Cognitive load and science text comprehension: Effects of drawing and mentally imagining text content

One hundred and eleven 10th graders read an expository science text on the dipole character of water molecules (ca. 1600 words). Reading instruction was varied according to a 2 × 2 experimental design with factors ‘drawing pictures of text content on paper’ (yes, no) and ‘mentally imagining text content while reading’ (yes, no). The results indicate that drawing pictures, mediated through increased cognitive load, decreased text comprehension and, thus, learning (d = −0.37), whereas mental imagery, although decreasing cognitive load, increased comprehension only when students did not have to draw pictures simultaneously (d = 0.72). No evidence was found that the effects were moderated by domain-specific prior knowledge, verbal ability, or spatial ability. The results are in line with cognitive theories of multimedia learning, self-regulated learning, and mental imagery as well as conceptions of science learning that focus on promoting mental model construction by actively visualizing the content to be learned. Constructing mental images seems to reduce cognitive load and to increase comprehension and learning outcome when the mental visualization processes are not disturbed by externally drawing pictures on paper, whereas drawing pictures seems to increase cognitive load resulting in reduced comprehension and learning outcome.     

Cognitive load in hypermedia reading comprehension: Influence of text type and linearity

In this paper the assumption of cognitive overhead in hypermedia learning is specified by cognitive load theory. This analysis is based on different types of cognitive load, the dimension of linearity/non-linearity as well as text characteristics. We propose a model stating that extraneous cognitive load in hypermedia learning is basically determined by the interaction of text presentation format (linear/non-linear) with text type (text with and without narrative structures). This assumption was tested by means of a 2 × 2 experimental design. Sixty participants completed a computer-based learning program that contained a narrative text or an encyclopaedia text in either linear or non-linear presentation format. Results confirm the suggested interaction hypothesis postulating that non-linear information presentation of narrative text structure increases cognitive load and decreases knowledge acquisition. However, for encyclopaedia text participants’ knowledge acquisition was not affected by linear or non-linear presentation format. Furthermore, results suggest a cross-validation of cognitive load measures and propositional analysis.     

Modality and cueing in multimedia learning: Examining cognitive and perceptual explanations for the modality effect

The purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of modality (written text vs. spoken text) and visual cueing (low cueing vs. high cueing) on the learning and mental effort of participants studying a computer-based static diagram at their own pace. Participants were randomly assigned to four versions of the computer-based materials formed into a 2 × 2 factorial design by crossing modality with cueing. The results revealed a reverse modality effect, wherein participants studying written text outperformed those studying spoken text on tests of free recall, matching, comprehension, and spatial recall, but not mental effort. Information cueing did not significantly affect either performance or mental effort. These findings are discussed in the context of two popular explanations of the modality effect: the cognitive resources explanation and the perceptual resources explanation. The results were best explained from a perceptual resources viewpoint.     

A new load distribution strategy for linear network with communication delays

In this paper, we propose a new load distribution strategy called ‘send-and-receive’ for scheduling divisible loads, in a linear network of processors with communication delay. This strategy is designed to optimally utilize the network resources and thereby minimizes the processing time of entire processing load. A closed-form expression for optimal size of load fractions and processing time are derived when the processing load originates at processor located in boundary and interior of the network. A condition on processor and link speed is also derived to ensure that the processors are continuously engaged in load distributions. This paper also presents a parallel implementation of ‘digital watermarking problem’ on a personal computer-based Pentium Linear Network (PLN) topology. Experiments are carried out to study the performance of the proposed strategy and results are compared with other strategies found in literature.     

The effects of text structure and prior knowledge of the learner on computer-based learning

This study is an attempt to investigate the effects of document structure and knowledge level of the reader on reading comprehension, browsing, and perceived control. Four types of texts are distinguished, differing in structure (linear text, hierarchical hypertext, mixed hypertext, and generative text). All the materials were on a PC. In all conditions, participants were allowed 1 h to read through the document. After completing the reading part of the experiment, they were asked to fill out the perceived control questionnaire followed by the reading comprehension test. As far as reading comprehension was concerned, knowledgeable participants had higher reading comprehension scores than non-knowledgeable participants only in the linear text. In addition, there were no significant differences in terms of the reading comprehension scores of the knowledgeable participants among the four topologies. However, the performance of non-knowledgeable participants differed with respect to the type of the topology. In particular, non-knowledgeable participants in the hierarchical and generative conditions performed better than those in the other two conditions. With respect to perceived control, the performance of knowledgeable and non-knowledgeable participants was equivalent in all four conditions. The results are discussed in terms of their implications for the computer-based learning.     

