Author: tmwhittall

On June 23, 2020

In edci337-remix

Chapter fifteen of “The Cambridge Handbook of Multimedia Learning” by Richard Mayer focuses on the Guided Discovery Learning Principle in Multimedia Learning. This principle states that people learn better when guidance is incorporated into discovery-based multimedia environments. Given the fact that education and instruction can be presented in many different ways, it is up to educators to decide which method they use in their own teaching practice. This chapter explains that “too little guidance causes the student to fail, whereas too much guidance challenges the self-directed nature of the discovery learning process” (Jong & Lazonder, 2014, p. 382). This adds credibility to the argument that guidance is beneficial throughout the learning process, however, the amount of guidance provided to achieve the best learning outcomes may depend on multiple variables.

In this chapter, Ton de Jong and Ard Lazonder discuss how discovery instructional approaches result in generating deeper learning than if the information was simply given to students. Although various teaching styles can be effective under certain circumstances, Jong and Lazonder highlight the effectiveness of science education and how it “should engage students in active investigation and experimentation so as to increase and sustain their motivation” (Jong & Lazonder, 2014, p. 372). They continue to explain how unguided discovery learning is generally ineffective due to the challenges students face with the lack of direction they are given and how students will learn more if they are sufficiently guided. They then detail the different types of guidance such as process constraints, performance dashboard, prompts, heuristics, scaffolds and direct presentation of information. Process constraints “[restrict] the number of options students need to consider” (Jong & Lazonder, 2014, p. 375) in order to make the learning process more manageable. This type of guidance is best used when students lack the knowledge of how to apply the inquiry process. Once sufficient experience is gained, the constraints can be loosened. Performance dashboards give students a “real-time progress report of their discovery learning process” (Jong & Lazonder, 2014, p. 375). They help students learn about the quality of their work and are best used with students that know how to follow up on feedback. Prompts remind students of certain tasks to be completed throughout their learning process and are given to students who may not be able to complete tasks independently. More detailed prompts have proven to be more effective than less detailed prompts. Heuristics provide students with suggestions (that are even more detailed than prompts) for how to go about conducting their learning process. They are best used when students are unsure about when or how to conduct the actions necessary to carry out their learning process. Scaffolds help guide students by supplying them with “components of the process and thus structure the process” (Jong & Lazonder, 2014, p. 377). They are best used when the learning process is too challenging for students. Lastly, direct presentation of information can be given throughout the learning process and is most effective when students are unable to individually find information or their prior knowledge is limited. This allows students to explore information deeper in the discovery environment. Jong and Lazonder emphasize how studies have proven guided discovery learning to be more effective than direct instruction and unguided instruction. They also state the importance of giving the suitable amount of guidance to students. This depends on a student’s knowledge and skills and is something that needs to be monitored in order to support their evolving needs. The authors conclude this chapter by stating how further “research should focus on the design of well-balanced learning environments that, if applicable, combine different types of guidance at different levels of specificity” (Jong & Lazonder, 2014, p. 385) and how the creation of these environments will help to encourage the use of scientific discovery learning in classrooms.

The authors prove that there are many advantages when guided discovery principles are implemented into multimedia learning throughout chapter fifteen of “The Cambridge Handbook of Multimedia Learning.” The question still stands, however, should we combine different methods of guidance together? Jong and Lazonder’s chapter concluded conflicting findings. Through one study, implementing a variety of methods was found to enhance the learning outcomes of students; on the other hand, another study found it was extremely detrimental to the students’ learning. Mayer acknowledges in his paper the possibility of the negative findings being related to the two methods, self regulated scaffolding and integrated data interpretation, conflicting throughout the inquiry process; Jong and Lazonder’s findings may also have been related to the students they studied. For example, students with attention deficit disorders may struggle to stay focused when too many supports are working simultaneously. In comparison, some students who struggle to grasp concepts and processes in a singular topic may thrive off additional support. Perhaps, to better understand the consequences and successes of using a variety of methods, we first need to better understand which methods work well together, and when. By researching which methods are successful when used simultaneously, we can better equip our students for success instead of overwhelming them with conflicting methods. Whether teachers conducting inquiry based learning choose to use multiple guided discovery principles or few principles, it is important when planning to keep this in mind, “you (the student) don’t get used to the teacher giving you the answer, you get to find the answer by yourself” (Baldock and Murphrey, p. 240, 2020). This quote defines the fun students find throughout this style of learning. In their article, “Secondary Students’ Perceptions of Inquiry-based Learning in the Agriculture Classroom”, Balock and Murphrey quote a student who believes inquiry based and guided discovery learning “allows everyone to learn the same thing, but in different ways” (p. 240, 2020). These students who find joy and engagement from this teaching style prove to teachers the importance of stepping back from the methods and theories to focus on creating a lesson which allows the students to inquire and discover then implementing methods in afterward which will work to support the students on their journey.

