){kind=logo}
){kind=icon}
){kind=logo}
){kind=icon}
With gongbang or “study with me” videos, South Korean students offer virtual sessions on YouTube to motivate others to learn and feel accompanied.
A new trend has been on the rise on the internet: gongbang (공방), or “study with me,” trying to see other people study and is originally from South Korea. The word is a combination of gongbu (공부) which means “study” and bangsong (방송), which refers to “live broadcast.” Putting them together results in gongbang, that is, “studio broadcast.”
The concept is simple; a student transmits videos of himself studying in almost complete silence for hours to hundreds of viewers. Some records from a cafe, others from the library, some include rain and music. Some show his face in the broadcast, others just his writings and class material. This concept is not at all innovative; they belong to the same niche as the “mukbang,” or transmissions of people eating and, reports The Guardian, it has existed since 2018. However, for thousands of students locked up by the pandemic, the feeling of companionship they provide has recently made the popularity of gongbang spike.
Those who broadcast these sessions, also known as vloggers, stand out Kim Dong-min, whose most popular video has more than 400,000 views and one hour long. It has videos of up to more than three hours, recorded in different places taking advantage of the environmental sounds of each space to which it goes.
Many specialize in the “Pomodoro” technique, a time management method that divides and complements work or study sessions with short breaks. It is based on using a timer that divides work or study sessions into fixed 25-minute intervals called pomodoros. For example, a student concentrates for 25 minutes without stopping, rests 5 minutes, repeats it three times, and, finally, rests 15 minutes before starting again, if necessary. Each of these videos uses different times within the Pomodoro technique. Among the most popular is 5/25, but 10/50 can also be found, which divides an hour into fifty minutes of study with a ten-minute break. Another characteristic element of these videos is the sessions’ duration, which can exceed eight hours using this technique, while others do not exceed one hour.
The community that surrounds these YouTube accounts is very supportive and motivating. Unlike many other vlogs, gongbang is characterized by little editing, which does not go beyond adding a stopwatch to the image. This naturalness gives accompaniment to the study sessions to the viewers of the videos. Its popularity comes from recreates the feeling of being accompanied when studying, something that many seek after months of being stuck at home. Also, because many videos follow the Pomodoro method and display a stopwatch, students can efficiently study alongside the video. This helps keep them motivated and pay more attention to what they do. There are also cases where observers feel a rivalry with the one who is filming and struggles to concentrate and read more than they or to answer things faster.
Although they sound boring, they serve as a constant stimulus to keep working and avoid the background’s distractions. They can even share tips and test information through comments. Other popular videos with similar topics include tips for better learning and taking notes, focusing techniques, memorization tips, and organizational and productivity tips.
Within the world of gongbang, one of the most popular areas is medicine because of the dedication that the career entails. One of the most viewed videos on this trend is of a medical student. It has over 7.2 million views and was published in 2017 by “The Strive Studies.”
The student is seen using the Pomodoro technique and shows the stopwatch, making it easier for others to keep up with her study. The video comments are dominated by people talking about how well they did in their classes and tests after watching the video and that it helped them focus.
Although this trend is mainly Korean, it has spread around the world. Many of the vloggers confess that they started recording because they were looking for the pressure of feeling observed to focus or because it was a way to show their parents that they were dedicating their time to their studies. It is important to mention that, in South Korean culture, students spend more than 12 hours glued to their books in preparation for their university entrance exams.
While this trend began long before the pandemic happened, it has gained more popularity in the last year as students look for different ways to feel accompanied and motivated during the pandemic. A pandemic that is not only about COVID-19 but also about loneliness, overwhelm, and procrastination.
Translation by Daniel Wetta.
){kind=icon}
){kind=icon}
This article from Observatory of the Institute for the Future of Education may be shared under the terms of the license CC BY-NC-SA 4.0 
)