Designer’s dilemma
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
Director says a first version “seems a
little dry—can you spice it up a bit?”
Why might spicing it up with extra
graphics or background music seem
worthwhile?
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Common sense: avoid boring the learner
Arousal theory: when learners become
emotionally aroused they try harder to
learn the material
The Coherence Principle
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Interesting material can hinder learning
Why?
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Cognitive theory: learners have limited resources
Extraneous materials competes with core material
for limited cognitive resources
Coherence: all materials should cohere
relevantly with what needs to be learned
Avoid extraneous sounds

Background music and sounds may overload
working memory
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Especially when learner experiences heavy cognitive
processing demands
Experimental results:


For lightning presentation, added sound effects
such as winds depicting air movement and crackling
of charge transfers
Retention was 61-149% better for narration without
additional sound effects
Also avoid extraneous words

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Adding interesting sentences may seem
like an easy way to increase interest
Again, they may just distract learners
Conclusion: avoid seductive but irrelevant
details that force excitement but don’t
increase understanding
How will you apply coherence?

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
Discuss in your project group
Do you follow this principle in your
scripts so far?
Are there any sounds or graphics in
your script that you might drop?


What’s the
difference?
Which is more
effective for
learners?
Personalization principle

Conversational style aids learning



Formal style avoids first- and second-person: e.g.,
“Caution should be used when opening pyrotechnic
containers.”
Use second-person: “You should be careful if you
open any containers with pyrotechnics.”
Why might informal style help learning?


People work harder to understand material when
they feel they are in a conversation with a partner.
Discuss examples on p. 164
Use onscreen coaches
(pedagogical agents)

Agents may be representations of real
people or artificial characters using
animation and computer-generated voice

Clippy, Knobby or professor personae?
Agent in Design-A-Plant Tutor

Herman the bug improved learning 24-48%
 Lifelike agents may not be essential
 Human voice may work better than computergenerated speech
Adele tutors medical students

Web-based agent supports lesson presentation, student monitoring
and feedback, probing questions, hints, and explanations
Microsoft Agent architecture


Characters move freely in computer display,
speak aloud and display text onscreen, and
even listen for spoken voice commands
Downloadable from
www.microsoft.com/msagent/
Visible author



Reveals personal perspective in 1st person
See text examples on p. 174
Psychological reasons for using visible author?

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
Author as guide for student
Social relationships motivate students
Evidence shows that learners provide richer
answers for some learners
How will you apply
personalization?




Will you adjust your writing style?
Will you use learning coaches or agents?
Check out Microsoft Agent software?
Will you include a “visible” author?
Does practice make perfect?


Interactive practice exercises help learners
integrate knowledge into LTM
What kinds of exercises?




Drag-and-drop and simulations
More crucially: exercises should mirror thinking
processes and environment of actual task
Better learning results from practice questions
interspersed throughout the lesson
Learners should be trained to developer their own
questions
Interactions should mirror
the actual job or task

Activities should require learners to respond
in similar ways during training as they will on
the job



E.g., Jeopardy game doesn’t help transfer on job
Simulation of actual job decisions does
Avoid simple regurgitation of information
provided in training program

Doesn’t implant cues for retrieval in job context
Effective practice questions

Asking “why” questions improves learning



“Why does an object speed up as its radius
gets smaller?”
Results in greater factual and inference
learning
Pro and con analysis improves learning

Developing arguments requires organization
and integration of materials
More practice aids learning

Well designed practice exercises provide
opportunities for encoding knowledge or skills




The more encoding opportunities, the more
integration
Logarithmic relationship between amount of
practice and time to complete tasks
Improvement occurs regardless of initial ability
Tradeoff of time in development and lesson


Interactive practice can be harder to design
Practice also adds to training time: eventually
there are diminishing returns on learning
Spacing practice aids learning


Spacing practice is superior to massed
practice, e.g., at end of lesson
Spacing effect is not immediate but
after a period of time
Apply media principles to
practice


Contiguity: keep text close to graphics
Modality: use audio to explain graphics



Redundancy: use text alone


But audio is transient, so redundant text and
graphics is OK for practice questions
Feedback should also be presented in text
Don’t narrate text directions or practice questions
Peronalization: use conversational language

Provide hints and feedback in first & second person
Train learners to self-question



Learners can ask and answer their own
questions during lessons: “How can I
apply the program features to my job?”
Agent could suggest such questions
Why encourage self-questioning?


Active engagement improves learning
Developing metacognitive skills improves
learning
How will you add practice?



What kinds of practice questions are more
effective?
Why is it better to think of them as practice
than quiz questions?
What kind of interactive exercises are you
planning?




Discuss ADT constructive exercise.
Discuss Turing machine simulation.
How many practice exercises will you have?
Where will your exercises appear?