Attention to the model's face when learning from video modeling examples in adolescents with and without autism spectrum disorder

We investigated the effects of seeing the instructor's (i.e., the model's) face in video modeling examples on students' attention and their learning outcomes. Research with university students suggested that the model's face attracts students' attention away from what the model is doing, but this did not hamper learning. We aimed to investigate whether we would replicate this finding in adolescents (prevocational education) and to establish how adolescents with autism spectrum disorder, who have been found to look less at faces generally, would process video examples in which the model's face is visible. Results showed that typically developing adolescents who did see the model's face paid significantly less attention to the task area than typically developing adolescents who did not see the model's face. Adolescents with autism spectrum disorder paid less attention to the model's face and more to the task demonstration area than typically developing adolescents who saw the model's face. These differences in viewing behavior, however, did not affect learning outcomes. This study provides further evidence that seeing the model's face in video examples affects students' attention but not their learning outcomes

Using the Hands to Learn About the Brain: Testing Action-Based Instruction in Brain Anatomy

Brain anatomy is typically taught using static images. We asked participants to use their own hands to represent the brain and perform gestures during learning. We measured learning via a pretest/postest design. We compared five video trainings in which participants heard similar audio and repeated terminology aloud. Conditions were: (1) Image: Participants saw images of a physical model of the brain. (2) Physical model: Participants saw hands pointing to the physical model. (3) Physical model + action: Participants performed actions on the physical model. (4) Hand model: Participants saw images of hands being used to represent the brain. (5) Hand model + action: Participants performed gestures seen in the video. All trainings improved post-test performance. Performance in the hand model condition was worse compared to conditions with action. We connect these findings to the larger claim that gesture benefits learning

Do social cues in instructional videos affect attention allocation, perceived cognitive load, and learning outcomes under different visual complexity conditions?

Background:There are only few guidelines on how instructional videos should be designed to optimize learning. Recently, the effects of social cues on attention allocation and learning in instructional videos have been investigated. Due to inconsistent results, it has been suggested that the visual complexity of a video influences the effect of social cues on learning.Objectives:Therefore, this study compared the effects of social cues (i.e., gaze & gesture) in low and high visual complexity videos on attention, perceived cognitive load,and learning outcomes.Methods:Participants (N=71) were allocated to a social cue or no social cue condition and watched both a low and a high visual complexity video. After each video, participants completed a knowledge test.Results and Conclusions: Results showed that participants looked faster at referenced information and had higher learning outcomes in the low visual complexity condition. Social cues did not affect any of the dependent variables, except when including prior knowledge in the analysis: In this exploratory analysis, the inclusion of gaze and gesture cues in the videos did lead to better learning outcomes.Takeaways: Our results show that the visual complexity of instructional videos and prior knowledge are important to take into account in future research on attention and learning from instructional videos

SCHOOL FROM HOME: PRACTICES AND PERSPECTIVES IN ENGLISH FOR YOUNG LEARNERS’ CLASSROOMS

The occurrence of the coronavirus pandemic (COVID-19) has affected the education sector in Indonesia. The Indonesian government responded to this matter by issuing a policy on the implementation of school from home or popularly known as online learning. School from home was applied to all education levels in Indonesia and caused a great impact in young learners’ classrooms. This qualitative case study is aimed at investigating the implementation of school from home in English for young learners’ classrooms including the teachers’ and parents' perspectives on it. The data were collected through online classroom observations and interviews with five English teachers and six students’ parents from each grade classroom. Data from each interview were analysed using thematic analysis. The analysis generated nine themes from three datasets on the implementation, teachers’ perspectives, and parents’ perspectives on school from home in English for young learners’ classrooms. The first dataset on the implementation of school from home generated three themes including teachers’ readiness to implement school from home, teachers’ strategies to implement online learning as part of the school from home, and teachers’ strategies to overcome challenges in online learning. The second dataset on teachers’ perspectives also generated three themes: perceived usefulness, perceived suitability for young learners, and perceived challenges. Lastly, the third dataset on parents’ perspectives indicated three themes including perceived clarity, perceived advantages, and perceived disadvantages of school- from-home. The study concluded that the implementation of school from home should be conducted asynchronously and synchronously to serve optimal learning for young learners

Designing effective video-based modeling examples using gaze and gesture cues

Research suggests that learners will likely spend a substantial amount of time looking at the model\u27s face when it is visible in a video-based modeling example. Consequently, in this study we hypothesized that learners might not attend timely to the task areas the model is referring to, unless their attention is guided to such areas by the model\u27s gaze or gestures. Results showed that the students in all conditions looked more at the female model than at the task area she referred to. However, the data did show a gradual decline in the difference between attention toward the model and the task as a function of cueing: students who observed the model gazing and gesturing at the task, looked the least at the model and the most at the task area she referred to, while those who observed the model looking straight into the camera, looked most at the model and least at the task area she referred to. Students who observed a human model only gazing at the task fell in between. In conclusion, gesture cues in combination with gaze cues effectively help to distribute attention between the model and the task display in our video-based modeling example

Do social cues in instructional videos affect attention allocation, perceived cognitive load, and learning outcomes under different visual complexity conditions?

Background: There are only few guidelines on how instructional videos should be designed to optimize learning. Recently, the effects of social cues on attention allocation and learning in instructional videos have been investigated. Due to inconsistent results, it has been suggested that the visual complexity of a video influences the effect of social cues on learning. Objectives: Therefore, this study compared the effects of social cues (i.e., gaze & gesture) in low and high visual complexity videos on attention, perceived cognitive load, and learning outcomes. Methods: Participants (N = 71) were allocated to a social cue or no social cue condition and watched both a low and a high visual complexity video. After each video, participants completed a knowledge test. Results and Conclusions: Results showed that participants looked faster at referenced information and had higher learning outcomes in the low visual complexity condition. Social cues did not affect any of the dependent variables, except when including prior knowledge in the analysis: In this exploratory analysis, the inclusion of gaze and gesture cues in the videos did lead to better learning outcomes. Takeaways: Our results show that the visual complexity of instructional videos and prior knowledge are important to take into account in future research on attention and learning from instructional videos