The impact of goal specificity and goal type on learning outcome and cognitive load

Two hundred and thirty three 15-year old students conducted experiments within a computer-based learning environment. They were provided with different goals according to an experimental 2 × 2 design with goal specificity (nonspecific goals versus specific goals) and goal type (problem solving goals versus learning goals) as factors. We replicated the findings of other researchers that nonspecific problem solving goals lead to lower cognitive load and better learning than specific problem solving goals. For learning goals, however, we observed this goal specificity effect only on cognitive load but not on learning outcome. Results indicate that the goal specificity affects the element interactivity of a task and cognitive load with both, problem solving goals or learning goals. But differences in overall cognitive load are not sufficient for explaining differences in learning outcome. Additionally, differences in strategy use come into play. Specific problem solving goals seem to restrict students to use a problem solving strategy whereas nonspecific problem solving goals or learning goals allow students to use a learning strategy. We conclude that in order to foster learning, students must be provided with goals that allow them to use a learning strategy. Additionally, providing them with nonspecific goals decreases cognitive load and, thus, enables students to learn with less effort.     

How science students can learn about unobservable phenomena using computer-based analogies

A novel instructional computer simulation that incorporates a dynamic analogy to represent Le Chatelier’s Principle was designed to investigate the contribution of this feature to students’ understanding. Two groups of 12th grade Chemistry students (n = 15) interacted with the computer simulation during the study. Both groups did the same pre-instructional and simulation activities except one of the groups interacted with the analogical example in the simulation and the other group was asked to recall an analogy that was presented in the form of text and pictures. A statistical analysis of the tests administered at the end of the study suggested that analogies that are dynamic, interactive, and integrated in a computer simulation may have a stronger effect on learning outcomes than analogies which are presented in the form of text and static pictures. The implication of this study for science educators is that dynamic computer-based analogies can enhance student learning of unobservable phenomena in science.     

Evaluating learners’ motivational and cognitive processing in an online game-based learning environment

This paper describes the process and results of an evaluation on an online game-based learning environment (GBLE) by focusing on learners’ motivational processing and cognitive processing. The goal is to explore how online GBLE might initiate and support learners’ goal-setting activities and impact learners’ cognitive loads. The study surveyed 144 undergraduate students after their autonomous participation in the online game available at the Nobel Prize Foundation website teaching the Heckscher-Ohlin Theory on international trade. Grounded in the integrative theory of motivation, volition, and performance (MVP), the evaluation indicated that participants felt significantly confident in learning the subject. The perceived satisfaction, however, was lower than the rest of motivational components possibly due to heavy cognitive processing. The finding of cognitive load reported that learners perceived a significantly higher level of intrinsic load than the germane load due to the novelty of the subject matter. Data analysis further indicated a significant canonical correlation between learners’ motivational and cognitive processing. This particular finding could inform future research to investigate specific motivational processing components’ effects on learners’ cognitive load levels in online GBLEs.     

Using eye-tracking technology to investigate the redundant effect of multimedia web pages on viewers’ cognitive processes

This study utilized eye-tracking technology to determine the impact of redundant onscreen text information on viewers’ cognitive processes with respect to multimedia information. Sixteen college students participated in the study and their eye-movement data and self-reported cognitive load ratings were collected as they viewed three web pages into which different forms of verbal explanations of thunderstorm systems were integrated. A repeated measure design was utilized to support the research purposes. The eye-tracking data showed that viewers relied on text information as the main information resource for determining meaning. Students’ cognitive load reports reflected a redundant effect from the on screen text on their cognitive load level when both onscreen and narrative verbal messages were presented. However, eye-movement data revealed that viewers spent less time on the onscreen text when there was a narrative message presenting the same information. When the pictorial information was accompanied by both onscreen and narrative formats of verbal information, viewers seemed to be able to filter out redundant information. Additionally, replacing onscreen text with a voice-over seemed to globally orient viewers’ eye fixations toward the illustration. Discussions on results and suggestions for future studies are provided in this paper.     

