How temporal and spatial aspects of presenting visualizations affect learning about locomotion patterns

Two studies investigated the effectiveness of dynamic and static visualizations for a perceptual learning task (locomotion pattern classification). In Study 1, seventy-five students viewed either dynamic, static-sequential, or static-simultaneous visualizations. For tasks of intermediate difficulty, dynamic visualizations led to better classification performance than static-sequential visualizations, but not than static-simultaneous visualizations. To test whether the temporal aspects of presenting static-simultaneous visualizations (i.e., their permanent visibility) or their spatial aspects (i.e., their arrangement in rows) accounted for this effect, Study 2 investigated three additional static-simultaneous conditions. Seventy-five students viewed static-simultaneous visualizations presented either in columns, matrices, or circles. For tasks of intermediate difficulty dynamic visualizations outperformed pictures presented in columns, matrices, and circles, but not the rows format. Accordingly, for learning about locomotion patterns, dynamic visualizations are better suited than most, but not all static visualization formats. From a practical point of view, effort should be invested into the design of static-simultaneous visualizations to further optimize instructional materials.     

Supporting linguistically diverse students' science learning with dynamic visualizations through discourse-rich practices

Carefully scaffolded dynamic visualizations have potential to promote science learning for all students, including English language learners (ELLs) who are often underserved in mainstream science classrooms, but little is known about how to design effective scaffolding to support such diverse students' learning with dynamic visualizations. This study investigated how two forms of scaffolding embedded in dynamic visualizations, expert guidance and generating guidance, can foster ELLs' and non-ELLs' understanding of unobservable scientific phenomena. While interacting with dynamic visualizations, students in the expert guidance condition were provided with scientifically accurate explanations to interpret visual representations, whereas students in the generating guidance condition were prompted to generate their own explanations using visual representations. The results show the significant advantage of generating guidance over expert guidance for both ELLs and non-ELLs, although students in the generating guidance condition did not receive feedback on their generated artifacts. Analyses of video data and log data from 40 pairs revealed that each form of scaffolding affected the quantity and quality of linguistically diverse students' conversations. The results show that generating guidance enabled students, particularly ELLs, to engage in discourse-rich practices to evaluate various sources of evidence from the visualization and compare the evidence to their alternative ideas to develop a coherent understanding of the target concepts. This study shows the unique benefits of generating guidance as an effective strategy to support linguistically diverse students' science learning with dynamic visualizations.     

Interactive and non-interactive pictures in multimedia learning environments: Effects on learning outcomes and learning efficiency

New technologies enable flexible combinations of text and interactive or non-interactive pictures. The aim of the present study was to investigate (a) whether adding pictures to texts is generally beneficial for learning or whether it can also have detrimental effects, (b) how interactivity of pictures affects learning, (c) whether the visualization format of pictures affects the structure of the learner's mental model, and (d) whether the visualization format modifies the effects of interactivity. One hundred university students were randomly assigned to five groups. In four groups, a text about the different daytimes and days on the earth was combined with interactive or non-interactive pictures of different visualization formats. In the fifth group, the text was presented without pictures. According to the results, adding pictures to text was neither beneficial nor harmful for learning. In terms of learning efficiency, however, learning from text only was more successful than learning from text and pictures. Interactivity was beneficial for one learning task, but not for the other task. The visualization format affected participants’ interaction with pictures, but not the learning outcomes; however this effect was not influenced by interactivity. Implications for multimedia design and for further research are pointed out.     

Prerequisite knowledge and time of testing in learning with animations and static pictures: Evidence for the expertise reversal effect

An animation can have an informational advantage over a static picture by depicting dynamic features. The aim of this study was to investigate whether the provision of prerequisite knowledge can help learners infer dynamic features from a static picture. It was assumed that this supposedly more active processing with a static picture would result in longer lasting knowledge representations. A 2 × 2 × 2 between-subjects design with visualization format (static picture vs. animation), prerequisite knowledge (provided vs. not provided), and time of testing (immediate vs. one week later) was used (N = 260). The results of a transfer test showed that learners with low prerequisite knowledge benefited from the animation, but this was not the case for learners with high prerequisite knowledge. Time of testing had no influence. In line with the expertise reversal effect, prerequisite knowledge not only fostered learning with the static picture but also hindered learning with the animation.     

