The effects of lecture speed and note-taking on memory for educational material

Abstract

The use of pre-recorded lecture videos as a primary mode of instruction during online learning has allowed students flexibility in how they self-regulate their learning. Although increasing lectures up to 2x speed has little cost on memory, it is unknown whether note-taking at increased speeds interacts with memory. Participants watched lecture videos at 1x or 2x speed while some simultaneously took notes (Experiment 1: laptop, Experiment 2: longhand). We found that test performance numerically declined as speed increased (significant in Experiment 1) and observed a mnemonic benefit of note-taking, regardless of modality (laptop, longhand). Post-hoc analyses revealed no significant differences in performance between individuals who took notes at 2x speed and took no notes at 1x speed. Hence, note-taking may help compensate for disadvantages to learning caused by greater lecture speed. Overall, when watching accelerated lecture videos, it is recommended to take notes, as it supports memory for lecture content.