EFFECTIVE USE OF INTERACTIVE VIDEOS AS AN EDUCATIONAL TOOL IN HIGHER EDUCATION – AN ASIAN CONTEXT

The development of educational technologies in the 21st century has seen significant use of interactive videos in enhancing education in institutions of higher learning. Video-based learning is nothing new to the classroom environment, tracing back its earliest usage during the Second World War in the 1940s. Malaysia has just a little more than a decade in having access to high-speed internet (broadband), with a humble beginning of less than one percent broadband penetration in 2004. This is in comparison with 40 percent in Singapore and 60 percent in South Korea. A recent rise in broadband penetration and digital literacy has seen a shift of interest towards the use of interactive videos to enhance learning. This is more so with the affordability and increased usage of devices such as smartphones, tablets and personal mobile computers.

The significant impact of interactive videos in higher education is noticeable with growing interests from local and private universities setting priorities in providing and exploring video development and management tools, up-skilling its academics and investing in video technologies in their institutions. With growing awareness of available video contents on the World Wide Web, there is now a question of whether interactive videos are adoptable in institutions of higher learning as a tool to enhance learning, as well as providing the pedagogical benefits in active learning. Using interactive videos as an educational medium has gained acceptance by many institutions of higher learning to be an alternative or as a supplement to the traditional classroom learning. However, this technology is not being adopted as fast as it should be, comparable to institutions of higher learning in other developed countries. The underlying factors which contribute to this impediment are due to the insufficient facts and findings of the role of videos in knowledge development and critical thinking. This, alongside with the lack of technical skills in video curating and digital content development has set back the effective use of interactive videos in the classroom.

While the awareness and increased availability of video content are recognized, the effective use of it is still contentious as videos have been related to passive learning. This study sought to assess the perceptions and thoughts of academics in higher education towards the use of interactive videos as an effective medium and how it can be aligned with strategies in promoting active learning in the classroom