Abstract:

Artificial intelligence (AI) is transforming how educational videos are designed, produced, and distributed across higher education, creating a significant shift in digital media production. Historically, the production of educational videos has been a labor intensive and resource demanding process, requiring specialized skills and equipment, significantly long production timelines, and large financial commitments. The emergence of AI tools such as generative scriptwriting tools, automated editing software, text to video platforms, and AI voice synthesis has favorably impacted this process, enabling educational video teams to produce professional quality videos more efficiently and quickly while retaining similar pedagogical quality. While the potential of these tools is considerable, research exploring their pedagogical, creative, and ethical implications remains limited.

This paper presents initial findings from a mixed methods study that investigates how AI technologies are changing the educational video production process in higher education. The study focuses on three questions:
(1) how AI tools influence efficiency and workflow during the creation of educational videos,
(2) how AI enhanced production impacts creative decision making and pedagogical design, and
(3) how students perceive and engage with AI generated or AI assisted educational video content.

Participants included members of university educational video production teams and graduate students from a large research institution. The production teams were introduced and trained to use AI video creation tools such as generative scriptwriting models, automated scene assembly, and synthetic voice technology and tasked with producing short instructional videos both with and without AI tools. Quantitative data (including production time, editing frequency, and engagement analytics) were analyzed alongside qualitative data from student interviews examining perceptions of authenticity, instructional quality, and ethical considerations.

Findings indicate that AI assisted production reduced video creation time by more than half, while enhancing accessibility features (e.g., automated captions, adaptive pacing, translation). Educational video teams reported that AI tools streamlined repetitive or technical tasks, allowing more time to focus on storytelling, clarity, and design. However, participants also noted challenges related to over automation, the loss of creative nuance, and questions about transparency. Students rated AI enhanced videos as visually engaging and well structured, though they expressed mixed feelings about the perceived authenticity of AI generated narration and instructor presence. Engagement analytics revealed comparable viewing durations and completion rates across AI assisted and traditionally produced videos, suggesting that design quality and content relevance may be more influential than production method.

This research situates AI assisted video creation within the broader context of digital pedagogy and instructional design. Rather than replacing human creativity, AI can serve as a collaborative partner enhancing innovation, efficiency, and inclusivity in the video production process. By reframing how educational video teams conceptualize and develop video based media, this study indicates AI’s potential to transform the future of educational media in higher education.

Keywords:

Artificial intelligence, educational video, instructional design, digital pedagogy, higher education, media production, generative tools.