The use of multimedia instructions for online learning has become very common particularly with the advances of the Internet technology. Consequently museums around the world utilize such information and communications technology (ICT) tools in order to provide richer learning experiences for their visitors. This paper discusses a study that…

The earth is in an environmental crisis that can only be addressed by changing human conservation attitudes. People must have the scientific knowledge to make informed decisions. Research identifying new promising practices, for the use of live animals that incorporate new theories of learning and factors proven to impact learning, is critical. …

Normative adult age-related decrements are well documented for many diverse forms of effortful cognitive processing. However, it is currently unclear whether each of these decrements reflects a distinct and independent developmental phenomenon, or, in part, a more global phenomenon. A number of studies have recently been published that show…

Negation, conjunction, and disjunction are major building blocks in the formation of concepts. This article presents a new model-based theory of these Boolean components. It predicts that individuals simplify the models of instances of concepts. Evidence corroborates the theory and challenges alternative accounts, such as those based on minimal…

This meta-analysis integrates 296 effect sizes reported in eye-tracking research on expertise differences in the comprehension of visualizations. Three theories were evaluated: Ericsson and Kintsch's ("Psychol Rev" 102:211-245, 1995) theory of long-term working memory, Haider and Frensch's ("J Exp Psychol Learn Mem Cognit" 25:172-190, 1999)…

Literature has long been used as a source for reading materials in English as a first language (L1). In recent years, there has been a growing interest in utilizing literature in second language (L2) classrooms. The present article assumes that using literature in L2 reading can have the same effect as in L1. Integrating literature into L2…

A quantitative, quasi-experimental study of the effectiveness of computer-based scientific visualizations for concept learning on the part of Year 11 physics students (n = 80) was conducted in six Queensland high school classrooms. Students' gender and academic ability were also considered as factors in relation to the effectiveness of teaching…

Hemianopic reading and visual exploration impairments are well-known clinical phenomena. Yet, it is unclear whether they are primarily caused by the hemianopic visual field defect itself or by additional brain injury preventing efficient spontaneous oculomotor adaptation. To establish the extent to which these impairments are visually elicited we…

The generation manipulation has been critical in delineating differences between implicit and explicit memory. In contrast to past research, the present experiments indicate that generating from a rhyme cue produces as much perceptual priming as does reading. This is demonstrated for 3 visual priming tasks: perceptual identification, word-fragment…

This study aimed to describe the benefits of memory training for older adults with low education. Twenty-nine healthy older adults with zero to two years of formal education participated. Sixteen participants received training based on categorization (categorization group = CATG) and 13 received training based on mental images (imagery…

Two independent lines of research--mental simulations and thought experiments--provide strong arguments about the importance of perceptual modalities for the instructional practices in science education. By situating the use of mental simulations in the framework of thought experiments, this study investigated the nature and the role of mental…

In this study, we examine how subjects set up, transform, and reason with models that they establish on the basis of known facts as they seek to explain a familiar everyday phenomenon--the phases of the moon. An interview schedule was designed to elicit subjects' reasoning, and in the case where explanations were mistaken, to induce a change in…

A system for construction of simple poster-board models is described. The models dynamically demonstrate the symmetry operations of proper rotation, improper rotation, reflection, and inversion for the chemically important point groups D[subscript 3h], D[subscript 4h], D[subscript 5h], D[subscript 6h], T[subscript d], and O[subscript h]. The…

Research (Fish, 2004) suggests that everybody should be taught how to freehand sketch and utilise it as a tool for supporting the visualising instinct. A fundamental shift in philosophy of the technology education system in Ireland towards design driven subjects brought with it a need to develop practising teacher's technological capabilities.…

Researchers from different disciplines have attempted to investigate the way in which people who are blind conceptualize and perceive elements of the spatial environment. Most of the studies that are reported in the literature use an experimental approach based on measurements of the performance in test situations of people who are blind or people…