Secrets revealed by boredom: Detecting and tackling barriers to student engagement

Video presentations are indispensable in online and blended learning, but both their compilation and reception prove to be challenging. A recent review of the literature on the topic revealed that in the last 15 years, boredom has been the most frequently studied emotional state during learning [1]. The current study aims to give insight into the student emotions occurring during online learning. Some factors and tools applied in video presentations that can hinder or catch students’ interest are also mentioned. These factors are identified partly based on literature findings and partly relying on the results of a preliminary study, investigating relationships between student emotions and teacher communication applied in video presentations. A low sample size (N=10) study analysed data gained from automated facial expression analysis, self-report questionnaires, and semi-structured retrospective interviews. The study found close correlation between students’ “surprised” and “happy” states may suggest that “surprise” is one of the emotional states that can improve student interest in the context of video presentations. A strong relationship between some of the emotions identified by automated facial expression analysis and self-reports confirms that in addition to self-reports, the former method can be also effectively applied in the learning context. The findings of the preliminary research may be considered as hypotheses for further investigation though the methods for further data collection and analysis need be refined based on the lessons learnt.