The influence of virtual presence: Effects on experienced cognitive load and learning outcomes in educational computer games

Does the immersive design of an educational gaming environment affect learners’ virtual presence and how much do they learn? Does virtual presence affect learning? This study tries to answer these questions by examining the differences in virtual presence and learning outcomes in two different computer-based multimedia environments: a gaming environment with high immersive design vs. hypertext learning environment with low immersive design. As the main focus, the effect of virtual presence on learning is also explained and tested. By identifying virtual presence as a variable that may determine learning, it is argued that computer gaming environments present a new challenge for researchers to investigate, particularly, the effects of virtual presence on the immersive design of games in order to help designers to predict which instructional configurations will maximize learning performance. In general, results revealed that the high-immersive gaming environment leads to the strongest form of virtual presence but also decreased learning. Although regression analyses indicate that virtual presence positively influences trivial- and non-trivial learning outcomes, learners who learned in a low-immersive environment outperformed the gaming group. A mediation analysis showed that the relation between virtual presence and non-trivial learning outcomes is partly mediated through increased cognitive load.     

Effects of display method,text display rate and observation angle on comprehension performance and subjective preferences for reading Chinese on an LED display

This study examined the effects of display method, text display rate, and observation angle on comprehension performance and subjective preferences for Chinese characters presented on an LED display. The factors and levels studied were as follows: four text display methods (rapid serial visual presentation ‘RSVP’, leading, paged view scrolling, and continuous scrolling), three text display rates (160 characters per min ‘cpm’, 240 cpm, and 320 cpm), and seven observation angles (−75°, −60°, −30°, 0°, 30°, 60°, and 75°). The results indicated that a display rate of 160 cpm was in general superior to 240 and 320 cpm for comprehension scores and subjective evaluations. The effects of display method and observation angle were found to be non significant. However, there was a significant interaction between display method and display rate. The results of this study were used to make ergonomics recommendations applicable to LED displays for determining optimum dynamic text display methods for Chinese characters.     

Causal attributions of success and failure made by undergraduate students in an introductory-level computer programming course

The purpose of this research is to identify the causal attributions of business computing students in an introductory computer programming course, in the computer science department at Notre Dame University, Louaize. Forty-five male and female undergraduates who completed the computer programming course that extended for a 13-week semester participated. Narrative interviews were conducted to obtain their perceptions. While some research confirmed that the four most responsible causes for success and failure in achievement contexts are ability, effort, task difficulty, and luck, this research shows that in its context ‘ability’ and ‘luck’ were absent, and ‘task difficulty’ and ‘effort’ were almost absent. In all, participants made 10 causal attributions that were either cultural or specific to computer programming. The 10 causal attributions are ‘learning strategy’, ‘lack of study’, ‘lack of practice’, ‘subject difficulty’, ‘lack of effort’, ‘appropriate teaching method’, ‘exam anxiety’, ‘cheating’, ‘lack of time’, and ‘unfair treatment’. All high achievers cited appropriate ‘learning strategy’.     

The role of spatial descriptions in learning from multimedia

In the reported experiment we investigated how spatial information conveyed in an expository text influenced multimedia learning. It was based on a 2 × 2-design with the degree of spatial information given in the text (high vs. low spatial text) and the presentation format (written text-only vs. written text + animation) as between-subjects factors. As dependent variables learning outcomes as well as self-reported cognitive load were assessed. The results revealed that there was a multimedia effect with regard to learning outcomes only for low spatial text, but not for high spatial text. Moreover, the cognitive load measures showed an overall multimedia effect irrespective of the degree of spatial information conveyed by the text (i.e., higher cognitive load ratings in the text-only conditions). These results can be explained as a special instance of the redundancy effect as well as a consequence of processing interference within visuo-spatial working memory.     

Does modality play a role? Visual‐verbal cognitive style and multimedia learning

The study presented in this paper aimed to examine the effect of visual and verbal cognitive style on learning from different types of visualization and modalities of explanatory text. Learning materials in the form of either computer‐based animation or a series of static pictures with written or spoken explanations were presented to 197 students. We found that a more developed visual cognitive style was related to a better learning outcome, when learning from a combination of static pictures and written text. Higher developed visualizers achieved poorer learning outcomes when learning with an animation and written text. The results are partially in line with an ability‐as‐compensator effect and the expertise reversal effect. Additionally, we found a modality effect as the versions with spoken text provided better results on learning outcome than the versions with written text regardless of the prominence of visual cognitive style. No significant interaction effects were found regarding verbal cognitive style.     

