16 - Use of Lecture Recordings Before and During the COVID-19 Pandemic and Its Impact on Attendance and Performance

Poster Board Number: 16
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Abstract Body : Introduction and Objective:
As technology has evolved, the demand for lecture recordings has increased among medical students, which has likely been further influenced by the COVID-19 pandemic. For many institutions, this shift to hybrid education included remote learning and lecture recordings, which could be related to a decline in attendance to live lectures as faculty returned to lecturing in the classroom. The goals of this study were to explore: (1) The viewing patterns of pre-recorded pre-lecture (PRE-LR) pre-recorded and/or live post-lecture (POST-LR) recordings before and during the COVID-19 pandemic, (2) Student reported lecture attendance, and (3) How these related to performance on relevant examination questions (REQ).

Materials and Methods:
Six lectures covering medical imaging and thorax were evaluated for two cohorts of first-year medical students (n = 218). The first (Y1, n=105) and second (Y2, n=113) year cohorts received both PRE-LR that did not include answers to in-class discussion questions, and POST-LR that did include answers. The viewing patterns and total times viewed for each recording and REQ performance were recorded for each student, and survey responses were collected regarding use of lecture recordings (Y1 and Y2) and attendance (Y2 only).

Results:
A mean proportion of 20.5% ( 9.7) of Y1 and 18.9% ( 8.1) of Y1 and Y2 students, respectively, viewed the equivalent of at least 90% of the length (90-PL) of PRE-LR, which was not significantly different. A significantly higher mean proportion of Y2 (mean of 52.1%  8.7) than Y1 (mean of 65.1%  11.3) students viewed 90-PL of POST-LR (P = 0.05). A significantly higher proportion of Y2 (71.1%  11.8) than Y1 (58.3%  8.9) viewed 90-PL of combined recordings (PRE-LR + POST-LR; P < 0.05).

For surveys, 22.9% (n=24) and 33.6% (n=38) of students responded in Y1 and Y2, respectively. In Y2, a significantly higher mean proportion of survey respondents reported not attending lectures (36.8%) than attending remotely (27.3%, P < 0.001) or in person (26.3%, P < 0.001). A significantly higher proportion of students who reported attending live lectures fell above (AB) than below (BL) the 50th percentile on REQ for two lectures (P < 0.05), while a significantly higher proportion of students who reported attending lectures remotely fell BL on REQ for three lectures (P < 0.05). There were no significant differences in falling AB or BL in students who reported not attending lectures.

Survey respondents reported the main reason for utilizing PRE-LR was to prepare for lecture, while the main reason for utilizing POST-LR was to retain/review information. For Y1 (who experienced a mid-year shift to primarily online learning mid-year), seven students (29.2%) reported increased use of lecture recordings due to this shift, while 12 (50.0%) reported it did not impact their use of lecture recordings.

Conclusion: A significantly higher proportion of students are viewing lecture recordings currently than before COVID-19, with some students suggesting this shift impacted their use of recordings. There are differences in REQ performance between students attending lecture live versus remotely.

Significance/Implication: These data support the use of lecture recordings by students, and the need to address how students are accessing lecture material (live versus remotely) in terms of course performance.

Funding Sources: Grant sponsor: U.S. Department of Education, Grant Number P03-1B141018