注意稳定性在多媒体教材制作中的应用

在多媒体教材的制作过程中,要充分利用学习者的认知规律,根据学习者的注意特性,运用文本、声音、图像、动画等各种手段,激发学习者的学习兴趣,使学习者的注意力始终集中在教学内容上,从而达到预期的教学效果。     

The effects of affective pedagogical agent in multimedia learning environments: A meta-analysis

Affective pedagogical agent (PA) is an image of a character embedded in multimedia lessons with the ability to influence learners' affective experiences and learning performance. Prior studies on the effects of affective PA have shown inconsistent findings. In this study, we conducted four separate meta-analyses to address whether adding an affective PA to multimedia lessons can increase learners' retention performance, transfer performance, positive emotions, and intrinsic motivation, and to explore several moderators that may have contributed to the inconsistencies of previous studies. The research framework mainly includes introducing the concept of affective PA, reviewing research on the impact of affective PA on learning performance, emotions, and motivation, analyzing the moderators that may affect the effects of affective PA, performing a meta-analysis, and discussing the results based on the findings of the meta-analysis. We found 36 articles met the inclusion criteria. The results of the meta-analysis indicated that affective PA could increase learners’ positive emotions (k = 25, g = 0.26), improve intrinsic motivation (k = 26, g = 0.26), and facilitate learning performance (retention: k = 35, g = 0.26; transfer: k = 45, g = 0.34). Furthermore, moderator analysis found that affective PA characteristics (i.e., appearance, the number of emotional cues, and body movement) and learning materials characteristics (i.e., subject domain, pacing of presentation) moderated the effects of affective PA. We discussed these findings from different theoretical perspectives. In general, affective PA could help students be happier and more motivated to learn in multimedia learning environments.     

Learning from multimedia presentations: Facilitation function of animations and spatial abilities

Animations may facilitate learning by providing external support for visual–spatial mental processing. Facilitation is challenged by findings that demonstrate involvement of spatial abilities in learning from animations, because this involvement indicates active internal visual–spatial processing. In the present study, learners attended to a system-paced multimedia presentation in which a verbal–auditory explanation was concurrently synchronized either with animation, with static core pictures, or with enriched static pictures that showed additional intermediate steps and arrows indicating motion. Results demonstrated better learning success with animations and with enriched static pictures than with static pictures. Spatial abilities were not substantively related to learning success with animations or with static pictures, but they played a crucial role for learning success with enriched static pictures. It is concluded that active visual–spatial processing was recruited with enriched static pictures. With animations, learning was truly facilitated by external support for visual–spatial mental processing.     

Exploring the Impact of Prior Knowledge and Appropriate Feedback on Students' Perceived Cognitive Load and Learning Outcomes: Animation-based earthquakes instruction

The aim of this study was to develop an animation-based curriculum and to evaluate the effectiveness of animation-based instruction; the report involved the assessment of prior knowledge and the appropriate feedback approach, for the purpose of reducing perceived cognitive load and improving learning. The curriculum was comprised of five subunits designed to teach the ‘Principles of Earthquakes.’ Each subunit consisted of three modules: evaluation of prior knowledge with/without in-time feedback; animation-based instruction; and evaluation of learning outcomes with feedback. The 153 participants consisted of 10th grade high-school students. Seventy-eight students participated in the animation-based instruction, involving assessment of prior knowledge and appropriate feedback mechanism (APA group). A total of 75 students participated in animation-based learning that did not take into account their prior knowledge (ANPA group). The effectiveness of the instruction was then evaluated by using a Science Conception Test (SCT), a self-rating cognitive load questionnaire (CLQ), as well as a structured interview. The results indicated that: (1) Students' perceived cognitive load was reduced effectively through improving their prior knowledge by providing appropriate feedback. (2) When students perceived lower levels of cognitive load, they showed better learning outcome. The result of this study revealed that students of the APA group showed better performance than those of the ANPA group in an open-ended question. Furthermore, students' perceived cognitive load was negatively associated with their learning outcomes.     

用Authorware实现CAI课件中动画的交互播放

用多媒体创作工具Authorware开发多媒体CAI课件时 ,可以通过几种方法灵活方便地实现动画的交互播放 ,实现以学生为主体的个别化教育 ,达到良好的教学效果     

A dynamic ubiquitous learning resource model with context and its effects on ubiquitous learning

Most ubiquitous learning researchers use resource recommendation and retrieving based on context to provide contextualized learning resources, but it is the kind of one-way context matching. Learners always obtain fixed digital learning resources, which present all learning contents in any context. This study proposed a dynamic ubiquitous learning resource model with context. The model has context information and a flexible content structure that allows contents to be adjusted dynamically in different contexts, thus providing learners the contextualized resources that best match their contexts. In order to verify the effects of the contextualized resources, a contrast experiment was carried out in a vocational school in China. The experimental results showed that the contextualized resources could better improve learners' learning achievement and efficiency, improve their self-learning efficiency while reducing their cognitive load. Learners thought the ubiquitous learning system which provided contextualized resources was more useful.     

