Mind wandering presents a significant challenge to effective learning, yet research often overlooks how it occurs in authentic educational settings where learners have control over their learning environment.
A team at University of South Australia (UniSA), led by Mr Daniel Ebbert and including Ms Anna Lloyd of UniSA Education Futures, Associate Prof Maurizio Costabile in UniSA Clinical & Health Sciences, and Dr Nick Fewster-Young and Dr Malgorzata Korolkiewicz in UniSA STEM, has addressed this gap by investigating how students interact with online educational videos.
“We wanted to understand how students naturally engage with video content in their actual learning environment,” Mr Ebbert said.
“Previous studies have typically been conducted in controlled settings, but we were interested in how students behave when they have full control over their learning experience, including the ability to pause and rewind content.”
Collaborating with UniSA course coordinators, the team integrated their study into blended-learning elements of real courses to examine how students utilise video controls to manage cognitive distractions.
Their findings indicate a predictive relationship between strong time management and effort regulation skills and fewer cognitive distractions during video learning. Surprisingly, the team also observed that students rarely adjust their learning process in response to mind wandering.
“Our findings suggest that students who are better at planning their time and maintaining effort tend to stay more focused during video learning. Interestingly, we also observed that students don’t typically adjust their learning process in response to mind wandering,” Mr Ebbert said.
“This insight is valuable for developing strategies to support all students in making the most of their online learning experience.”
With the ultimate aim of developing practical guidance for students, the team plans to expand their work to create specific recommendations for engaging with online video.
“We want to provide students with concrete strategies for maintaining engagement and managing their attention effectively,” Mr Ebbert said.
“The goal is to normalise the occasional loss of focus and equip students with tools to adapt their learning approach when needed.”
These findings will inform the development of future online learning resources and student support strategies at UniSA, enhancing the quality of digital education experiences.
