Towards a framework for investigating tangible environments for learning

External representations have been shown to play a key role in mediating cognition. Tangible environments offer the opportunity for novel representational formats and combinations, potentially increasing representational power for supporting learning. However, we currently know little about the specific learning benefits of tangible environments, and have no established framework within which to analyse the ways that external representations work in tangible environments to support learning. Taking external representation as the central focus, this paper proposes a framework for investigating the effect of tangible technologies on interaction and cognition. Key artefact-action-representation relationships are identified, and classified to form a structure for investigating the differential cognitive effects of these features. An example scenario from our current research is presented to illustrate how the framework can be used as a method for investigating the effectiveness of differential designs for supporting science learning

Text or image? Investigating the effects of instruction type on mid-air gesture making with novice older adults

Unlike traditional interaction methods where the same command (e.g. mouse click) is used for different purposes, mid-air gesture interaction often makes use of different gesture commands for different functions, but first novice users need to learn these commands in order to interact with the system successfully. We describe an empirical study with 25 novice older adults that investigated the effectiveness of 3 “on screen” instruction types for demonstrating how to make mid-air gesture commands. We compared three interface design choices for providing instructions: descriptive (text-based), pictorial (static), and pictorial (animated). Results showed a significant advantage of pictorial instructions (static and animated) over text-based instructions for guiding novice older adults in making mid-air gestures with regards to accuracy, completion time and user preference. Pictorial (animated) was the instruction type leading to the fastest gesture making with 100% accuracy and may be the most suitable choice to support age-friendly gesture learning

Population Stereotyped Icons: A Study of Agrarian Communities in India

Knowledge transfer is a key factor for increasing agriculture yield especially in developing countries like India. Information Communication Technologies (ICT) is the best platform for knowledge transfer. However, the expertise level of novice users living in India has compromised usage of ICT services. To fill the gap, we suggest for icons to be developed using population stereotype production method. In this study, we first generated population stereotype representations for sixteen different function labels. We then compared the performance and representativeness of these populationstereotyped icons with other ideas. Two separate experiments were conducted. In the first experiment, ninety-two participants from the farming communities were asked to draw images to represent sixteen function labels. In the second experiment, eighty-eight participants were equally distributed into four groups to evaluate the performance and representativeness of all the population-stereotyped representations. This study answered one of the most significant questions regarding the utility of using population-stereotyped ideas for the development of icons in the context of agrarian societies of rural India. The study also offered important practical implications for designing representative icons by using representations developed by different participants during population stereotype production

Aerospace medicine and biology: A continuing bibliography with indexes (supplement 341)

This bibliography lists 133 reports, articles and other documents introduced into the NASA Scientific and Technical Information System during September 1990. Subject coverage includes: aerospace medicine and psychology, life support systems and controlled environments, safety equipment, exobiology and extraterrestrial life, and flight crew behavior and performance

Different Methods of Embodied Cognition in Pedagogy and its Effectiveness in Student Learning

The Mathematical Ideas Analysis hypothesizes that abstract mathematical reasoning is unconsciously organized and integrated with sensory-motor experience. Basic research testing movement, language, and perception during math problem solving supports this hypothesis. Applied research primarily measures students’ performance on math tests after they engage in analogous sensory-motor tasks, but findings show mixed results. Sensory-motor tasks are dependent on several moderators (e.g., instructional guidance, developmental stage) known to help students learn, and studies vary in how each moderator is implemented. There is little research on the effectiveness of sensory-motor tasks without these moderators. This study compares different approaches to working with an interactive application designed to emulate how people intrinsically solve algebraic equations. A total of 130 participants (84 females, 54 males) were drawn from a pool of Introductory Psychology students attending San Jose State University. Participants were placed in three different learning environments, and their performance was measured by comparing improvement between a pre-test and a post-test. We found no difference between participants who worked alone with the application, were instructed by the experimenter while using the application, or who instructed the experimenter on how to solve equations using the application. Further research is needed to examine how and whether analogous sensory-motor interfaces are a useful learning tool, and if so, what circumstances are ideal for sensory-motor interfaces to be used

