The idea was explored that different subjects may use qualitatively different encoding strategies with the same information presented within the same experimental situation. The premise was also studied that different strategies may be evoked by subtle differences in advance instructions or in the context of the task. (Author/MH)

In a series of five experiments, novices read a text on computer programming, and engaged in one of the following learning strategies: advance organizer, model elaboration, comparative elaboration, normal reading (control). Results of transfer tests indicated a pattern in which the treatment groups excelled on the ability to put the information…

In five experiments, novices read a computer programing text and engaged in one of these learning strategies: advance organizer, model elaboration, comparative elaboration, normal reading. Results of transfer and recall tests suggested that elaboration techniques can be applied to "real-world" materials, resulting in more integrated…

English-speaking college students (n=103) enrolled in a German course read a German story presented by a computer program which allowed them to choose a verbal or visual (picture or video clip) translation. Students remembered word translations better when they saw both annotations. Implications for a theory of multimedia learning are discussed.…

Examines the six categories that make up the cognitive process dimension of Bloom's Taxonomy Table, as well as the 19 specific cognitive processes that fit within them. After describing three learning outcomes, the paper focuses on retention versus transfer of learning and rote versus meaningful learning, discussing how teaching and assessment can…

In the pair of experiments reported here the authors investigated the relationship between meaningfulness of problem statements and subjects' use of these statements in problem-solving tasks. Subjects (96 university students) were required to memorize meaningful formulae such as "volume = area x height" or corresponding symbolic formulae such as…

Five instructional techniques for increasing the meaningfulness of technical or scientific information are summarized: (1) organization of prose; (2) use of concrete analogy and advance organizers; (3) use of inserted questions in prose; (4) elaboration activities such as note taking; and (5) discovery learning. Research on each technique is…

Explains a generative theory of textbook design and describes three experiments that compared college students' solutions on transfer problems after reading science texts with illustrations adjacent to corresponding text and including annotations, and illustrations separated from text without annotations. (LRW)

In 3 experiments, 163 college students who read a summary with a sequence of short captions with simple illustrations depicting steps in a process recalled the steps and solved transfer problems as well as or better than students who received the full text with a summary or alone. (SLD)

Tests the hypothesis that personalized messages in a multimedia science lesson can promote deep learning by actively engaging students in the elaboration of the materials and reducing processing load. Instructional messages were presented in either a personalized style or a neutral style. Results reveal that personalized messages produced better…

College students, in three experiments, learned to recite a counting pattern in the base three number system. Although all subjects learned to a criterion of two errorless trials, learning with different rule systems resulted in different levels of understanding and performance on transfer tasks. (GDC)

Three experiments investigated the effects of note taking on "what is learned" by college undergraduates from videotaped lectures. The results suggest that note taking can result in a broader learning outcome, rather than just more learning overall, because an assimilative encoding process is encouraged. (Author/GDC)

In three experiments, subjects listened to a taped lecture on the topic of exposure meters for 35-mm cameras and were tested after one, two, or three presentations. Results suggest that repetition produces both a quantitative increase in amount learned and a qualitative change in the reader's processing strategy. (Author/LMO)

Examines the design of multimedia learning environments as a case example of the intertwined and reciprocal relation between cognition and instruction. Explores the contributions of cognitive theory to multimedia design issues and the contributions of multimedia design issues to cognitive theory. (EV)

Subjects read a text concerning a new computer programing language, with an advance organizer given either before or after reading. On a recall test, there were different patterns of performance. Results suggested that the locus of the effect was at encoding rather than retrieval. (Author/GDC)