Abstract
User-generated tutorial videos are quickly emerging as a new form of technical communication, one that relies on text, images, video, and sound alike to convey a message. In this article, we present an approach—a rubric—for assessing the instructional content of tutorial videos that considers the specific roles of modal and multimodal content in effective delivery. The rubric is based on descriptive data derived from a constant comparative study of user-rated YouTube videos.
Notes
IRB exemption (February 2010).
All videos were sampled just before YouTube changed its rating system from a 5-star system to thumb up/down.
Usability and validity were verified by an instructor of technical communication who rated six sample videos, as the authors had done.
As of June 30, 2011.