Although the following article contains more detail, a video of this article was also created and available through YouTube (embedded below):
In addition to addressing issues of academic integrity, there are four very important reasons why all students should show their face during video discussion.
Reason 1
Showing video of one’s self greatly helps everyone understand you better. Multiple research dealing with learning, human/social interaction and communication, as well as experience, has shown that a key aspect of communication is nonverbal (Knapp, Hall, & Horgan, 2013; Mandal, 2014; Stam, 2014). Everything from your facial expressions to what you do with your hands and even how you tilt your head sends a signal and is part of the message you are sending; this includes all aspects of your verbal and non-verbal communication (Prozesky, 2000).
Reason 2
The second reason for showing one’s face during a video discussion is that helps others to get to know one another on a much greater, personal level. Multiple research has shown various benefits of video, such as making the individual more personable, building trust, and creating a greater emotional connection (Marshall & Cullen, 2003; Microsoft,2020).
Reason 3
A third reason for showing one’s face during a video discussion is that it greatly helps in building a community of inquiry and learning from one another. Research has shown that when students show their face they become a “real” active member of the group, of the learning community. The community then has a greater sense of trust and students are more willing to be open and to learn from one another (Moody & Wieland, 2010). Being able to see one another has also been shown to helps students be more willing and able to collaborate on projects (Borup, West, & Graham, 2012).
Reason 4
A final reason for showing one’s face during a video discussion is that it is an extremely important 21st Century skill (Miller, 2010). As educators it is our duty to help prepare students for the realities of the “real world” and to help them be fully employable (Jones, Harkness, & Mondragon, 2020). The reality is that live video interactions is the new normal in education, business, government, and virtually every other sector:
Video conferencing is used across several applications including digital classroom, automated talent acquisition, smart factories, e-healthcare, video-driven customer engagement among others. The rapidly evolving business dynamics id driving the need for implementing video conferencing solutions and services in various sectors including government, education, research and others. Fortune Business Insights, 2019.
Being great writers, and face-to-face communicators is no longer enough. Effective video capabilities are now a must. All of us need to be confident in front of the camera and develop greater professional communication skills (Wabisabi. 2020).
Why Some Students Still Don’t Want to Show Their Face and Solutions to Each Issue
Although I have presented four important reasons why students should show their face during a live video discussion, there may still be students that want to hide their face for a multiple of reasons. It is important to understand those reasons in order to best address them and help the student over come these barriers.
A big reason expressed for not showing one’s face during a live video discussion is having slow internet connection (poor internet connectivity). One way to help address this issue is through managing your bandwidth usage during a live webcast session.
Lets say you are using a web conferencing tool like Zoom. Having every student show their video stream uses up a lot of internet bandwidth. You can turn off all of the Students’ video stream and then…
…have just the student that is talking turn on their video stream. This will allow the person talking to be seen while also greatly reducing the overall bandwidth used so that those with a weaker internet connection can still actively participate.
If you have to do this due to poor internet connectivity, be sure to have students use a good professional photo of themselves for their avatar within Zoom. This will help the session maintain professionalism and connectedness if everyone isn’t able to have their video feed on all the time.
Another reason sometimes cited is that the student does not have a good place or a good background for the live webcast feed. This issue can easily be overcome and as an example, the video associated with this article wasn’t made in a dedicated studio. In fact, this video was actually made in my daughters’ room (it has the best light).
Any area with a clear wall will do. It is a matter of properly angel-ing your video camera, cellphone, or web camera. One could even hang up a bedsheet if they wanted a plain background; it just takes a bit of creativity and planning to have a good visual display.
Another possibility when using Zoom, is to use its built-in “Virtual Background” tool (located within Zoom’s settings). But notice that most of the default options are NOT the background image that would be best in a classroom environment. Thankfully Zoom allows students to upload their own images. Ensure that students avoid distracting images/videos. This is inappropriate. and distracting.
Tell students that distracting/inappropriate Zoom backgrounds will not be allowed because they distract other students and shifts focus away from learning. An appropriate background would be something either simply plain (off white or light blue), or normal (such as a bookcase or office/study area environment) that doesn’t distract and presents a more professional tone.
Another reason that students might give for not showing their face during a live video discussion is simply that they are anxious. They feel uncomfortable with everyone’s eyes on them. Plus what happens if Mom, Dad, or a siblings comes into the frame and interrupts. What about that? The answer is… welcome to the real world. As already explained, interacting via video is now a 21-century skill that everyone needs to know. We must get comfortable in front of the camera and continually develop our professional communication capabilities.
At the same time, instructors need to explicitly tell students and students need to understand that it is OK to not be perfect in front of the camera. Interruptions and glitches will inevitably happen. That is OK. They key is to have a growth mindset, meet those challenges head-on, and overcome them. That is how we all succeed.
What are your thoughts? Please share in the comments section below.
References
Fortune Business Insights. (2019, July 20). Video conferencing market. Fortune Business Insights. https://www.fortunebusinessinsights.com/industry-reports/video-conferencing-market-100293
Knapp, M. L., Hall, J. A., & Horgan, T. G. (2013). Nonverbal communication in human interaction. Boston, MA: Cengage Learning.
Mandal, F. B. (2014). Nonverbal communication in humans. Journal of human behavior in the social environment, 24(4), 417-421.
Prozesky, D. R. (2000). Communication and effective teaching. Community Eye Health, 13(35), 44.
Stam, G. (2014). Further changes in L2 thinking for speaking? In C. Müller, A. Cienki, E. Fricke, S. H. Ladewig, D. McNeill, and S. Tessendorf (Eds.). Body – Language – Communication: An international handbook on multimodality in human interaction. Volume 2 (pp. 1875-1886). Berlin: Mouton De Gruyter.
Wabisabi. (2020, July). The critical 21st century skills every student needs and why. Wabisabi Learning.