Exploring a Cognitive Basis for Learning Spatial Relationships with Augmented Reality

Augmented reality (AR) is an emergent class of interface that presents compelling possibilities for advancing spatial visualization. We offer a brief overview of AR technology and current research with in the educational realm. AR interfaces appear to provide a unique combination of visual display properties, modes of user manipulation, and interaction with spatial information. Drawing upon aspects of proprioception and sensorimotor function, we discuss how AR may have a unique and powerful link to spatial knowledge acquisition through visuo-motor involvement in the processing of information. We identify key properties of AR interfaces and how they differ from conventional visualization interfaces, followed by a discussion of theoretical perspectives that make a case for learning spatial relationships using first person manipulative AR.Recent research provides evidence that this form of AR holds cognitive advantages for learning when compared with traditional desktop 2D interfaces. We review the visual-physical connections to learning using first person manipulative AR within educational contexts. We then provide some suggestions for building future research in this area and explore its significance in the realm of spatial knowledge acquisition

Anatomy: The Relationship Between Internal and External Visualizations

This dissertation explored the relationship between internal and external visualizations and the implications of this relationship for comprehending visuospatial anatomical information. External visualizations comprised different computer representations of anatomical structures, including: static, animated, non-interactive, interactive, non-stereoscopic, and stereoscopic visualizations. Internal visualizations involved examining participants’ ability to apprehend, encode, and manipulate mental representations (i.e., spatial visualization ability or Vz). Comprehension was measured with a novel spatial anatomy task that involved mental manipulation of anatomical structures in three-dimensions and two-dimensional cross-sections. It was hypothesized that performance on the spatial anatomy task would involve a trade-off between internal and external visualizations available to the learner. Results from experiments 1, 2, and 3 demonstrated that in the absence of computer visualizations, spatial visualization ability (Vz) was the main contributor to variation in spatial anatomy task performance. Subjects with high Vz scored higher, spent less time, and were more accurate than those with low Vz. In the presence of external computer visualizations, variation in task performance was attributed to both Vz and visuospatial characteristics of the computer visualization. While static representations improved performance of high- and low-Vz subjects equally, animations particularly benefited high Vz subjects, as their mean score on the SAT was significantly higher than the mean score of low Vz subjects. The addition of interactivity and stereopsis to the displays offered no additional advantages over non-interactive and non-stereoscopic visualizations. Interactive, non-interactive, stereoscopic and non-stereoscopic visualizations improved the performance of high- and low-Vz subjects equally. It was concluded that comprehension of visuospatial anatomical information involved a trade-off between the perception of external visualizations and the ability to maintain and manipulate internal visualizations. There is an inherent belief that increasing the educational effectiveness of computer visualizations is a mere question of making them dynamic, interactive, and/or realistic. However, experiments 1, 2, and 3 clearly demonstrate that this is not the case, and that the benefits of computer visualizations vary according to learner characteristics, particularly spatial visualization ability

The Effect of Augmented Reality Treatment on Learning, Cognitive Load, and Spatial Visualization Abilities

This study investigated the effects of Augmented Reality (AR) on learning, cognitive load and spatial abilities. More specifically, it measured learning gains, perceived cognitive load, and the role spatial abilities play with students engaged in an astronomy lesson about lunar phases. Research participants were 182 students from a public university in southeastern United States, and were recruited from psychology research pool. Participants were randomly assigned to two groups: (a) Augmented Reality and Text Astronomy Treatment (ARTAT); and (b) Images and Text Astronomy Treatment (ITAT). Upon entering the experimental classroom, participants were given (a) Paper Folding Test to measure their spatial abilities; (b) the Lunar Phases Concept Inventory (LPCI) pre-test; (c) lesson on Lunar Phases; (d) NASA-TLX to measure participants’ cognitive load; and (e) LPCI post-test. Statistical analysis found (a) no statistical difference for learning gains between the ARTAT and ITAT groups; (b) statistically significant difference for cognitive load; and (c) no significant difference for spatial abilities scores