Webcams on or off? In synchronous learning and collaboration settings, the appropriate use of webcams has been debated. In this session, learn about how activity systems analysis was used to synthesize findings from three online learning studies and generate recommendations to guide policy, instructional design, and facilitation for webcam use.

SESSION TOPIC OVERVIEW: Webcam Use for Learning and Collaboration In the last decade, synchronous videoconferencing use has surged in educational settings. This phenomenon may be attributed to a number of reasons, including technology advancements (improved bandwidth; the prevalence of cameras built into phones, tablets and laptops; increased availability of conferencing software like Zoom), the reliance on such technology during the COVID-19 pandemic's period of emergency remote instruction, and the subsequent continued use of this technology for varied purposes (e.g., supplementary course sessions, collaboration, office hours, etc.). Although educators and students swiftly acclimated to synchronous learning during the pandemic, not all enjoyed the experience. Some of the struggles people experienced were pedagogical, but others reflected a controversial topic: webcam use. Research conducted during the last few years has found that as a default, students are more likely to have cameras off than on (Bedenlier et al., 2021), follow the examples set by their peers and to prefer passive engagement in their synchronous classes (Dennen, 2021, 2022), although they are generally aware that using cameras supports presence and communication (Sederevičiūtė-Pačiauskienė et al., 2022). Although not the only means of supporting synchronous class community (Belt & Lowenthal, 2022), when faculty teach in a virtual room of faceless boxes it can be difficult to engage students (Lowenthal et al., 2021). Still, faculty and student perceptions differ on the value of webcam use to increase social presence (Yeung et al., 2022), and non-pandemic norms for webcam use in classes have yet to be fully established. PURPOSE, RESEARCH QUESTIONS, AND APPROACH This session investigates the tensions related to webcam use in higher education settings, considering the interplay of instructor and student expectations and preferences across contexts. It is anchored around the findings of a study using activity systems analysis (Yamagata-Lynch, 2010) to understand the complex system of technology, rules, and division of labor that govern choices and policies related to webcam use. The research questions guiding this meta-level study are: 1. What are the major tensions for instructors related to personal and student webcam use? 2. What are the major tensions for students related to personal, instructor, and peer webcam use? 3. What guidelines and practices can help instructors and students better navigate educational webcam use across varied learning and collaboration contexts? The data sources for this current study are three datasets collected during prior studies conducted by the presenter. The first study is an interview study investigating how instructors perceive and use webcams during their teaching and other professional duties. Twenty-eight instructors participated in this study. The second is a survey of 278 university students exploring their perceptions of transactional distance and social presence when webcams are used to support synchronous learning. The third is an interview study of 29 university students examining norms and practices related to webcam use choices. While each of these studies addressed its own unique research questions, the datasets also can be used to address the research questions raised in this activity systems analysis. Activity systems analysis involves dissecting complex human activities into seven different elements. The contextual elements are: rules, tools, community, and division of labor. Operating within these contextual elements are subjects seeking to meet an objective and, in the process, achieving varied outcomes. In the context of this study, the subjects are students and instructors, and their presumed objects are, respectively, learning and teaching online. Their outcomes reflect the interplay of the various elements. Once the elements of a specific activity system are defined, tensions within the system can be identified. These tensions identify points where different elements or components of a single element are in conflict with each other, potentially challenging the subject, creating new outcomes, or changing the subject’s path or ability to achieve their initial objective. FINDINGS AND IMPLICATIONS In the webcam context, tensions arise between various points including: • Following an instructor’s webcam policy versus following the example set by classmates • Taking notes during class and looking at the camera (appearing to pay attention) • Being seen by an instructor and being visible to an entire class • Learning as a private activity and learning while one’s image is being recorded • Permitting privacy (i.e., cameras off) and promoting interaction among learners • Permitting privacy (i.e., cameras off) and being responsive to learner feedback These tensions lie at the intersection of instructor and learner communication needs, vulnerability, and personal (dis)comfort. Additionally, there are tensions between the instructor-perspective activity system and the student-perspective activity system. The outcomes of these activity systems – in other words, what is learned from them – is a set of recommendations for online instructors to follow when developing synchronous online learning activities. These recommendations are situated in specific contexts relevant to synchronous learning: • Context 1: Lecture • Context 2: Discussion • Context 3: Breakout rooms • Context 4: Class size (varying sizes will be discussed) • Context 5: Office hours SESSION OUTLINE AND INTERACTION PLAN Although this session is rooted in research and will involve presenting findings from that research, interaction is built into the session. The focus of the interactions will be to engage participants in using the activity systems analysis approach to explore their own experiences with webcam use for synchronous learning and collaboration, and then to work together to identify recommendations for policy and instructional design and facilitation. During the session, each of the three original studies will be briefly reviewed, providing an overview of method and findings. Then the presenter will demonstrate, element by element, activity systems of synchronous learning with a focus on webcam use from the instructor and student perspective. While presenting the research-based activity system, participants will be engaged in first independently (using a handout / download) developing their own activity system related to webcam use and then collaboratively contributing to one. Once the research-based and collaborative activity systems are developed, the presenter will encourage the audience to contribute their recommendations for webcam use to a Padlet. Next, the presenter will share the recommendations derived from the research, and then the two lists of recommendations (research-based and participant-generated) will be compared and discussed. TAKEAWAYS FOR ATTENDEES At the end of this session, attendees will have developed a clear sense of decision points when developing policies and designing lessons for synchronous online environments. Using these decision points as an anchor, they will be able to identify potential tensions for both instructors and students and then to propose solutions that can meet the needs of different constituents. Additionally, they will develop a rudimentary sense of how the activity systems approach can be used to analyze learning activity contexts and make informed design decisions that are likely to either mitigate or stimulate tensions, whichever is desired. Finally, attendees will have the examples from the session to draw upon later: both the research-based activity systems and recommendations as well as the collaborative activity system and recommendations developed during the session.