Conferences as coaching opportunities: a case study of an assignment incorporating student-produced videos

To ensure student engagement and optimal preparation of the future workforce, academic educators frequently and repeatedly update curricula and pedagogic approaches. Evaluation of these updates often focuses on how well the chosen educational technique achieves its goal. For updates that add a new learning goal, it is important that evaluation considers the value of the goal in a crowded curriculum. Peer-to-peer feedback and coaching provides a low-investment and timely method of evaluation and can be facilitated by conferences focused on pedagogy. This coaching article uses a case study of an assignment for postgraduate students incorporating student-produced videos developed independently at three Australian universities. The authors learned of one another’s work in preparation for delivering presentations at a conference focused on teaching public health and decided to collaborate on a single workshop. In the process, they reinforced and expanded their understanding of the benefits and important considerations for a video assignment and engaged in two-way coaching with conference delegates from across Australasia. Benefits include teaching students skills that will become increasingly important in their future careers, the potential for enhanced student engagement due to novelty, and resistance to plagiarism. Important considerations include explaining the aim and parameters of the assessment as well as minimizing student anxiety. Preparation for the workshop led to refinements in some of the assessments. This article is simultaneously an affirmation of the value of peer-to-peer coaching opportunities that can arise at pedagogy conferences and an argument for the value of video assignments in public health education.