Can instruction as such affect learning? The case of learner control

This study examined the role of learners’ perceptions in a learner-controlled computer-based learning environment. Computer-based learning environments that offer learner control (LC) to the learners are assumed to enhance motivation and learning outcomes. Recently, the focus of LC research has shifted from measuring the direct effect of LC on learning towards focusing on the underlying mechanisms of effective LC and determining under which conditions LC is most effective (Corbalan, Kester, & van Merriënboer, 2009). There is considerable agreement that learners’ skills, perceptions and the experienced cognitive load interactively affect LC as instructional strategy. For this study, 165 first-year university students participated in an on-line English learning course on verb conjugation. We investigated the effect of learners’ perceptions of LC by comparing the learning outcomes and motivation of learners that received additional instructions on learner control with a group of learners that did not receive additional instruction. Learner characteristics, such as prior knowledge, working memory capacity, self-efficacy and cognitive load, were taken into account. The results indicate that it is not instruction as such, but rather satisfaction with the degree of control that affects learning outcomes and motivation. We suggest that instruction as such does not suffice to enhance perception of control, and that learners’ perceptions play a mere role in the effectiveness of instructional strategies such as learner control.     

On estimating simple probabilistic discriminative models with subclasses

Discriminative subclass models can provide good estimates of complex ‘continuous to discrete’ conditional probabilities for hybrid Bayesian network models. However, the conventional approach of specifying deterministic ‘hard’ subclasses via unsupervised clustering can lead to inaccurate models. The multimodal softmax (MMS) model is presented as a new probabilistic discriminative subclass model that overcomes this unreliability. By invoking fully probabilistic latent ‘soft’ subclasses, MMS permits learning via standard statistical methods without requiring explicit clustering/relabeling of data. MMS is also shown to be closely related to the mixture of experts model and the generative Gaussian mixture classifier. Synthetic and benchmark classification results demonstrate the MMS model’s correctness and usefulness for hybrid probabilistic modeling.     

Making the abstract concrete: Visualizing mathematical solution procedures

This paper reports on an experiment investigating the effects of different kinds of computer-based visualizations on the acquisition of problem-solving skills in the domain of probability theory. Learners received either purely text-based worked examples, text plus an instruction to mentally imagine the examples’ contents, or the possibility of retrieving either static pictures or concrete animations that depicted the problem statement and the problem states achieved by applying a specific solution-step. It could be shown that frequent use of both static pictures and imagining the examples’ contents improved performance on isomorphic problems. Frequent use of animations, in contrast, led to substantial increases in learning time and a decrease in performance. Thus, the use of concrete animations to visualize solution procedures was more harmful than helpful for conveying problem-solving skills. Reasons for these outcomes are discussed in the light of cognitive load theory.     

Efficient learning using a virtual learning environment in a university class

This study examines a blended learning setting in an undergraduate course in psychology. A virtual learning environment (VLE) complemented the face-to-face lecture. The usage was voluntary and the VLE was designed to support the learning process of the students. Data from users (N = 80) and non-users (N = 82) from two cohorts were collected. Control variables such as demographical data, attitude towards the learning subject, computer literacy, motivation, learning effort and available infrastructure were captured by means of a self-report. As a learning outcome, the grade in the final exam was included. For the VLE-users, the mean performance in the VLE was taken as a predictor for success in the final exam. Two different groups of VLE-users were observed and classified into ’light and ’heavy’ users. The results showed that among those students who had spent two or more hours per week for pre- and post processing of the lectures, ‘heavy’ VLE-users performed better than non-users in the final exam. Additionally, the ‘heavy’ users’ performance in the VLE was the best predictor for the grade in the final exam. We discuss the results in the context of self-regulated learning competence.     

A study of the relationships among learning styles, participation types, and performance in programming language learning supported by online forums

This study is focused on the relationships among learning styles, participation types, and learning performance for programming language learning supported by an online forum. Kolb’s learning style inventory was used in this study to determine a learner’s learning type: ‘Diverger’, ‘Assimilator’, ‘Converger’, and ‘Accommodator’. Social Learning Theory was also used to define four participation types. These types in turn were used to describe the learning associated with the use of online forums: ‘Replier’, ‘Asker’, ‘Watcher’, and ‘No activity’.A total of 144 students participated in this experiment as part of a half semester ASP.NET programming language learning courses. The course contained an online forum for supporting the students’ social activities and participation. In this study, ‘learning score’ and ‘satisfaction’ were used to measure learning performance.The results of this study were the following: (1) different learning styles were associated with significantly different learning scores and that the ‘Accommodator’ style was associated with superior learning scores; (2) participation types were also associated with significantly different learning scores and that the ‘Replier’ type is associated with superior learning scores; (3) learning satisfaction is not significantly different among the different learning styles or different participation types, but the average is significantly higher than average values (3.5) of 7-point Likert scale; (4) there is no significant association between learning styles and participation types. Explanations and discussions of these results are offered.Based on the results of this study, we propose that programming language learning, supported with online forums and students’ active participation, increases learning performance as measured by student learning scores.