Applying science of learning in education: Infusing psychological science into the curriculum

The field of specialization known as the science of learning is not, in fact, one field. Science of learning is a term that serves as an umbrella for many lines of research, theory, and application. A term with an even wider reach is Learning Sciences (Sawyer, 2006). The present book represents a sliver, albeit a substantial one, of the scholarship on the science of learning and its application in educational settings (Science of Instruction, Mayer 2011). Although much, but not all, of what is presented in this book is focused on learning in college and university settings, teachers of all academic levels may find the recommendations made by chapter authors of service. The overarching theme of this book is on the interplay between the science of learning, the science of instruction, and the science of assessment (Mayer, 2011). The science of learning is a systematic and empirical approach to understanding how people learn. More formally, Mayer (2011) defined the science of learning as the “scientific study of how people learn” (p. 3). The science of instruction (Mayer 2011), informed in part by the science of learning, is also on display throughout the book. Mayer defined the science of instruction as the “scientific study of how to help people learn” (p. 3). Finally, the assessment of student learning (e.g., learning, remembering, transferring knowledge) during and after instruction helps us determine the effectiveness of our instructional methods. Mayer defined the science of assessment as the “scientific study of how to determine what people know” (p.3). Most of the research and applications presented in this book are completed within a science of learning framework. Researchers first conducted research to understand how people learn in certain controlled contexts (i.e., in the laboratory) and then they, or others, began to consider how these understandings could be applied in educational settings. Work on the cognitive load theory of learning, which is discussed in depth in several chapters of this book (e.g., Chew; Lee and Kalyuga; Mayer; Renkl), provides an excellent example that documents how science of learning has led to valuable work on the science of instruction. Most of the work described in this book is based on theory and research in cognitive psychology. We might have selected other topics (and, thus, other authors) that have their research base in behavior analysis, computational modeling and computer science, neuroscience, etc. We made the selections we did because the work of our authors ties together nicely and seemed to us to have direct applicability in academic settings

The Role of Social Agency in Student Learning

Although the pedagogical strategy known as the personalization principle has received considerable support in the laboratory, there is little work examining its generalizability, ecological validity, and potential for statistical mediation and moderation. In 5 experiments, these topics are examined in the laboratory as well as in a real classroom setting. Experiment 1a provides evidence for moderation of the effect of the personalization principle by the learner’s score on the need to belong scale. Experiment 1b shows support for a variable that measures subjective perceptions of the learning material mediating the effect of the personalization principle on learning outcomes. Experiments 2 and 3 replicate and extend the findings from experiments 1a and 1b, and experiment 4 provides a replication of the personalization principle in a real classroom setting. The key findings of the 5 experiments provide converging evidence that the personalization principle is moderated by the need to belong variable and may be mediated by the learner’s subjective perceptions of the learning materials. These findings were replicated several times using learning material from different disciplines. Interpretations of results and implications for future research and implementation of the personalization principle are discussed

The Effects of Decomposition Quality and Multiple Forms of Information on Novices’ Understanding of a Domain from a Conceptual Model

Individuals can often use conceptual models to learn about the business domain to be supported by an information system. We investigate the extent to which such models can help novices (i.e., individuals who lack knowledge in the business domain and in conceptual modeling) to obtain an understanding of the domain codified in the model. We focus on two factors that we predict will influence novices’ understanding: (1) decomposition quality: whether the conceptual model manifests a good decomposition of the domain, and (2) multiple forms of information: whether the conceptual model is accompanied by information in another form (e.g., a textual narrative). We hypothesize that both factors will have positive effects on understanding and that these effects depend on whether the individual seeks a surface or deep understanding. Our results are largely in line with our predictions. Moreover, our results suggest that while novices are generally aware that having multiple forms of information affects their understanding, they are unaware that decomposition quality affects their understanding. Based on these results, we recommend that practitioners include complementary forms of information (such as a textual narrative) along with conceptual models and be careful to ensure that their conceptual models manifest a good decomposition of the domain

Novel Multimedia Instruction for Teaching Anatomy Online

The cognitive theory of multimedia learning (CTML) is a well-evidenced approach to producing effective instructional multimedia. Few studies have tested the effects of CTML in the teaching of anatomy.The primary aim of this thesis was to evaluate knowledge retention and self-reports of confidence and levels of difficulty using CTML applied to a short lesson in anatomy for graduate medical students. Two experiments were conducted, with students in their first (n=116) and second year (n=76) of the Sydney Medical Program. The experiments were a pre-test/post-test design with a short media lesson as the independent variable. Students in the control group, watched a five minutes excerpt from an existing online lecture. The treatment group watched the same media following modifications using CTML principles. The data collected pre- and post intervention included: background demographics, six retention questions and four Likert-style self-rating questions. In both experiments: there were significant improvements in retention scores and self-reports of confidence pre- vs, post for both conditions, and the post-test scores between control and treatment groups were not significantly different. However, Jacobsons RCI showed that more students in the treatment groups had larger learning gains. These data show that applying CTML to multimedia lessons for teaching anatomy improves retention and confidence for a sub-population of graduate medical students

The Influence of Multimedia Production Knowledge on the Design Decisions of the Instructional Designer

This study explored the interaction of multimedia production competencies of expert and novice instructional designers on the design decisions made during the instructional design process / workflow. This multiple measures study used qualitative survey instruments to access and measure the production competencies of participants, then a design aloud protocol to capture and measure the instructional design decision-making process for those same participants. A follow-on interview after the initial design aloud session was conducted in order to triangulate and confirm any trends or findings uncovered during the earlier design aloud session. Ultimately, the objective of this study was to provide some evidence that suggests whether certain production skills are influencing instructional design decision-making. Employer influence on the instructional designer’s decision-making was also explored. Results indicated that a substantial number of instructional designers (n=30) who participated in this study were selecting media as a preliminary step in their workflow process, and were often then using analysis as a measure to confirm the early media selection. Expert instructional designers appeared to be less susceptible to the early media selection behavior, though not immune. Results indicate that one reason the expert instructional designers were less likely to adopt media as a preliminary instructional design step was that the experts conducted a more diverse set of analysis activities. Additionally, results indicated that instructional designers were often experiencing pressure to adopt media based on employer demands, and project constraints such as budget and time

Improving Test Score Reporting: Perspectives From the ETS Score Reporting Conference

This volume includes 3 papers based on presentations at a workshop on communicating assessment information to particular audiences, held at Educational Testing Service (ETS) on November 4th, 2010, to explore some issues that influence score reports and new advances that contribute to the effectiveness of these reports. Jessica Hullman, Rebecca Rhodes, Fernando Rodriguez, and Priti Shah present the results of recent research on graph comprehension and data interpretation, especially the role of presentation format, the impact of prior quantitative literacy and domain knowledge, the trade‐off between reducing cognitive load and increasing active processing of data, and the affective influence of graphical displays. Rebecca Zwick and Jeffrey Sklar present the results of the Instructional Tools in Educational Measurement and Statistics for School Personnel (ITEMS) project, funded by the National Science Foundation and conducted at the University of California, Santa Barbara to develop and evaluate 3 web‐based instructional modules intended to help educators interpret test scores. Zwick and Sklar discuss the modules and the procedures used to evaluate their effectiveness. Diego Zapata‐Rivera presents a new framework for designing and evaluating score reports, based on work on designing and evaluating score reports for particular audiences in the context of the CBAL (Cognitively Based Assessment of, for, and as Learning) project (Bennett & Gitomer, 2009), which has been applied in the development and evaluation of reports for various audiences including teachers, administrators and students.Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/108325/1/ets202281.pd