The guided discovery principle in multimedia learning is an approach that will positively impact each student’s learning. This method incorporates various levels of guidance into discovery based situations and allows students to learn information deeply. This chapter makes it evident that in order for students to learn information effectively, they need to be engaged in their learning process. The guided discovery method allows for this as it enables educators to provide their students with various types/degrees of guidance depending on their specific learning needs. Using this method in the future will benefit each child. Being aware of various methods available and trying various methods for different students allows this method to incorporate the universal design for learning and allow deep learning. Using these methods independently as well as incorporating various strategies together will prove to be beneficial in our future teaching careers. This method is adaptable for each student and can therefore lead to deep thinking, learning and individualized success for each learner because “people learn better when guidance is incorporated into discovery-based multimedia environments” (Mayer, 2014, p.7).

References

Baldock, K., & Pesl Murphrey, T. (2020). Secondary Students’ Perceptions of Inquiry-based Learning in the Agriculture Classroom. Journal of Agricultural Education

De Jong, T., & Lazonder, A. (2014). The Guided Discovery Learning Principle in Multimedia Learning. In R. Mayer (Ed.), The Cambridge Handbook of Multimedia Learning (Cambridge Handbooks in Psychology, pp. 371-390). Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. doi:10.1017/CBO9781139547369.019

Mayer, R. E. (Ed.). (2014). The Cambridge Handbook of Multimedia Learning (2nd ed.). Cambridge University Press. https://doi.org/10.1017/CBO9781139547369

Pwalshy. (2019, March 25). Discovery Learning – Bruner [Video file]. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e1MTybVmF5Y

Schwartz, A. (2017, June 5). CI149 – Guided Discovery Model. [Video file]. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Nm2Uz7bELsw

Group Evaluation of ‘Epic!’ App

On June 20, 2020

In edci337-app

The multimedia application that we have chosen is Epic! Epic is a digital reading application that is tailored to children under the age of 12 to use on a tablet or computer. Educators can access Epic for free, and then gain an “access code” to share it with their students. On this app readers can track their reading progress, and since Epic is compatible with Google Classroom, this progress can be shared with the child’s teacher. Classrooms will need individual tablets or computers in order to use this app, but in our experience, we have noticed that most schools offer iPads or tablets that students can borrow.

We have chosen this app because it is a resource we all believe that we would like to use in our future teaching practice. Compared to the other apps our group reviewed, we decided that Epic has the most student and teacher friendly features, and this makes it more applicable in a classroom setting. We also thought that the layout of Epic was unique, and provided teachers and students with a lot of valuable resources. Furthermore, there are many fantastic reviews about Epic from parents and educators who use this app. Many of these reviews stated that the titles on Epic are popular, teachers can manage student’s profiles, encourages students to engage in reading activities, and many more. Another exciting feature Epic offers is “10 Creative Ways to use Epic! in the Classroom”. This list has many examples that we can definitely imagine incorporating into various lessons.

Overall, we have chosen Epic because of its user-friendly approach and we believe it is a valuable resource that follows many of the multimedia learning principles. We hope that by researching and learning more about Epic, it will help us feel more confident using this application in our future classrooms.

Letter School App Review

On June 16, 2020

In edci337-app

I chose to evaluate an app which marries the fun of iPad and the importance of spelling. Letter School is an app designed for young students to practice their letter writing skills in a fun and independent way. The app gives students the chance to work on drawing and identifying shapes, letters, and numbers.

