The teaching and learning environment in a traditional classroom typically includes a projection screen, a projector, and a computer within a digital interactive table. Instructors may apply multimedia learning materials using various information communication technologies to increase interaction effects. However, a single screen only displays a…

Educators know that students create better projects when they are personally invested in the material. The rewards are particularly significant when students can exercise some degree of creativity in the process of developing their projects. One tried-and-true avenue for creative expression is through the use of stories or narratives. Simply…

Evidence-based approaches to the design of the next generation of interactive distance education need to take into account established multimedia learning principles. Cognitive load theory is a theory that has significantly contributed to the development of such principles. It has applied our knowledge of major features and processing limitations…

Can increasing the speed of audio narration in multimedia instruction decrease training time and still maintain learning? The purpose of this study was to examine the effects of time-compressed instruction and redundancy on learning and learners' perceptions of cognitive load. 154 university students were placed into conditions that consisted of…

To examine the visual attention, emotional responses, learning, perceptions and attitudes of learners interacting with an animated pedagogical agent, this study compared a multimedia learning environment with an emotionally-expressive animated pedagogical agent, with a non-expressive animated pedagogical agent, and without an agent. Visual…

This paper presents a feasible framework for building bridges between schools and homes to develop five year olds ESL literacy skills, using storybooks as a springboard. A reading program, i.e. Smart Partnership in Reading in English (SPIRE) was designed in response to the government's aspiration to raise literacy rates to 100% by 2020 and the…

A study to compare the effectiveness of an in-person library orientation with an online asynchronous orientation was conducted with three sections of Social Work Research Methods, a required course in the University of Iowa's Master of Social Work program. Two sections of the course received an online orientation involving short videos, text and…

In today's globalised digital era, students are inevitably engaged in various multimodal texts due to their active participation in social media and frequent usage of mobile devices on a daily basis. Such daily activities advocate the need for a transformation in the teaching and learning of ESL lessons in order to promote students' capabilities…

A case is directed at digital immigrants to utilize mobile computing devices such as an Apple iPod to deliver content to students in self-contained special education classrooms. The author discusses the current state of the use of iPods in classrooms, and how research using these devices has been limited to institutions of higher learning, while…

Empowered by mobile computing, teachers and students can benefit from computing in more scenarios beyond the traditional computer classroom. But because of the much diversity of device specification, learning contents and mobile context existing today, the learners get a bad learning experience (e.g. rich contents cannot be displayed correctly)…

Despite the potential advantages of instructional explanations, evidence indicates that they are usually ineffective. Subsequent work has shown that in order to make instructional explanations effective indeed, one successful strategy is to combine them with indications of the limitations in learners' understanding that they are intended to…

An animated concept map is a presentation of a network diagram in which nodes and links are sequentially added or modified. An experiment compared learning from animated concept maps and text by randomly assigning 133 undergraduates to study 1 of 4 narrated animations presenting semantically equivalent information accompanied by identical audio…

E-learning should be pedagogically-driven rather than technologically-driven. The objectives of this study are to develop an interactive learning system in bright-field microscopy technique in order to support students' achievement of their intended learning outcomes. An interactive learning system on bright-field microscopy technique was…

Educators have emphasized the importance of situating students in an authentic learning environment. By using such approach, teachers can encourage students to learn Chinese poems by browsing content resources and relevant online multimedia resources by using handheld devices. Nevertheless, students in heterogeneous network environments may have…

The use of information and communication technology (ICT) in education is now central to facilitating links between learners, resources and instructors. Regardless of whether it is used in distance education or "educational objects," ICT enables educators to package education opportunities in an increasing number of alternative ways so…