The effects of instruction integrating pictorial and textual components in a fifth and a seventh grade Social Studies lesson were investigated. Measures of recall were examined both immediately after the lesson and after a two week delay. Experimental instruction focusing on the integration of illustrations with the expository text was compared to the more conventional classroom procedure of focusing on the written text through guided silent reading. The fifth grade experimental group outperformed the conventional group on all measures of immediate and delayed recall. The seventh grade experimental group had higher scores than the conventional group on one delayed measure of recall, a short answer test. No particular reading ability level was benefited more than another by the experimental treatment in either grade. An examination of gender differences revealed that fifth grade females in the experimental group outscored males on one immediate measure of recall, a short answer test. Implications for instruction and further research are discussed. / Education, Faculty of / Language and Literacy Education (LLED), Department of / Graduate

No description available.

Spelling and vocabulary performance as measured by pre-tests and post-intervention performance for the two strategies showed that average overall improvements resulted from the use of kinesthetic teaching methodologies when compared with visual (only) methods.

Many students on the autism spectrum display a strong ability to process and comprehend information at elevated levels when presented with it visually. Despite this, students who have autism are increasingly being educated in general education content classrooms that utilize lessons directed to whole groups of students and limit the use of visually presented material. For some students with an autism spectrum disorder (ASD), this presentation introduces difficulties related to attention as well as comprehension and retention of material. Research indicates promising results associated with using a graphic organizer to increase comprehension accuracy in students who answer wh-questions following the reading of a short passage. The purpose of this study was to document the relationship between using a graphic organizer and increasing reading comprehension. The study employed a single-subject multiple baseline design across participants to evaluate if the use of a graphic organizer impacted the correctness of answering wh-questions for grade-level social studies content. Participants included four eighth grade students in an urban public school who had been diagnosed with ASD. Results supported research by showing an increase in comprehension skills with the use of a graphic organizer.

<p>CAL (Computer Assisted Learning) programs are widespread today in schools and families due to the effectiveness of CAL programs in improving students’ learning and task performance. The flourishing of CAL programs in education has brought large amounts of students’ learning data including log data, performance data, mouse movement data, eye movement data, video data, etc. These data can present students’ learning or problem-solving processes and reflect underlying cognitive processes. These data are valuable resources for educators to comprehend students’ learning and difficulties. However, few data analysis methods can analyze and present CAL data for educators quickly and clearly. Traditional video analysis methods can be time-consuming. Current visualization analysis methods are limited to simple charts or visualizations of a single data type. In this dissertation, I propose a visual learning analytic approach to analyze and present students' problem-solving data from CAL programs. More specifically, a visualization system was developed to present students’ problem-solving data, including eye movement, mouse movement, and performance data, to help educational researchers understand student problem-solving processes and identify students’ problem-solving strategies and difficulties. An evaluation experiment was conducted to compare the visualization system with traditional video analysis methods. Seven educational researchers were recruited to diagnose students’ problem-solving patterns, strategies, and difficulties using either the visualization system or video. The diagnosis task loads and evaluators’ diagnosis processes were measured and the evaluators were interviewed. The results showed that analyzing student problem-solving tasks using the proposed visualization method was significantly quicker than using the video method. In addition, diagnosis using the visualization system can achieve results at least as reliable as the video analysis method. Evaluators’ preferences between the two methods are summarized and illustrated in the dissertation. Finally, the implications of the visual analytic approach in education and data visualization areas are discussed. </p>

Teaching computational thinking has been a focus of recent efforts to broaden the reach of computer science (CS) education for today’s students who live and work in a world that is heavily influenced by computing principles. Computational thinking (CT) essentially means thinking like a computer scientist by using principles and concepts learned in CS as part of our daily lives. Not only is CT essential for the development of computer applications, but it can also be used to support problem solving across all disciplines. Computational thinking involves solving problems by drawing from skills fundamental to CS such as decomposition, pattern recognition, abstraction, and algorithm design. The present study examined how Dr. Scratch, a CT assessment tool, functions as an assessment for computational thinking. This study compared strengths and weaknesses of the CT skills of 360 seventh- and eighth-grade students who were engaged in a Scratch programming environment through the use of Dr. Scratch. The data were collected from a publicly available dataset available on the Scratch website. The Mann-Whitney U analysis revealed that there were specific similarities and differences between the seventh- and eighth-grade CT skills. The findings also highlight affordances and constraints of Dr. Scratch as a CT tool and address the challenges of analyzing Scratch projects from young Scratch learners. Recommendations are offered to researchers and educators about how they might use Scratch data to help improve students’ CT skills.

Media literacy is a competency needed for success in the 21st century yet a clear purpose does not exist that is useful in curriculum design. The purpose of this study was to investigate a combined (eclectic) approach to media literacy education according to selected international media literacy organizations. Determining an eclectic approach from subject area experts will be useful in designing and integrating media literacy curriculum. Methodologically, this study was a qualitative content analysis and is thematic in nature using a constant comparative method of analysis. Supporting frameworks were established through standards based curriculum development and Schwab’s (1969, 1971, 1973, 1983) ideas of practical deliberation. Purposive heterogeneous sampling was utilized in identifying media literacy organizations from countries considered leaders in media education. This included organizations from Australia, Canada, and the United Kingdom. The primary approaches throughout all identified countries include an arts, critical, literacy, protectionist, and tool approach to media literacy. Through the process of curriculum deliberation, it is necessary to reconcile these approaches into one eclectic approach. Although individual subject areas may focus on one approach, it is important to consider all approaches equally during curriculum deliberation. In comparing an eclectic approach to Florida language arts standards (modeled after the Common Core State Standards), it was discovered that an eclectic approach to media literacy is not present. These standards focus almost exclusively on a literacy approach despite state statue requiring the full integration of media literacy. Language arts standards also remain focused on print media despite acknowledging that students should be prepared for success in the 21st century. This is a media saturated world and every subject should implement media literacy principles and approaches that prepare students to succeed in it. / Includes bibliography. / Dissertation (Ph.D.)--Florida Atlantic University, 2016. / FAU Electronic Theses and Dissertations Collection