Design wise, the app follows many of Richard Mayer’s multimedia principles in the Cambridge Handbook of Multimedia Learning. The app opens and exemplifies both the multimedia principle, “people learn better from words and pictures than from words alone”(Mayer, 2014) and the spatial contiguity principle, “People learn better when corresponding words and pictures are presented near rather than far from each other on the screen or page or in time”(Mayer, 2014). To do this, the app presents the first three options in a clear and precise manner with the images and text located parallel to each other, as shown in the below picture.

The app also follows the coherence principle by only presenting what information is necessary on the screen at a time (Mayer, 2014). I believe young students may find it confusing if lots of writing was present on the screen directing them what to do; therefore, by simply presenting the singular letter, number, or shape on the screen at a time and having it spoken to the student, I believe the students will find success with the app. Below is a screen recording of a simple example of how the app works.

Moreover, by adding animation and sound effects to the app, the creators fostered the personalization principle. This principle states, “Learners better comprehend text when presented in conversational styles opposed to formal”(Mayer, 2014). For younger students, conversational text is best understood when oral. Because of this, the spoken text is very valuable for students using this app. Using fun animation additionally promotes the personalization principle by communicating with the students in a way they understand and enjoy.

To use this app, it is important for educators to follow Mayer’s “pretraining” principle which states, “By providing students with key information prior to the animation, learners will be able to better understand the concepts they are learning” (Mayer, 2014). In the case of this app, teachers will be required to provide students with both knowledge of the app, as well as, knowledge of the content. For the content to have meaning to the student, they must be made previously aware of all the letters, shapes, and numbers they will be working with.

Finally,the ease of functionality and accessibility when using this app are promising toward making it a powerful multimedia learning tool at the primary level. It is important for students to not become frustrate with learning in order to fully immerse in it and this app allows learners to do so, simply and quickly. I believe this app would fit well in a classroom or for at home learning.

Anstey, L., & Watson, G. (2018, September 18). A Rubric for Evaluating E-Learning Tools in Higher Education. Educause Review. https://er.educause.edu/articles/2018/9/a-rubric-for-evaluating-e-learning-tools-in-higher-education

Theory of Multimedia Learning: http://etec.ctlt.ubc.ca/510wiki/Cognitive_Theory_of_Multimedia_Learning

Multimedia Principles

On June 11, 2020

In edci337-blog

Robert Mayer’s cognitive theory of multimedia principals of learning has been developed through connecting research behind how people learn and design for instruction (Cognitive Theory of Multimedia Learning, 2011). Through his applied research, Mayer constructed the following 10 principles of learning:

Coherence Principle: students learn better when unecessary information and images are cut from the presentation
Signaling Principle: Students learn better when a sign is implemented to signify important information.
Redundancy Principle: When information is presented with visuals, text, and oral cues, the information can become overwhelming and redundant.
Spatial Contiguity Principle: Information is better processed when the multimedia concepts are presented near each other on the screen.
Temporal Contiguity Principle: Information is more effectively processed when animation and auditory information are presented simultaneously.
Segmenting Principle: Learners better process information when broken into learning paced sections. This way their working memory has time to move the information to long term memory.
Pretraining Principle: By providing students with key information prior to the animation, learners will be able to better understand the concepts they are learning.
Modality Principle: Spoken text and graphics are more effective than text and graphics.
Multimedia Principle: Universally, people learn better from verbal and non-verbal information than verbal alone.
Personalization Principle: Learners better comprehend text when presented in conversational styles opposed to formal.

(Cognitive Theory of Multimedia Learning, 2011)

Mayer developed these ideas to support learners in processing information. The ten principles can be spilt up into three categories: principles to lessen extraneous information, principles to manage essential information, and principles to foster generative information (Cognitive Theory of Multimedia Learning, 2011).

I found this topic fascinating. In these unprecedented times, online learning has become more important than ever before. By working to apply these principles presented by Mayer, as teachers, we may be able to better reach and engage the needs of our students.

I specifically found the coherence and redundancy principles relevant to my teaching style. I often find myself implementing unnecessary text, encouragement, and photos into presentations; I now realize, those extra pieces in my presentations may be overwhelming and distracting for students. Similarly, I often repeat myself multiple times or use more than one video to explain the same topic. In doing so, I most likely confuse my students instead of support their learning. Moving forward I plan to create more concise and to the point presentations.

