Action Research Project:

Video of the Day

Kendra S. Hentschel
Secondary Education Candidate
Social Studies, History, Psychology

Winter 2018
Grand Valley State University
Introduction

In order to provide an overview of the setting, we must first review the classroom context

for which this action research will take place. Wyoming High School serves roughly 1,000

students in grades ten, eleven, and twelve. Wyoming has a diverse student population, with

students of varying racial/ethnic, gender and LGBTQ identities, and socioeconomic statuses.

Additionally, a large portion of Wyoming students are either immigrants or children of

immigrants. These students are supported with robust ESL programs, including students from

over __ countries in the world, who speak ___ different languages.

This action research took place in two AP Psychology classes composed of twenty-seven

and twenty students, respectively. Second hour (27) has twenty-four seniors and three juniors;

while sixth hour (20) has nineteen seniors and one junior. Student demographic information

closely reflects the schools demographics, with a variety of racial/ethnic and gender identities.

Action research covered a span of four units: Development, Personality, Emotion, and Thinking

& Learning. Each unit covered a span of roughly 1.5-2 weeks.

Research Question

Students in Wyoming’s AP Psychology class are extremely talkative, continuously

forgetting books, and regularly stepping out of class (especially during the first couple minutes)

to use the restroom. As their teacher, it was a struggle to capture their attention and get going for

the first five to ten minutes of class every day. The relaxed and more independent environment

established by the cooperating teacher allowed students freedom, respect, and accountability; but

it also set up a dynamic where they used the first few minutes of the hour to get themselves

prepared for class, rather than coming prepared to class and being ready to work when the bell

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rang. Bellringer questions helped engage students during the first few minutes, but these

questions were inconsistent, and students still struggled to prepare efficiently and effectively.

Losing the first to ten minutes of class might seem small, but day after day, that time

really adds up. And in a class period that is only 60 minutes long, over ten percent of classroom

time is effectively [squandered]. That means as much as 50 minutes, nearly an entire class

period, is lost in ​one​ week. By shortening the week from five to four days, we are losing valuable

cooperative and instructional time in the classroom for students to learn and grow. Thus, a key

research question emerged: How do I give students time to get settled at the beginning of the

hour, while also engaging and getting them ready to learn?

Literature Review

Popular Music in the Classroom: Teaching Race, Class, and Gender with Popular Culture​ by

Theresa Martinez

In their article, Martinez focuses on using popular music in Sociology classrooms in

order to discuss topics of race, gender, and class. The instructor uses popular music videos to

foster class discussion and create a unique learning environment for students. By encouraging

students to critically analyze and evaluate music videos and images we see in popular culture,

they are catalyzed to view and engage the material from a different perspective. Music videos

encouraged students to question their assumptions about themselves and others, garnering

personal and class-wide growth. This practice also fostered a deeper understanding of students’

peers and persons of identities other than their own.

Using Music in the Classroom to Educate, Engage and Promote Understanding​ by Nicolas

Ferroni

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 In Ferroni’s article, ​Using Music in the Classroom to Educate, Engage and Promote

Understanding​, he discusses the advantages and personal observations with using music in the

classroom. Ferroni engages students using various genres and forms of music and media. “In a

time where educators and education experts are struggling to find ways to engage all learners and

differentiation has become a choice method to most districts. I was able to engage, educate,

differentiate and increase understanding and retention by simply using something to which we

are all already attached” (Ferroni, 2012).

Ferroni frequently used one particular approach both in his own instruction and in student

activity or assignments: music playlists. In their English class, Ferroni uses playlists for specific

characters, plots, or specific scenes or settings. Over time, students latched on to the playlists and

started creating their own playlists for extra credit, and eventually for project-based assignments

as well. Integrating music into instruction creates an inviting and relatable learning environment

for students, and provides an amusing way to engage with content and material. Additionally,

students demonstrate their ability to critically analyze a given situation by assigning and

organizing accompanying music.

Use of Technology and Music to Improve Learning​ by Ronald A. Berk

Berk’s lengthy article, ​Use of Technology and Music to Improve Learning​, provides a

very thoughtful and helpful perspective and suggestions on using music and technology in the

classroom. Berk discusses instructional outcomes, educational and cognitive benefits, using

technology tools, selection criteria, and source material. This article offered helpful suggestions

and points of thought when organizing and implementing the action research project, “Video of

the Day.”

