As an educator, I have always been curious about which method of learning is more effective: reading or watching videos. Both approaches offer distinct advantages and disadvantages. Based on my inquiry on this topic, I found that reading typically leads to deeper comprehension and retention, particularly in children, while videos tend to enhance motivation and engagement. Moreover, adding interactive elements to videos can significantly boost their educational effectiveness.

For adults, reading is generally more beneficial due to their advanced literacy and self-regulation skills. However, videos can serve as a valuable supplement to reading by providing quick overviews and visual demonstrations. For children, reading on paper supports better comprehension and vocabulary development, but interactive videos can effectively engage and motivate them.

Insights from 5 Peer-Reviewed Studies

1. Comprehension: Reading usually results in deeper comprehension and retention compared to videos. Delgado and colleagues (2018) conducted a meta-analysis revealing that children have better story comprehension and vocabulary learning when reading on paper rather than watching videos. This suggests that reading allows for a greater depth of engagement with the text, leading to improved understanding and memory retention.

2. Engagement: While reading engages deep cognitive skills and fosters imagination, videos often boost motivation and engagement. Bergdahl, Nouri, and Fors (2020) found that students might process video content more superficially than text. However, they also noted that techniques like note-taking could enhance learning outcomes from both text and video sources. Hansch et al. (2015) emphasized that video-based learning increases motivation and engagement, though it might not encourage the same level of deep thinking as reading.

3. Interactivity: Interactive elements in videos, such as quizzes and learning dashboards, can significantly enhance learning outcomes. Mitrovic and colleagues (2019) explored the effectiveness of visual learning analytics in active video watching and found that interactive features can bridge the gap between passive video watching and active reading. This indicates that videos can become more effective when they incorporate elements that require active participation from the learner.

Suitability for Adult and Child Learners

Adult Learners: Reading is generally more beneficial for adults as they typically have higher literacy skills and can benefit from the detailed and comprehensive nature of reading (Singer & Alexander, 2017). Adults also tend to have better self-regulation skills, allowing them to control the pace and engage deeply with the material. Videos, on the other hand, can supplement reading by enhancing motivation and providing quick overviews or visual demonstrations that complement textual information.

Child Learners: For children, reading on paper tends to result in better comprehension and vocabulary learning (Delgado et al., 2018). However, videos can be highly engaging and accessible for children, especially when they include interactive elements that keep them motivated and help reinforce learning (Bergdahl et al., 2020; Hansch et al., 2015).

The Pros and Cons of Both

Reading

Pros:

• Allows learners to control the pace completely.

• Engages deep cognitive skills and imagination.

• Provides detailed and comprehensive exploration of topics.

• Encourages active engagement through note-taking and annotation.

• Generally better for retention and recall.

Cons:

• Requires strong literacy skills.

• Less interactive compared to videos.

• Can be challenging for those with reading difficulties.

Watching Videos

Pros:

• Provides visual and auditory stimuli, making it easier to grasp concepts quickly.

• Can be more engaging and motivating.

• Often more accessible to those with lower literacy skills.

• Incorporates interactive elements like quizzes and comments.

Cons:

• Pace is set by the creator, which can hinder control over learning.

• May encourage superficial processing of information.

• Can lead to sensory overload.

• Risk of passive learning without active engagement.

Summary

Reading tends to promote deeper comprehension and retention, especially in children, due to its ability to engage deep cognitive skills and encourage imagination. Videos, however, are more effective at boosting motivation and engagement, particularly when they include interactive elements. For adults, reading is typically more beneficial due to their advanced literacy and self-regulation skills, but videos can be a valuable supplement. For children, reading on paper supports better comprehension and vocabulary development, though interactive videos can effectively engage and motivate them.

References

Bergdahl, N., Nouri, J., & Fors, U. (2020). Learning from text and video blogs: Comprehension effects on secondary school students. Education and Information Technologies, 25(4), 3181-3196. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10639-020-10122-4

Delgado, P., Vargas, C., Ackerman, R., & Salmerón, L. (2018). A meta-analysis of the effects of reading on screen versus on paper on reading comprehension. Educational Research Review, 25, 23-38. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.edurev.2018.09.003

Hansch, A., Hillers, L., McConachie, K., Newman, C., Schildhauer, T., & Schmidt, P. (2015). Video-based learning (VBL)—Past, present and future: A report summarizing the discussions in the Video Learning Lab at the 2015 European MOOC Stakeholder Summit. MOOC Stakeholder Summit. https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=2577882

Mitrovic, A., Gordon, M., Piotrkowicz, A., & Dimitrova, V. (2019). Investigating the effect of adding nudges to increase engagement in active video watching. In S. Isotani, E. Millán, A. Ogan, P. Hastings, B. McLaren, & R. Luckin (Eds.), Artificial Intelligence in Education (Vol. 11625, pp. 320-332). Springer. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-23204-7_27

Singer, L. M., & Alexander, P. A. (2017). Reading on paper and digitally: What the past decades of empirical research reveal. Review of Educational Research, 87(6), 1007-1041. https://doi.org/10.3102/0034654317722961