What type of display helps students learn the most and why? This study investigated how displays differing in terms of signaling, extraction, and localization impact learning. In Experiment 1, 72 students were assigned randomly to one cell of a 4 x 2 design. Students studied a standard text, a text with key ideas extracted, an outline that…

Affective feedback during a self-assessment test could help induce the learner to an optimal emotional state regarding the learning material. However, there is a lack of experimental evidence concerning the influence of affective feedback during a self-assessment test. This paper is a step towards this direction. The effect of achievement-based…

An experiment compared the impact of more and less semantically connected sentence contexts on vocabulary learning. Third graders (N = 40) were taught the definitions and meanings of six unfamiliar verbs: "anticipate," "attain," "devise," "restrain," "wield," and "persist." The verbs were…

The vast majority of special education teacher preparation programs in the United States incorporate the IRIS Center's "STAR Legacy" modules into their coursework. Given the diversity of module content and ways in which the modules are employed, the purpose of this study was to explore the potential mediating effects of instructional…

This article uses data from a 9-month ethnography in California to illustrate how elementary teacher's decision to reenact Jane Elliott's "A Class Divided" experiment, in conjunction with an artist-centered multicultural curriculum, shifted classroom conversations to a more critical dialogue of social groups, power, and privilege. Data…

Undergraduates use a wide range of information resources for academic and nonacademic purposes, including web sites that range from credible, peer reviewed, online journal sites, to biased and inaccurate promotional web sites. Students are taught basic critical appraisal skills, but do they apply these skills to make decisions about information in…

Wikis as shared digital artifacts may enable users to participate in processes of knowledge building. To what extent and with which quality knowledge building can take place is assumed to depend on the interrelation between people's prior knowledge and the information available in a wiki. In two experimental studies we examined the impact on…

This article will describe two activities in which students conduct experiments with random numbers so they can see that having at least one repeated birthday in a group of 40 is not unusual. The first empirical approach was conducted by author Cauto in a secondary school methods course. The second empirical approach was used by author Flores with…

Learning algebra is difficult for many students in part because of an emphasis on the memorization of abstract rules. Algebraic reasoners across expertise levels often rely on perceptual-motor strategies to make these rules meaningful and memorable. However, in many cases, rules are provided as patterns to be memorized verbally, with little overt…

Although generally used for assessment, tests can also serve as tools for learning--but different test formats may not be equally beneficial. Specifically, research has shown multiple-choice tests to be less effective than cued-recall tests in improving the later retention of the tested information (e.g., see meta-analysis by Hamaker, 1986),…

Examples are often an integral part of online learning environments directed at the acquisition of problem-solving skills. An unresolved issue, however, is when examples should be provided to learners. Prior research has suggested that example-problem pairs are more effective than problem-example pairs for novice learners. However, in those…

In the current work, we examined learners' comprehension when engaged with elaborative processing strategies. In Experiment 1, we randomly assigned students to one of five elaborative processing conditions and addressed differences in learners' lower- and higher-order learning outcomes and ability to employ elaborative strategies. Findings…

Successful implementation of historical approach to teach nature of science (NOS) requires suitable curriculum material. Several research and development projects have produced lesson plans for science teachers. 25 lesson plans from four different projects involved in creating curriculum material utilizing historical approach in chemistry…

Active learning, including in-class debates, is used in social science classrooms as a means of improving meaning and increasing understanding of complex materials. However, in-class debates do not fully satisfy all aspects of experiential learning because students do not get to experience the results of multifaceted concepts, such as strategic…

The military instituted blended e-learning training programs to reduce manpower requirements and to lower training costs by leveraging technology, but success in this relationship has not been studied specifically. Working within theoretical constructs of motivation, expectancy, and social cognition this quasi-experimental study examined the…