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 Berk suggests using technology and music in the classroom helps grab students’

attention, focuses attention, and energizes or relaxes students for learning. Additionally, music

and technology builds connections with material and other students, fosters a sense of creativity,

sets the tone for the day, builds rapport, and increases understanding. Cognitive benefits are

bountiful as well. Berk notes the value in offering a range of perspectives and learning strategies

for differentiated teaching. Research also supports music helps build emotional and interpersonal

intelligence. Berk points out a fascinating fact about brain hemispheres, related to the two ways

of thinking: verbal and nonverbal. Music actively engages both sides of our brains - “the left side

processes rhythm and lyrics; the right side listens for melodies, sounds, and harmonic

relationships over time” (2008). Other cognitive benefits of using music in the classroom involve

building a “triune” brain, and increasing optimal functioning brain wave frequencies, allowing us

to process music and information emotionally and analytically.

First, it’s important to take inventory of what technology tools each classroom learning

environment has available. Once we have an idea of what type of equipment and resources we

have to work with, we must think about which tools are going to effectively facilitate learning

and active student engagement. Selecting music must be an intentional process including

appropriate criteria, consideration of genre and student interest, and available sources and

resources. Music elicits emotional effects and evocative visual imagery; emphases on lyrics

versus instruments can impact learning and memory. Surveying students is a great way to

involve them in the selection or suggestion process when deciding music for the classroom.

Finally, Berk offers ten basic techniques teacher may find useful for integrating music and

technology in learning: ​1. Prelude to Class and Class Opening Tune-Ups, 2. Opening Day

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Blockbusters, 3. Topic Introductions, 4. Content Grabbers, 5. Introductions to Class

Demonstrations, 6. Insertions into Collaborative Learning Productions, 7. Class Activity

Background Interludes, 8. Test Reviews with Games, 9. Postreview Pep Rally, 10. Posttest

Pick-Me-Ups.

Pop-culture pedagogy in the music classroom: teaching tools from American Idol to YouTube​ by

Nicole Biamonte.

Less emphasis was placed on this final resource, predominantly because the book

emphasizes using popular music and videos specifically within the context of a music classroom.

However, that does not mean information cannot transfer from one content area to another, such

as gathering information and knowledge that could be useful in an AP Psychology classroom.

This book outlines the benefits, intentional selection, teaching outcomes and teaching practices

for using popular music and media for music instruction.

Method

During the two-week preliminary data period, students were given bellringer questions to

start each class period. Predominantly, students answered questions via small group discussion.

Occasionally, students wrote answers on scrap sheets of paper for more independent thinking and

processing; typically preceding a larger classwide discussion. Bellringer questions always

specifically pertained to the days’ topic - either focusing on vocabulary terms, and/or

encouraging students to think about psychological phenomenon from personal perspectives.

During the initial two weeks of observation, students struggled to settle in the first five to

ten minutes of class, with the teacher wrestling to gain students’ attention and get underway for

the day. Most days hovered around the five minute mark, while other days extended to seven to

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ten minutes before getting into the days’ lesson. Students regularly left class to get their

textbooks, fill water bottles, and go to the restroom. The laidback nature the cooperating teacher

established allowed students to take this time settling in while they handled administrative tasks,

such as attendance or setting up a video for the day. The bellringer questions assigned during this

two week period helped students established a daily routine for the beginning of the hour.

Students noticeably engaged with their peers during small group discussion. However, responses

to bellringer questions in large group discussion tended to yield responses from the same three or

four students, with the remainder of the class relying on these folks to respond.

Action Research

During the action research project, each day started with some kind of music video

pertaining to the days’ topic. Most videos were of popular music - artists or groups the students

would recognize or at least heard about before. Bellringer questions were posed prior to the

video to generate critical thinking and discussion. Class discussion involved connecting the

video to the content, typically through pulling examples from the video and the students’

personal lives into the bellringer question discussion. Data collection included tracking the

number of students who left the room, the number of students who were attending to other things

or active in tasks interfering with their learning, and the amount of time it took for class to settle

in and prepare to start the day.

A slight change during the second phase of the project occured when we changed the

arrangement of the room. Rather than desks in rows facing the front board, desks were organized

into small groups, with four pods of six and two pods of four desks. The main focus of the

project - video of the day - remained during the second phase. Students continued watching

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popular music videos related to each days’ topic at the start of each class session. Bellringer

questions were posed before the video, and again after the video to generate class discussion

beginning the days’ lesson. During this second phase, Fridays focused more on general

discussion and connection before jumping into the lesson, allowing students opportunity for

directing conversation based on what they learned and observed in the video and throughout

class that week.

