Use of instructional videos in leadership education in higher education under COVID-19: A qualitative study

The use of online teaching mode has grown rapidly in recent years, particularly under the COVID-19 pandemic. To promote the learning motivation of students and teaching effectiveness, development of attractive online teaching material such as videos is important. In the present study, we developed 15 theory-related videos and 9 case-based videos in the context of a leadership course focusing on psychological well-being and psychosocial competence. Using a qualitative research methodology via focus groups (N = 48 students) to evaluate these videos, six themes emerged from the data, including video arrangement, design of videos, content of videos, benefits to students’ pre-lesson self-learning, benefits to students’ learning of course content, and contribution to students’ class participation. The findings suggest that the videos can elicit positive perceptions of the students in a flipped classroom arrangement. Students also benefit from the videos in terms of their understanding of course content and their participation in class discussion. Besides, the study suggests that the videos promote the learning efficiency of the students. The present qualitative findings concurred with the previous quantitative findings, suggesting the value of using virtual teaching and learning to promote psychosocial competence in university students.