Intact classes of university students viewed either a serious lecture or one of three versions of a humorous lecture. A test of comprehension and retention was given twice: immediately after the lecture and six weeks later. Results indicated that immediate comprehension was not facilitated by the use of humorous examples. (Author/MV)

This study examined whether the density of noncontingent outcomes limits instructor expressiveness as an effective teaching behavior in different lecture content conditions. Results indicated that for high-content lectures, instructor expressiveness facilitated achievement and confidence in students who received contingent and low noncontingent…

The "spacing" effect was examined in students' memory for paragraphs and brief lectures. In Experiment 1, students who read massed verbatim repetitions of paragraphs recalled less content than did students who read verbatim repetitions spaced across time. Experiment 2 replicated these results using a brief lecture as the to-be-learned material.…

Recognition memory for sentences from a classroom lecture was tested as a function of lecture instructions, length of retention interval, and item type. With immediate testing, subjects differentiated original sentences from reworded and inferential statements similar in meaning. Only inferences were recognized as not having been presented after…

Note-taking functions (encoding, encoding plus storage, and storage) and note-taking techniques (conventional, linear, and matrix) were studied for 96 college undergraduates. Results are explained in relation to repetition, generative processing, note completeness, and the potential of note-taking techniques to facilitate performance. (SLD)

How lecture note taking influences writing processes was studied in 4 experiments involving 392 undergraduates. The writing model of L. S. Flower and J. R. Hayes (1981) served as theoretical foundation. Results support the effects of external storage and encoding plus internal storage on writing processes. (SLD)

During a series of electronics lectures, college students used three kinds of notes: (1) duplicates of lecturer's notes; (2) headings, key points, diagram outlines, tables and references with spaces for additional information; and (3) students' own notes taken during lectures. Student preferences for type of notes, and achievement using the three…

This article describes how the effects of initial and final lecture quality on end-of-course student ratings can be predicted from seemingly unrelated gain-loss theory. The effects were investigated, along with the effect on ratings of student belief that the instructor will use midterm rating feedback to improve teaching. (Author)

College students (N=121) viewed videotaped lectures by a male or female actor using either expressive or nonexpressive communication. The expressive teacher received the highest evaluation score. The nonexpressive male teacher's students had the poorest test performance, the nonexpressive female teacher's students the highest. (Author/BS)

Two experiments were performed to examine the encoding function of note taking and processing differences between successful and less successful college students in lecture situations. Memory differences between these two student groups were interpreted as the result of factors occuring during note taking. Successful students engaged in greater…

A model of learning from instruction proposed that students perceive and cognitively respond to instructional stimuli before engaging learning processes per se. University students were trained to recognize only or to recognize and cognitively respond to teacher skills in lectures. Additional prelecture practice in recognition enhanced learning.…

Students tend to emphasize important information more than less important information in their lecture notes. Whether this strategy changes with lecture repetition was investigated in 3 experiments with 71 undergraduate students. Students' assessments and shifts of strategy with lecture repetition are discussed. (SLD)

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)

The accuracy and relations between 38 undergraduates' knowledge of content and origin of course information were examined. Results indicate a relationship between correct answers on a multiple-choice test and knowledge concerning the origin of information pertinent to the answers. Findings are discussed in terms of a reality-monitoring model. (TJH)

Study analyzes three dimensions of teaching quality perceived by Chinese students in Hong Kong, China: satisfaction with lecturing; satisfaction with course-design; and a self-rated measure of effort devoted to studying. Results reveal that the strongest effect on course ratings came from students' judgment of aspects of course design and…