Results

Students warmly welcomed music videos at the beginning of class each day. The first

week still had many students leaving class to get books, drinks, or use the restroom. During the

second week of the first phase, students settled more into the routine, with most all students in

their seats engaged and prepared for the video within the first three minutes of class. There was a

noticeable increase in participation during this time frame, with five to ten students participating

daily compared to a regular three. Many topics of discussion yielded overwhelming amounts of

volunteers willing to share their experiences related to a specific topic. To allow students greater

opportunity to share, students often engaged in pair-share, pair-share-switch, and mixed small

group discussions to change format and mix up the pace. See the Figure 1 and Figure 2 below to

review the preliminary and phase one data.

Figure 1: Preliminary Data

(Data is combined for both classes, with 38 students total.)
Preliminary Data Day Day Day Day Day Day Day Day Day Day
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10

Number of students 12 9 9 10 12 10 12 8 9 10
leaving class

Number of inattentive 14 12 9 8 9 8 7 5 7 6
or active students

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 Minutes for class to 9 7 6 7 10 9 9 8 6 7
get settled and
engaged (average)

Figure 2: Phase One Data

(Data is combined for both classes, with 38 students total.)
Phase One Day Day Day Day Day Day Day Day Day Day
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10

Number of students 9 8 8 7 7 8 5 5 7 8
leaving class

Number of inattentive 5 6 6 10 5 6 5 3 2 4
or active students

Minutes for class to 8 7 7 6 5 4 3 3 2 3

get settled and
engaged (average)

Some of the most engaging videos and discussions included well known and popular

artists. Beyonce’s “Flawless” generated discussion on the topic of self-confidence and

self-image. Queen’s “Bohemian Rhapsody” started a class discussion beginning a lesson on

expressing and demonstrating emotion. Students were sparked by other videos during lessons on

universal emotion, such as: Gnarls Barkley’s “Crazy,” Kendrick Lamar’s “Love” and Disney’s

Inside Out emotion montage. Another lesson involving a Justin Bieber montage video activity

kept students particularly engaged and energized when starting a unit on child and adolescent

development. Since Justin Bieber was popular during these specific years for this group of

students, I asked them to write down specific memories related to each song from that time

period of their lives. At the end of the video, students shared some of their experiences as we

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built a type of classwide timeline showing development and highlighting key experiences in

childhood and adolescence.

During the second phase of the project, the rearrangement into groups seemed very

effective for fostering discussion. By this time, students were actively asking what video we

were watching that day as they walked into class, and sat down ready to get going with some

enthusiasm. Students were typically settled around two minutes on average, prepared with their

book. Fewer students left right at the beginning of the hour, though a couple specific regular

students would step out for their book or water. See [Figure 3] below to review the data for phase

two.

Figure 3: Phase Two Data

(Data is combined for both classes, with 38 students total.)
Phase Two Day Day Day Day Day Day Day Day Day Day
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10

Number of students 7 6 5 3 6 5 4 4 3 4
leaving class

Number of inattentive 5 3 4 4 3 3 2 2 1 4
or active students

Minutes for class to 4 3 2 1 2 3 2 1 2 3

get settled and
engaged (average)

Some of the most engaging videos and discussion included a mix of Disney, oldies, and

popular music again during this second phase. Students enjoyed watching the Inside Out

Emotions Theme Songs video as the context for discussing how we perceive and process

emotions. Students watched a man in a Facial Expression Queen Lip Syncing YouTube video

and then asked to discuss how he used facial expressions as a means of non verbal

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communication. Another YouTube video of a man named Chad using ASL to sign Nicki Minaj’s

“SuperBass” encouraged particularly engaged and enthusiastic discussion.

An additional set of assessment data was gathered during the action research project. As a

part of a major unit plan review, AP Psychology students were given a pre-assessment prior to

beginning Chapter 15: Personality, and a summative assessment in the form of the Chapter 15:

Personality unit test. Chapter 15 took place mainly during the first phase of the action research

project, with the review and test day taking place during the second phase of the project. All fifty

questions on both the pre-assessment and post-assessment or unit test were multiple choice, and

randomly selected using a textbook accompanying test generator, and the same pool of test

questions. Please see Figure 4 below to review the pre-assessment and post-assessment data.

