Developing and Testing a Video Tutorial for Software Training

Purpose: Video tutorials for software training are rapidly becoming popular. A set of dedicated guidelines for the construction of such tutorials was recently advanced in Technical Communication (Van der Meij & Van der Meij, 2013). The present study set out to assess the cognitive and motivational effects of a video tutorial based on these guidelines. Method: Participants were 65 students (mean age 12.0 years) from elementary school. The procedure was as follows. First, students completed a pre-test. Next, they viewed videos and completed practice tasks. Finally, students completed a post-test and retention-test. Results: The pre-test revealed low scores on task relevance, and low initial task performance. During training, students reported positive mood states, high flow, and significantly higher task relevance than in pre-testing. Task performance rose significantly during training, and was also substantially higher on the post-test and retention-test than in pre-testing. Only cognitive factors significantly predicted task performance. Conclusion: The effectiveness of the video tutorial attests to the quality of the design guidelines on which it was based. The critical contribution of specific guidelines are a potential area for further research