The COVID-19 pandemic forced many applied economics courses to switch from synchronous, face-to-face instruction to an online format. A strategy for some instructors is to pre-record lectures for asynchronous viewing by students. I provide commentary on observed viewing behavior of pre-recorded lectures in an applied economics course and suggest ways to improve construction of asynchronous material. I observe students delaying viewing until assignments are due, skipping over lecture material and scrubbing to the “hands-on” portions of the videos, losing attention after approximately 20 minutes, and watching primarily on larger screens. Instructors may wish to consider posting lecture notes separately, with shorter videos covering only hands-on activities to improve student engagement.

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