Abstract:

Amidst the COVID-19 pandemic, educational institutions globally shifted to remote online teaching, commonly integrating synchronous and asynchronous methods. Despite the inherent benefits of pre-recorded lectures such as flexibility and individual-paced learning, students frequently disengage, as highlighted by analytics from platforms like BlackBoard Collaborate and Echo360. Contrarily, the consistent appeal of short-form videos on platforms like Facebook, TikTok and Instagram signals an evolving preference influenced by declining attention spans, often attributed to digital addiction. Addressing this trend, this study introduced the Social Media-Like Short-Video Lecture (SML-SVL) framework during the COVID-19 remote online teaching. This innovative approach melds social media principles into academic practices by breaking down lectures into focused, topic-centric segments. This paper delves into the advantages, challenges, and effective strategies of integrating social media elements and evaluates their impact on student engagement, teamwork, and knowledge retention in the context of transnational engineering education (TNEE). Utilising this framework, educators can create a dynamic, inclusive learning environment that meets the diverse needs of TNEE students and enhances their performance. Early implementation in two engineering courses showed that the SML-SVL structured lectures command notably higher student engagement compared to traditional lengthy lectures. The wealth of videos produced during the pandemic now serve as supplementary resources alongside face-to-face instruction. Using the SML-SVL model, these lectures are restructured into topic-centred segments in learning systems, benefiting students. Furthermore, students co-produce these concise videos, which others can access. The SML-SVL method not only improves content accessibility and efficacy but also cultivates a superior educational setting, bolsters student participation, and fosters profound, continuous learning. Student feedback suggests that these brief, topic-focused videos significantly improve the learning experience.

Keywords:

Learning experience, student engagement, active learning, co-creation, transnational education, social media, short videos.