Research demonstrates that seductive details negatively impact learning from instructional materials such as textbooks and learning modules. Yet, anecdotally, teachers and students consider seductive details an enhancement to classroom lectures. We examined this apparent disconnect by exploring the impact of seductive details in mathematics…

The purpose of this study was to examine the effects of a question-exploration routine and an associated graphic organizer on students' ability to think about and answer complex questions. Participants were 116 students of diverse abilities in seven 7th grade classes. The effects of the routine were compared with the effects of a traditional…

Subjects received either specific or general objectives before or after the four sections of the audiotaped lecture. A control group received no objectives. Results on the use of objectives with written text showed that the before position increased intentional learning more than the after position. Incidental learning was significantly higher…