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

scenario-based videos, I know how to apply the theories to real life examples. In this way, I can have a deeper and better understanding.” (Group 2 Line 302–307) The majority of the students rated the videos 7 points (N = 10), 7 to 8 points (N = 7) or 8 points (N = 18) out of 10 points. This showed that students were satisfied with the quality and benefits received from watching the 24 videos. Second, the theory-related videos contributed to students’ learning through clear explana- tion of theories, which helped students to understand the content without prior knowledge. The animation, layout and video cutting also made the theory-related videos more interesting. For this topic, students in the focus group interviews were asked to give examples of videos that had significantly contributed to their learning. As elaborated by a student: “I think the video on Richardson’s Model I just mentioned is good. If we don’t have this video, I will look at this model for two hours but don’t know what it is explaining. I think it’s not just about these two videos, but all the videos are very clear. Even about concepts or models I haven’t seen before, I can understand them from the videos.” (Group 8 Line 276– 278) Moreover, some theory-related videos’ content was related to students’ daily lives, so they could stimulate students’ self-reflection. The skills introduced in the videos were useful to stu- dents. For example, one student was particularly impressed by the theory-related videos for Lecture 10 repair strategies and Lecture 5 resilience. As the student explained:

“I like the theory-related videos for Lecture 10 repair strategies and Lecture 5 resilience. Repair strategies are problems we often encounter, such as how to solve problems when we quarrel with friends, however, I never thought about it. After watching the video, I would think about whether I can solve the problem according to the theory. In addition, because I didn’t have a deep understanding of resilience at first, after watching the videos, I would know more about resilience. The content made me understand how we can cultivate this ability.” (Group 6 Line 428–431) Besides, in theory-related videos, there were concrete examples to explain the theories and illustrate the strategies for tackling different problems. Third, students further elaborated on the case-based videos’ benefits to their learning. The case-based videos applied theories to some real-life cases or social issue, so students could understand the concepts very easily. For this topic, students in the focus group interviews were also asked to give examples of videos that had significantly contributed to their learning. As explained by one student, “There are two types of case-based videos. As mentioned just now, the first one stimulates daily situations. The other one, just like the case-based video on resilience, it can strengthen the reliability of the model [or theory]. It is not only the model talking about the concept, but the case-based video presents an example of how the protective factor can help a person to be more resistant to stress. This is more convincing, which impresses me even more. For

example, there is a case-based video on misinformation, which is about the MMR vaccine injection. That video can help me apply the model to daily news. I usually only watch the news, and that is it. However, from the video, I learn that we could apply some of the things we have learned. So, I could gain another perspective.” (Group 2 Line 745–748) PLOS ONE Qualitative evaluation of virtual teaching and learning videos in leadership education PLOS ONE | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0291861 September 21, 2023 14 / 28