This study contributes to the service learning (SL) literature by providing new empirical evidence of learning from a problem-based SL research project conducted in a developmental research methods course. Two sections of the course taught in a traditional manner were compared to two sections of the course taught with an integrated SL project…

The worked-example effect, an application of cognitive load theory, is a well-supported method of instruction for well-structured problems (Chandler and Sweller, 1991; Cooper and Sweller, 1987; Sweller and Cooper, 1985; Tuovinen & Sweller, 1999; Ward and Sweller, 1990). One limitation is expertise-reversal effect, where advanced students…

Three experiments were performed to extend the research using the Subject Matter Trainer (SMT), an early teaching machine. Various training modes were compared. In all three experiments, the subject's task was to learn adjective pairs. Experiment I used the anticipation method. A test slide was shown first with an adjective singled out at the top…

An experiment testing the effectiveness of various types of programed instruction employed the following format variables: (1) hierarchical summaries presented prior to the problems, (2) summary statements presented after and relevant to each missed problem, and (3) step-by-step problem solving procedures presented after and relevant to each…

Three strategies frequently employed in individualized instruction were tested in a three-way repeated measures design that involved eight computer exercises over a period of 6 weeks. Exercises compared individual with paired study, pretests with no pretests, and serial with parallel mastery. Posttests revealed an advantage for individual study…

Compares PLATO and non-PLATO student performance in an introductory computer programing course at the University of Illinois. Results indicate that PLATO students would recommend PLATO to friends, that the drop rate was higher for PLATO students than for non-PLATO, but that performance was equal for both groups. (RAO)

This chapter highlights some specific differences encountered between K-12 and higher education settings as a way to provide context for several research studies under way in engineering education. Specifically, this chapter highlights differences in three aspects of an academic learning environment: faculty, students, and subject matter.

Eighty college students with no computer programing experience were the subjects of a study to determine the effects of the use of advanced organizers and subject control of instruction on performance. Students either received a logical or a scrambled sequence of instructional frames on computer programing, were either allowed to alter the order…

Closed circuit television equipment was used to produce two versions of a program on the psychology of learning for showing to student teachers. Program A was designed in accordance with the suggestion that the more a presentation approximates reality, the more effective it will be. Program B was designed in accordance with the suggestion that a…

This study investigated the effects of (1) verbal instruction alone vs. verbal instruction complemented by simple line drawings; (2) visual testing vs. nonvisual testing; (3) verbal cueing vs. free recall on achievement; and (4) order of testing on subsequent achievement. Interactions among type of instruction, type of testing, and order of…

A study was made to determine whether instructional cues presented to the learner as variations of audiovisual and textual information including a cue summation condition (combined textual, pictorial, and auditory cues) can facilitate the achievement of precise instructional objectives. Some 112 education students enrolled in a course on mental…

INSCAL multidimensional scaling, an objective methodology for formulating effective technical information sequences for computer-assisted instruction, was shown to be of value with respect to defining the information complexity of technical material, developing sequences of key concepts within technical material, and providing an index of expert…

A research project involving 16 experiments investigated the nature of the encoding process for verbal materials, particularly differences arising from mode of presentation. The results showed that a change in mode of presentation of items produced a recovery from interference in short term retention. Since intermodal interference was lower than…

To investigate the effects of background music on perception and retention of a dramatic television presentation's cognitive content, 107 English literature students were randomly assigned to one of five background treatments for a play. Four of the videotaped presentations included background music; Shostakovich's Symphony No. 6; Japanese jazz;…

During 12 years of investigation, data were obtained from 2,500 high school students and 10,000 college students concerning the effect of specific types of visualizations in producing optimum levels of achievement. The studies considered such qualities of illustrations as: realism, color, relation to oral presentations, relation to educational…