Building Schema Through Video: Increasing Student Engagement with Course Readings
John McLaughlin, College of Staten Island
Bio
John has taught business and finance courses at the College of Staten Island for 13 years and currently teaches FNC 111 (Personal Finance) and MGT 110 (Management). Prior to his academic career, he spent 17 years as a trader on Wall Street. He has also taught in the NYC Department of Education while concurrently serving as an adjunct at CSI, bringing real-world financial expertise to both high school and college classrooms.
Course Setting
The class is held on Saturday mornings at The College of Staten Island - Willowbrook campus through the College NOW program. The course is Management 110, and students are high school juniors and seniors.
Problem of Practice
How can I use video or audio content to introduce reading materials in ways that increase student engagement and improve their ability to analyze texts for research paper writing?Strategy
To address the challenge of students disengaging from assigned readings due to lack of prior knowledge, I plan to use short video clips as schema-building tools before introducing course texts. Before assigning a reading on a management concept, such as leadership styles or organizational structure, I will show a 3-5 minute video that introduces key vocabulary and provides real-world context.
This strategy addresses my challenge by giving students a conceptual foundation before they encounter unfamiliar terminology in the reading. When students can visualize a concept first, they are better equipped to decode and engage with written material rather than abandoning it out of frustration.
This may impact student learning by increasing reading comprehension and completion rates. Students who build mental schemas through video are more likely to connect new information to what they've seen, leading to deeper understanding and better retention of management principles.
Documentation
Organizational Structure and Design - Pre/Post Reading & Video Activity - Cycle 1
Students watched a video (“Organizational Structure" by communications coach Alex Lyons); engaged in a vocabulary and short-answer activity about the video; took a pre-reading formative assessment as a check-in (data was captured for the inquiry); read the article (“10 Types of Organizational Structures for Businesses” by Indeed Career Guide); and then engaged in an activity that included identifying terms from the reading, a summative assessment post-reading check, and a reflection.
Motivation at Work - Pre/Post Reading & Video Activity - Cycle 2
Students completed a pre-video and pre-reading activity including a formative assessment that took stock of their current schema regarding the motivation of workers. Students viewed “Theories of Motivation-Maslow, Herzberg and McGregor” by EasyMBA, and then read “Motivating and Rewarding Employees" adapted from Robbins & Coulter, Fundamentals of Management for classroom use. A post-reading summative assessment adapted from similar questions from the pre-activities generated our comparison data, and students were also offered post-activities such as identifying terms and a short-answer reflection to reinforce the new concepts.
Measuring Impact
Pre/Post Reading Confidence Scores
Students rated their confidence on key concepts before and after watching the video and completing the reading. Cycle 1 showed +8.63 point growth; Cycle 2 showed +17.42 point growth. This measures whether video-first instruction builds schema that improves comprehension and self-reported understanding.
Analysis
The video-first schema-building strategy proved successful in addressing my Problem of Practice. Across both cycles, students demonstrated measurable growth in confidence with course concepts: Cycle 1 showed +8.63 point growth (81.37 to 90), while Cycle 2 showed even stronger gains at +17.42 points (71.29 to 88.71). Notably, 100% of students who watched the video in Cycle 1 reported it helped them understand the reading, with similar results in Cycle 2. Student feedback confirmed my hypothesis, as one student wrote, "The video helped me because it summarized the key ideas that later was given in the reading." This suggests that front-loading vocabulary and concepts through video effectively bridges the gap between students' prior knowledge and college-level texts.
The strategy enhanced learning by reducing cognitive load during reading. Students arrived at the text already familiar with terms like "hygiene factors" and "self-actualization," allowing them to focus on deeper analysis rather than basic comprehension. The synthesis paragraphs in Cycle 2 demonstrated students could integrate ideas across all three motivation theories, evidence that schema-building supports higher-order thinking, not just recall.
Studying student data between cycles informed my implementation. The stronger growth in Cycle 2 likely reflects refinements: simplified worksheet language, clearer directions, and tighter alignment between video, reading, and assessments. Challenges remain around ensuring all students watch the video attentively — the three students in Cycle 1 who reported "not at all" helpful had arrived late and missed it. Next time, I would build in a brief video accountability check before the reading begins.
Recommendation
For College NOW and Early College instructors, I recommend using short videos (5-10 minutes) to introduce unfamiliar concepts before assigning readings, particularly when the text assumes prior knowledge students lack. This strategy works best when the video, reading, and assessment are tightly aligned; students should encounter the same vocabulary across all three. Choose videos with clear visuals and relatable examples. YouTube explainers often resonate better with high school students than academic lectures.
Practical tips: Keep worksheets simple with numbered steps. Build in a "stop" moment after the pre-reading check so students don't work ahead. Collect brief feedback asking whether the video helped. This validates the approach and reveals when students missed content. Don't underestimate the confidence factor. When students recognize terms during reading, they engage rather than shut down. Schema-building creates conditions where students believe they can succeed with college-level material.
Resources
- Hochman, J.C. & Wexler, N. (2017). The Writing Revolution: A Guide to Advancing Thinking Through Writing in All Subjects and Grades. Jossey-Bass.
- The method used to transform New Dorp High School, focusing on explicit writing instruction across all subjects.
- Tyre, P. (2012). "The Writing Revolution." The Atlantic.
- Documents the New Dorp High School turnaround using strategic inquiry and explicit writing instruction.