动态规划法在设备更新问题中的应用

在日常工作中,经常涉及到设备更新问题,如何求解设备更新问题非常重要。于是阐述了动态规划方法的基本思想,求解设备更新问题的步骤,并用具体实例和程序,说明了动态规划求解设备更新问题的可行性。     

浅谈实验动画特点及在中国的发展空间

实验动画是艺术家的全新创造,是艺术家心灵的一面镜子。世界上著名的商业动画都是由实验动画演变发展而来的,而且实验动画的一些自身特点如投入小,变化特点多,吸引了大量专业动画者投入的热情。     

动态语法教学资源的开发和运用

动态语法教学对提高学生理解语言和运用语言能力具有重要作用.为此,从动态语法教学资源的开发和利用着手,探讨动态语法教学的理论和实践,对走出语法教学的误区,开辟语法教学新路具有重要意义.     

外国文学中的动态学习空间

动态学习是在动态环境下,学生以动态的思维方式去发现、组合、交流、创造动态信息,从而理解知识发现规律,构建自身动态知识体系,形成动态思维结构的学习方式。这种学习方式可完全体现学生学习的主动性、动力支配性和策略性等认知特征和情感特征,所以对拓展、培养学生们的学习思维、潜在技能、独立能动性、综合协调性都有巨大的帮助。本文将从学生的表现力来探讨：外国文学为学生们创造的动态学习空间。     

Learning with multiple representations: Extending multimedia learning beyond the lab

The present study extended multimedia learning principles beyond the lab to an ecologically valid setting (homework). Eighteen information cards were used to perform three homework tasks. The control group students learnt from single representation (SR) cards that presented all information as printed text. The multiple representation (MR) group students received the same information, but each card contained either printed text or an informationally equivalent graphic such as a chart or graph. The MR group students performed better than the SR group students on accuracy of their homework answers and on subsequent posttest retention and transfer, and used more information cards while learning. The improved MR group students' performance is discussed in relation to two alternative possible explanations – the nature of the information sources and students' motivation to learn.     

The integration of information in a digital,multi-modal learning environment

The aim of the reported eye-tracking study was to investigate whether learners integrate information presented on several pages within a digital learning environment and whether the underlying processes differ between a purely text-based and a multi-modal digital learning environment. Participants (N = 97) learned about the development of tornados. Picture presentation (yes vs. no) and presentation of inconsistent information between pages (yes vs. no) was varied between-subjects. Results showed that inconsistent information led to more intense gaze behavior. This indicates that learners re-activated information presented on previous pages to integrate it with the actual information, enabling them to detect the inconsistencies. Furthermore, the data pattern for text-related gaze behavior was not influenced by picture presentation, indicating that cognitive processes in purely text based or multi-modal learning environments are much the same. Comprehension outcomes did not differ between groups. The implications of these results are discussed.     

Emotional design in multimedia learning: Effects of shape and color on affect and learning

We examine design factors that may evoke positive emotions in learners and investigate the effects of these positive emotions on learning. Recent research showed that the emotional design of multimedia learning material can induce positive emotions in learners that in turn facilitate comprehension and transfer. We sought to replicate these results with a different population and different mood induction procedure and examine individual emotions, and to decompose the effects of the design elements of color and shape. Study 1 showed that well-designed materials induced positive emotions and facilitated comprehension, though transfer performance was not affected by emotional design. Study 2 found that round face-like shapes both alone and in conjunction with warm color induced positive emotions. Warm colors alone, however, did not affect learners' emotions. Comprehension was facilitated by warm colors and round face-like shapes, independently as well as together. Transfer was facilitated by round face-like shapes when used with neutral colors.     

三维引擎中人体动画的研究

针对项目中对三维引擎的要求对骨骼动画进行了研究。提出了一种实现动画共享的方法,通过运用顶点索引法,大大降低了运算量。结果证明,所用的方法有良好的准确性和较好的实时性。     

动态数据交换及其在Delphi中的实现

本介绍了windows应用程序间一种数据交换技术－动态数据交换技术的原理，并探讨了Delphi的动态数据交换实现机制。