Video modeling

Video modeling is an educational technique where recorded videos of a specific action or behavior are viewed by someone who needs to learn that action or behavior. This can include basic tasks, such as handwashing, or more complex matters such as social interactions. The model or person in the video displays the correct way to complete the action or behavior so that it can be copied by the learner. The technique has been documented to be effective with younger children through middle school age and is often used with children on the autism spectrum. It works because visualizing something facilitates learning. It also eliminates the need for the learner to interact with another person so they can instead focus on absorbing the action or behavior.

There are various forms of video modeling, including some in which the learner is videoed performing a behavior and then watches the video of themselves as well as videos shot from the perspective of the learner. The technique is used both formally and informally and can be used in academic settings, at home, or anywhere there is equipment for playback such as a smart tablet or phone. It is a versatile technique because it can be implemented using anything from professional level equipment and models to a smart phone video camera and playback.

Background

The practice of having a live model teach an action or behavior has likely been used since ancient times. In the 1920s, psychologists began using live models to actively attempt to affect behavior. They would have someone perform correct ways to handle different social or behavioral situations in front of someone who was having difficulty with these situations, or someone whose behavior needed modification.

In the middle of the twentieth century, video technology first used in the 1890s evolved to the point where small movie cameras became affordable to researchers. By the 1960s and 1970s, social psychologists such as Albert Bandura conducted experiments using videotaped models. Bandura developed the social learning theory, which holds that people learn by watching others. In his Bobo doll experiment, children who were shown videos of people acting violently towards an inflatable clown punching bag repeated these violent behaviors.

The first recorded incidence of the use of video technology to affect every day behavior in children on the autism spectrum came in 1982. Researchers Monika Steinborn and Terry J. Knapp taught a child how to cross a street using a doll and physical model of a street in a classroom. They then incorporated video of crossing the intersection near the child’s home to teach the child how to apply what she had learned to her real-world environment.

Overview

Video modeling is an educational technique that uses a video recording of a person performing a targeted behavior to teach others how to correctly perform the same behavior. The actions in question can involve everyday tasks such as making a sandwich, social communication such as asking a teacher for help or ordering at a restaurant, classroom material, or recreational/play behaviors. The four main types of video modeling are basic video modeling, video self-modeling, point-of-view modeling, and video prompting.

In basic video modeling, a person other than the learner models the behavior to be taught. This is sometimes but not always someone who is similar to the learner in age so as to increase relatability. The model performs the behavior and is videotaped. Professionally prepared videos will likely be edited and have voice-overs and other material added, and the videos are made available to educators and parents. In the simplest form of basic video modeling, a parent might record an older sibling or another child performing a task and play the video back for their own child.

In video self-modeling, the learner is videotaped performing the targeted behavior successfully. The video is then edited and played back for the learner. This method has the advantage of reminding the learner of a time when they completed the task appropriately and reinforcing that behavior.

Point-of-view modeling is filmed from the perspective of the learner. Using technology that puts the camera in place of the learner, the task to be learned is recorded and then played back. For example, if the task is teaching a middle schooler how to prepare their backpack for school, the video would show the learner what it looks like as they pick up the backpack, check what is already inside and remove things that do not need to be there, and fill it with books, homework, lunch, and other items for the day. This perspective helps make a memory map of what each step looks like that the learner can refer to when preparing their own backpack.

Video prompting breaks the targeted behavior into individual steps and adds pauses to allow the learner to complete each step as it is presented. For example, a video intended to help a child with autism learn how to brush teeth might show getting out the toothbrush and paste, followed by a pause; opening the toothpaste, a pause; putting toothpaste on the brush, a pause; the brushing action followed by a longer pause; rinsing the brush, a pause; and finally putting away the toothbrush and paste. This type of video modeling helps the learner build memory of how to perform the targeted behavior.

The basic steps for creating a video modeling presentation are similar whether the video is professionally produced or done in a classroom or home. The educator—whether a teacher, parent, or other instructor—chooses a target behavior to model. This must be an observable behavior and the measure of success should be determined. For example, “John will have better hygiene,” cannot be effectively measured but “John will have better hygiene by brushing his teeth twice a day” can be measured.

Following this, the educator determines the best type of video modeling to accomplish the desired results and procures the necessary equipment. The educator should also identify how the video will be played back in case this affects the type of equipment that needs to be used. If the video is intended for use by a specific learner, the educator then identifies a baseline of how much of the targeted skill the learner already knows. This helps refine what needs to be focused on in the video. The video is then recorded and edited. Editing might be particularly important in video self-modeling, where the learner might take several attempts to complete the task. Finally, the video is shown to the learner.

Bibliography

“The History of Video Technology.” Techno FAQ, technofaq.org/posts/2018/10/the-history-of-video-technology/. Accessed 27 May 2019.

Merrill, Anna and Joseph M. Risch. “Implementation and Effectiveness of Using Video Self-Modeling with Students with ASD.” Indiana University Bloomington, www.iidc.indiana.edu/pages/video-self-modeling. Accessed 27 May 2019.

Pierce, Nigel and Anna Cox. “Video Modeling.” University of North Carolina, asdtoddler.fpg.unc.edu/book/export/html/463. Accessed 27 May 2019.

Self-Modeling with Students with ASD.” Indiana University Bloomington, 2014, www.iidc.indiana.edu/pages/video-self-modeling. Accessed 27 May 2019.

“Social Learning Theory (Bandura).” Learning Theories, www.learning-theories.com/social-learning-theory-bandura.html. Accessed 27 May 2019.

Steinborn, Monika and Terry J. Knapp. “Teaching an Autistic Child Pedestrian Skills.” Journal of Behavior Therapy and Experimental Psychiatry, Dec. 1982, www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/0005791682900830. Accessed 27 May 2019.

“Video Modeling.” National Professional Development Center on Autism Spectrum Disorders, Oct. 2010, autismpdc.fpg.unc.edu/sites/autismpdc.fpg.unc.edu/files/imce/documents/VideoModeling‗Complete.pdf. Accessed 27 May 2019.

“Video Modeling and Autism.” Research Autism, www.researchautism.net/interventions/101/video-modelling-and-autism/history. Accessed 27 May 2019.

“What is Video Modeling?” Watch Me Learn, www.watchmelearn.com/video-modeling/what-is-video-modeling. Accessed 27 May 2019.