Recent research on education videos has highlighted the role of embodied social cues -- non-verbal behaviors used to communicate social information and emotions -- in shaping students' interest and motivation. Variations in an instructor's body posture, a key component of nonverbal communication, can enhance teaching and stimulate learning by influencing students' perceptions and attitudes. Specifically, researchers at Leibniz University investigated how an instructor's posture, in terms of verticality (upright vs. slumped) and horizontality (open vs. closed), impacts students' perceptions of the instructor, as well as their interest and motivation toward the topic being taught.
Straighten Your Back, Open Your Arms!
In the experiment university students were randomly assigned to watch one of four videos depicting the instructor in different postural configurations. The researchers then assessed the students' perceptions of the instructor's enthusiasm, agency, and communion, as well as their liking, respect, situational interest, and motivation. The results showed that the vertical and horizontal dimensions of posture affected students' perceptions of enthusiasm, agency, communion, and liking, but only the horizontal dimension influenced their respect for the instructor. Further, the students' situational interest and motivation was influenced by their perceptions of the instructor's enthusiasm.
The researchers conclude that an instructor's body language and nonverbal cues in educational videos influence how students perceive and respond to the instructor. These perceptions then shape students' interest and motivation in the course material. The findings highlight the importance of embodied social cues in educational settings, with implications for instructor training and the design of effective instructional videos.
StepUp Note
Notably, this research found that an instructor’s vertical (standing up straight) and horizontal posture (arms out and open) posture affects a student’s enjoyment of the learning presented. Additionally, an open, horizontal posture generated more respect for the teacher. StepUp to Learn exercises give children many opportunities to practice horizontal and vertical control of their posture, and to express themselves in rhythm and movement. Teachers report that “working in rhythm” can also help students be more engaged overall in learning.
Note by Nancy W Rowe, MS, CCC/A
Original research published in Learning and Instruction