Table 3.

Responses to the survey question ‘In your opinion, how does watching a lecture recording compare to attending a live lecture?’ 540 respondents provided a comment, resulting in 1188 codings.

Themes	Subthemes	% of codings	Illustrative quotes
Preference	Live lectures are better than recordings	13	‘Doesn't compare. Live lecture better’, ‘Attending a live lecture is more beneficial’, ‘I do prefer the live lecture, and a recording will never be as good’
	Lecture recordings are better than live lectures	10	‘Sometimes it's better and you can understand more than when attending a live lecture itself’, ‘I much prefer a recording…’
	No difference	5	‘They're the same’
Engagement	Better engagement in live lectures	6	‘I concentrate better at a live lecture than at home as less distractions’, ‘The recorded lecture/stream isn't as engaging or interactive. It's easier to focus and pay more attention at live lectures’
	Can focus better on recordings	3	‘I concentrate more watching a lecture recording because I'm usually revising or trying to understand a topic better’, ‘There are less distractions in the library or at home’
Options	Interaction with staff or peers	7	‘If you need to ask questions the live lecture is better’, ‘There is also the opportunity to interact with the lecturers after the session, as well as other students during and after the lectures’
	Problems with recordings	5	‘A lot of the time the audio is tricky so you can't always hear everything that was said. [And] if the lecturer is gesturing to one particular part of a diagram or text then you are unable to know what they are referring to’
	Allows watching at own pace	23	‘Can allow students to pause the stream, to make sure they understand the content before progressing further’, ‘Watching a lecture recording is more useful as you can pause it to give you time to keep up’
	Ability to repeat/ recap	13	‘Easier to clarify hard subjects by rewinding multiple times’, ‘It's better as if I didn't understand a word of what the lecturer was saying, I could go back and listen again’
	Better notes	11	‘[Recording] allows you to make more detailed notes’, ‘It's easier to take notes as you can pause it and write down a point’, ‘Takes longer to watch the recording, but I get more detailed notes as a result’
Environment	Choose the time and environment	2	‘I prefer being in my own living space’, ‘Makes it available to watch/catch up in your own time’