Learning today doesn’t just happen in classrooms. It also streams through screens, often in the form of engaging, educational content. As families turn to digital platforms for academic help, a new era of “edutainment” is transforming how kids study, stay curious, and connect with school subjects.
K12, a U.S-based online education provider delivering personalised schooling from kindergarten through to Year 12, surveyed more than 1,000 parents and K-12 teachers not affiliated with K12. What the company discovered sheds light on how creator-made content is being used to support learning, particularly as students engage with educational videos both in and outside of school.
The survey paints a striking picture of just how embedded online video has become in students’ academic lives. On average, students now spend 260 hours a year watching educational content on YouTube and similar platforms, with nearly three-quarters of parents saying their children regularly turn to YouTube for learning support.
That influence is clearly shaping aspirations, too. More than one in three parents report their child hopes to become an educational YouTuber or TikToker one day — a sign that for many young people, content creators are no longer just entertainers, but role models.
Parents are also seeing tangible academic benefits, with 89% saying their child’s grades have improved thanks to online educational videos. In classrooms, the shift is just as evident: about two-thirds of teachers have incorporated creator-made content into their lessons to capture students’ attention and reinforce key concepts.
Yet this digital pull comes with pressure. Over a third of teachers admit they’ve felt compelled to adjust their teaching style to mirror that of online creators — raising an important question about how far schools should go in competing with the algorithm for students’ engagement.
Educational Videos Boost Students Engagement
Niyoka McCoy, Chief Learning Officer at K12s parent company Stride says edutainment isn’t about making learning easier, but about making it stick.
“In K12-powered online classrooms, our teachers intentionally design instruction that captures attention, encourages participation, and turns passive screen time into active learning,” McCoy told The Educator.
“Our research found that nearly 90% of parents believe video-based learning is improving student outcomes, reinforcing what our educators see every day. When lessons are interactive, relevant, and thoughtfully designed for digital environments, students are more engaged and learning goes deeper.”
McCoy says it’s no wonder that more than a third of teachers in our survey (37%) say they feel pressure to adapt their teaching style to resemble that of a video creator.
“As students engage with content in new ways, online educators are evolving how they present instruction, not to entertain, but to ensure learning connects, resonates, and endures.”