Changes in the health care environment have impacted nursing workload, quality of care, and patient safety. Traditional nursing workload measures do not guarantee efficiency, nor do they adequately capture the complexity of nursing workload. Review of the literature indicates nurses perceive the quality of their work has diminished. Research has…

This paper takes a complexity theory approach to looking at language learning, an approach that investigates how language learners adapt to and interact with people and their environment. Based on interviews with four graduate students, it shows how complexity theory can help us understand both the situatedness of language learning and also…

Contradictory evidence has been reported on the effects of discovery learning approach and the role of instructional explanations. By manipulating the presence of instruction (verbal explanation) and transparency of problem structures, we investigated how effects of instructional explanations differed depending on the transparency of problem…

In recent years, the Australian Government has invested heavily ($2.4 b) into the Digital Education Revolution with initiatives that aim at increasing ICT proficiencies in teachers and school leaders and equipping Years 9-12 students with a laptop each. Such initiatives should be welcomed by the science education community as ICT offers…

The addition of video capabilities to portable media playing devices has engendered a broader definition of the term podcast to include video files. Current research designs on podcast use in education are neglectful of the considerations of cognitive load on student learning. Podcasting is the process by which multimedia learning objects (MLOs)…

Although distance educators are adopting electronic portfolios (eportfolios) for purposes of assessment and collaboration, some researchers question their utility in these venues. In a setting where feelings of isolation and attrition are high, this study examined how eportfolios affect cognitive load and student perceptions of support. The study…

The effects of self-pacing versus system-pacing were examined in different versions of a computer-based learning environment (static pictures/animations). The role of cognitive style was also considered. While the variables investigated did not have a direct impact on either learning outcome or cognitive load, significant interaction effects were…

Introduction: This study addresses two major issues with respect to cooperative learning. The study aims at experimentally investigating the function of positive resource interdependence and individual accountability on academic performance of individuals in cooperative learning. Method: To achieve the purpose a two by two randomized post-test…

We report tests of hypotheses derived from a theory of supportive communication outcomes that maintains the effects of supportive messages are moderated by factors influencing the motivation and ability to process these messages. Participants in two studies completed a measure of cognitive complexity, which provided an assessment of processing…

The scripts of 288 television episodes were analysed to determine the extent to which vocabulary reoccurs in television programs from the same subgenres and unrelated television programs from different genres. Episodes from two programs from each of the following three subgenres of the American drama genre: medical, spy/action, and criminal…

The purpose of this study has been to examine the impacts of aesthetic design on learner experience in an e-assessment environment, specifically on cognitive load and task performance. Sixty-six postsecondary students were randomly assigned to one of two aesthetic design configurations of the e-assessment environment: (1) an environment with low…

The purpose of this case study was to describe, assess, and compare the cognitive level of instruction, course objectives, instructional strategies, assessments, and the transdisciplinary nature of two post-secondary degree programs in sustainability. Instructional strategies in these programs included such methods as class presentations, group…

A WebQuest is an inquiry-based online learning technique. This technique has been widely adopted in K-16 education. Therefore, it is important that conditions of effective WebQuest design are defined. Through this article the author presents techniques for improving WebQuest design based on current research. More specifically, the author analyzes…

This study investigates effects of multimedia on cognitive load, self-efficacy and learners' ability to solve multiple rule-based problems. Two hundred twenty-two college students were randomly assigned to interactive and non-interactive multimedia groups. Based on Engelkamp's multimodal theory, the present study investigates the role of…

The substantial distractor interference obtained for small displays when the target appears alone is reduced in large displays when the target is embedded among neutral letters. This finding has been interpreted as reflecting low-load and high-load processing, respectively, thereby supporting the theory of perceptual load (Lavie & Tsal, 1994).…