Photo by Nathan Dumlao on Unsplash

References

Cognitive Theory of Multimedia Learning. (2011, July 3). Retrieved June 11, 2020, from http://etec.ctlt.ubc.ca/510wiki/Cognitive_Theory_of_Multimedia_Learning

Mayer, R. E. (2014). The Cambridge Handbook of Multimedia Learning. Retrieved from https://doi-org.ezproxy.library.uvic.ca/10.1017/CBO9781139547369

Sams Response to Topic #1

https://samfry.opened.ca/2020/06/07/topic-1-what-is-multimedia-and-interactive-learning-and-why-is-it-important/

Sam, when I read your blog I became caught on the idea of storytelling. In all this talk about multimedia I believe mny of us became caught on the idea of technology. By including storytelling into our lesson plans and teaching, we are not only using a new and engaging media, we are also connecting with the First Peoples Principles of Learning which implies storytelling is a key way of relating current day education with their traditions. In primary grades, fantastical stories are engaging and inspiring for students. They believe in each and every aspect of what they are hearing and they absorb everything they are hearing because the story triggers parts of their brain and becomes engraved in their memory. As if they themselves expereinced it, it’s fascinating! In the onlder ages, students wish to hear our stories. How do our travels, adventures, or lives relate to what they are learning? It makes what they are learning real and memorable. I wonder, if by asking the students to relate what they are learning to themselves, and to tell us those stories, if it would support the students in learningthe content at a deeper level.

“Multimedia and Interactive Learning” by Liv Winther

https://howtoliv.home.blog

Liv, firstly I must thank you for sharing with us your experiences through public school and post-secondary education. We seemingly had similar experiences! Having teachers who are passionate about learning is essential for students’ success. Between our two stories, I find similarities and wonder if the reason our passionate teachers were successful was not only because of their excitement for the topic they were teaching, but because they were willing to learn new things when we were interested. Throughout this past year in the education program, I have found the importance of being a flexible teacher and promoting inquiry in the classroom. Our lesson plans may not always get the students thinking about what we hoped for, but if they are asking questions and finding interest in similar topics, we are lucky to follow their ideas and support them in finding the answers. Humility is key. Arrogant, know it all teachers rarely are respected by their students nor find success in teaching. Teachers with humility allow their students to learn alongside them. Be a guide on the side, not a sage on the stage.

“What is Multimedia and Interactive Learning, and Why is it Important?” by Kayla Krug

https://kaylakrug.wordpress.com/2020/06/06/topic-1-what-is-multimedia-and-interactive-learning-and-why-is-it-important/

Thank you for sharing your views on the topic of technology in the classroom Kayla! When you mentioned how you wonder how to incorporate technology while continuing to keep your classroom interactive, I immediately thought of games. There are so many games online which allow students to interact through technology. I used to think video games were useless, time consuming, brain cell killing, devices which had no use in classrooms; through practica however, I have experienced the value in them. Online computer games allow students who struggle to connect with their peers in any way, the opportunity to chat, work, and interact with students in their classes and others. Although this may seem like the opposite of interactive learning, for many students this kind of interaction allows them to step out of their comfort zone and communicate without fear of judgement. Surely technology has the ability to connect and support students in other ways, but I believe this is one of the most remarkable and rewarding forms of technology in the classroom.

Multimedia and Interactive Learning by Justyn Mackie

https://justynmackie.opened.ca/category/edci337-blog/

In Justyn Mackie’s blog post, “Multimedia and Interactive Learning,” Justyn describes the incorporation of technology into education as needing to be “organic”. As a fellow teacher who fears, and sometimes forces, the use of technology in lesson plans, you really made me think about how I may incorporate technology in more natural ways. Perhaps, for aspiring teachers like you and I, this course and the resources provided to us through this course, will support us in becoming more comfortable, open, and knowledgeable when it comes to implementing technology into our classroom. As students in the University of Victoria Education Program, we are both familiar with the idea of creating learner-centered classrooms and designing lessons to be open and accessible for all learning styles and abilities. Technology has the potential to create a learning environment where every student is provided the resources to be successful. A quote by Caroline Belden explains how technology can support students in school,

“Equality is leaving the door open for anyone who has the means to approach it; equity is ensuring there is a pathway to that door for those who need it.”

Through opening our minds and learning to implement technology into our classrooms, we can make our learning outcomes more reachable for all our learners.

Meeting the Needs of all Students Through Story and Multimedia Learning