The purpose of this experimental study was to investigate the effect of stereoscopic three-dimensional (S3D) images on productive and receptive recall of foreign language vocabulary. S3D images are highly-realistic and differ from non-stereoscopic three-dimensional (NS3D) images in that they provide the impression of the added third dimension of depth. This within-subject study exposed the participants (N = 82) in a controlled setting to a series of carefully designed and randomly distributed NS3D and S3D images. The subjects were then given immediate productive and receptive tests of foreign language vocabulary items that were represented by NS3D and S3D images. Quantitative data consisted of the scores from the vocabulary tests. Qualitative data, gathered through background questionnaires and follow-up surveys, included a mixture of open-ended and Likert questions. The statistical analyses of the data using a series of paired t-tests showed NS3D and S3D images to be equally effective for vocabulary recall. In addition, significantly more subjects found S3D images to be engaging and/or more useful, while subjects also indicated that they perceived the main benefits of learning with S3D images to come from enhanced focus, realism, engagement, and association. At the same time, some learners reported being distracted and experiencing discomfort while viewing S3D images. Post hoc tests revealed that lower performance on S3D images was driven only by those subgroups that exhibited discomfort and / or lack of experience with S3D technology.

Dual coding theory implies that engaging multiple modalities (e.g., visual, auditory) in instruction enhances learning. Presenting information via 3D images and 3D animations appears to improve student performance but the results are inconsistent across multiple studies. The present study investigated the effect of the Sensavis visual learning tool, a 3D educational software, on performance in chemistry among students in a Swedish elementary school. Thirty-seven students from grades 7 and 9 received training involving a 3D animation on chemical bonds while nineteen students in grade 8 had traditional instruction. ANCOVA results controlling for age and average chemistry grade revealed a statistically significant difference in the posttest performance with the control group outperforming both experimental groups. These results indicate that the Sensavis tool did not have a positive effect on learning chemistry compared to traditional instruction. Interpretation of the results is presented in discussion. / Enligt “dual coding theory” hjälper det att kombinera flera sätt att inta information (t.ex. visuellt, verbalt) inom lärandet. Presentation av information genom 3D-bilder och 3D-animationer verkar förbättra prestation bland elever, men resultaten är inkonsekventa i flera studier. Denna studie undersökte effekten av ett visuellt verktyg från Sensavis, en  pedagogisk programvara med 3D-animationer, på prestation inom kemi bland elever i en svensk grundskola. Trettiosju elever från årskurs 7 och 9 använde en 3D-animering om kemisk bindning förutom föreläsningar, medan nitton elever i årskurs 8 fick traditionell undervisning. ANCOVA-resultat som kontrollerade för ålder och kemibetyg visade att kontrollgruppen presterade bättre än bägge experimentgrupperna. Dessa resultat tyder på att Sensavis-verktyget inte hade en positiv effekt på lärande i kemi jämfört med traditionell undervisning. Tolkningen av resultaten presenteras i diskussion.

Thesis (M. Tech.) -- Central University of Technology, Free State, 2009 / Contradictory results are reported regarding the value of external representations such as dynamic and static visuals in a learning environment (Lowe 1999; Hanzen, Narayanan & Hegarty 2002; Weiss, Knowlton and Morrison 2002; Bodemar, Ploetzner, Feuerlein & Spada 2004; Bodemar & Ploetzner 2004; Moreno & Valdez 2005; Höffler & Loetner 2007). Some of the recent findings indicate little or no significant differences between static and dynamic visuals. This study looks at studies that used a variety of external representations to facilitate different learning tasks. A ―two journal article‖ format was adopted for Chapter 2 and 3 respectively. The first article, i.e. Chapter 2, is a review of the literature and provides a theoretical background to the research topic. Chapter 2 reviews theories and empirical studies regarding learning with text, dynamic and static visuals, and examines the conditions under which external representations facilitate learning. Subjects‘ prior knowledge, the content of the instructional material and the testing method are but some of the variables that can determine if graphic medium can increase a subject‘s comprehension and if such comprehension can be accurately measured. Chapter 2 also presents a model that suggests how dynamic and static visuals can be used in a learning environment. The second article, i.e. Chapter 3, presents an animation for a specific learning task in order to test the hypothesis that this external representation may improve the comprehension of a linear scientific process. Tertiary students (N = 61) participated in a pre-test and post-test experimental study during which they were exposed to 4 treatment variables: text (T), video and text (VT), illustration and text (IT), and animation and text (AT). It was hypothesised that the group who received the animation and text treatment would comprehend the linear process better than the control group (text only) and the other two groups (text and illustration; text and video). The question that was asked to explore this comparison therefore was: Can animation be used to improve comprehension of instructional text? The results indicate that no significant differences in achievement existed among the treatment groups. The results of the study show that dynamic visuals with text can have essentially the same effect on students' understanding of a particular process as static visual with text. It is further acknowledged that the subjects‘ prior knowledge, the content of the instructional material and the testing method are but some of the variables that can determine if an external representation can increase a subject‘s comprehension and if such comprehension can be accurately measured.