Visual Edutainment to Engage Online Learners
Amy S. Ackerman
Stockton University, USA
Mary Jane Murphy-Bowne
Stockton University, USA
Abstract
A challenge exists to engage college students in online learning courses in a meaningful way. To achieve engagement, a course used visual edutainment themes to introduce weekly objectives in the course. This paper provides an overview of the approach and the theoretical basis for this strategy. Visual edutainment can produce learner interaction; improve retention; help provide meaningful, motivational, and memorable learning experiences; engage learners; and decrease the cognitive load of a learning experience. Suggestions for other applications and a synopsis of the Pecha Kucha (PK) style of presenting are also included. We found that using edutainment themes to engage online learners is well received and using PK Create as a tool for students to develop Pecha Kucha presentations is a simple approach.
Keywords: E-Learning, Edutainment, Engagement, Pecha Kucha, Visual Literacy