Figure 4: Assessment Unit Plan Record Data

Chapter 15: Personality - AP Psychology
Unit Pre-Assessment & Post-Assessment Data

PRE-assessment PRE-assessment UNIT TEST UNIT TEST

Raw Score Percentage Raw Score Percentage

2nd Hour 8.5 34 % 37.5 75 %

Medians

6th Hour 8 32 % 37 74
Medians

2nd Hour 11 44 % 41 82 %
Modes

6th Hour 7 28 % 38 76 %
Modes

2nd Hour 8.55 34.2 % 36.25 72.5 %

Averages

6th Hour 9.1 34.6 % 34.9 69.8 %

Averages

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 TOTAL 8.83 34.4 % 35.58 71.15 %
Average

Discussion

This action research project led me to find that music videos are an engaging and

effective method for capturing students attention, and getting students ready to go at the

beginning of the class period. “Video of the Day” gave students an opportunity to get settled and

ready to learn, while still engaging with music and media, and conversation with their peers,

related to the days’ topic. Students became increasingly interested to see what the day’s video

was going to be, and frequently offered suggestions for the next day; and also videos, shows, and

movies to check out on my own town relevant to our content. Rather than taking anywhere from

five to ten minutes to get going, students were regularly in their seats by the bell, with very

minimal exiting the room - they didn’t want to miss the video of the day, and noticeably came

prepared to class. Once my cooperating teacher took back over the classroom, students were still

asking about the “Video of the Day” and discussing different videos that would be relevant for

the lesson that day.

After reflecting on the process, data collection, and action research project as a whole, I

was left with many questions and wonderings and potential for future research. For instance, how

might students become more actively involved in the video selection process? At the very

beginning, I asked students to write down on a scrap piece of paper music or videos they would

like to see, and most students mentioned wanting to see Vine videos. Though that wasn’t the

direction I wanted to take for this project, because I was not comfortable with that area of social

media, it left me wondering what would this project look like using Vine videos rather than

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music videos. Other areas of future research might include how the genre of music influences the

classes attentiveness and connection building moments, and whether music videos might help

during those last closing minutes at the end of class rather than the beginning.

If I were to conduct this action research again, I would like to get students more involved

in suggesting and selecting the videos for some of the days. Anonymous comment cards and a

collection box might provide an inviting opportunity for students to offer suggestions or

feedback. Another wondering centered on the idea of implementing themes or designated days

throughout the week. For example: Mondays - Classic/Oldies, Tuesdays - Rock, Wednesdays -

Rap/Hip-Hop, Thursdays - Funk/R&B/Soul, Fridays - Student Choice. This project also sparked

an idea for a student-centered project-based learning activity involving students creating their

own music playlists or music videos to demonstrate their understanding of a given subject, key

person, or important concept.

We cannot draw any direct causal link between test scores and the “Video of the Day”

bellringer activity students engaged throughout this unit. However, it can be stated with

confidence that “Video of the Day” was a meaningful and effective way to engage students at the

beginning of class and prime thoughts and discussion related to the days’ topic. Some videos

generate greater investment than others, and that’s okay. This process created an established

routine that was fun, helped get us going with class, and kept students’ interest. Sharing music

with students, and hearing their connections, thoughts, ideas, and perspective on relating music

to psychological concepts helped maintain a warm, inviting, and interactive learning

environment.

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 Works Cited

Berk, R. A. (2008). Use of Technology and Music to Improve Learning. ​NES

Publications​, 45-76. Retrieved from
https://images.pearsonassessments.com/images/NES_Publications/2008_12Berk_13012_
1.pdf

Biamonte, N. (Ed.). (2011). ​Pop-Culture Pedagogy in the Music Classroom: Teaching

Tools from American Idol to YouTube​ (First ed.). N.p.: The Scarecrow Press, Inc.

Ferroni, N. (2012, November 8). Using Music in the Classroom to Educate, Engage and
Promote Understanding. ​Huffington Post​. Retrieved from

https://www.huffingtonpost.com/nicholas-ferroni/music-in-the-classroom_b_2072777.html

Martinez, T. A. (1994, July). Popular Music in the Classroom: Teaching Race, Class, and
Gender with Popular Culture. ​American Sociological Association​, 22(3), 260-265.

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