Online Lecture Videos by Non-Native English-Speaking Instructors

Picture-in-Picture (PIP) is an effective lecture video design that includes a screen capture video in the center and the instructor’s talking head in one corner. Few research studies have directly investigated the usage of PIP lecture design by non-native English-speaking (NNES) instructors. The current study investigated the effects of PIP lecture design by NNES instructors and measured participants’ cognitive load and learning outcomes. Participants in the study (n = 56) watched four lecture videos about airplane flight, completed cognitive load measure questionnaires, and completed the subsequent recall tasks. The videos included either an NNES instructor or a native English-speaking (NES) instructor. Our findings indicated that PIP lecture videos produced by an NNES instructor caused a higher cognitive load, especially in learners with lower accented-language experience. Lecture videos produced by the NNES instructor also led to lower recall performance, but the PIP design did not cause a significant change in participants’ recall performance. Findings from the current study have implications for online lecture designs, especially for NNES instructors.