test
M SD M SD Adj.M M SD M SD Adj.M
Grammar 8.12 2.81 10.28 3.10 9.98 14.71 4.11 20.51 3.91 19.88
Vocabulary 9.92 3.09 10.55 5.02 12.01 14.10 6.23 16.51 3.12 14.77
Organization 12.37 4.91 9.88 4.07 11.38 12.56 6.01 16.10 5.92 16.17
Referencing 8.92 3.22 10.49 2.18 6.79 9.72 4.33 10.11 3.99 9.90
Writing 3.77 2.09 4.01 2.19 1.10 6.05 4.19 10.33 3.55 9.72
Total (%) 43.10 8.01 45.21 9.77 40.09 57.14 14.31 73.56 13.41 70.71