Difference between revisions of "Multimedia Presentations"

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Many instructors use multimedia, including presentation tools such as Microsoft PowerPoint, in the classroom to hold students' attention and to streamline class preparation.  Here is what the latest research tells us about the effective use of multimedia presentations:
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[[File:projector.JPG|right|275px|alt=alt text|source:  http://www.yorkhighschool.co.uk/_files/images/classroom.JPG]]
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*'''Avoid duplication.'''  Research by Jamet and Le Bohec in 2006 showed that presenting students with a Powerpoint presentation that directly mirrored the instructor's lecture resulted in lower information recall on multiple types of tests.
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*'''Concise is better.'''  Research in 2003 by Bartsch and Cohern showed that elaborate PowerPoint features such as unrelated images, sounds, and extraneous information impaired student learning.
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*'''Draw graphs in class.''' Research in 2003 by Stern, Aprea and Ebner showed that groups presented with a graph that was ‘actively illustrated’ performed better in recall tasks than groups passively presented with the same graph. 'Actively illustration' is when students are asked to develop a graph themselves rather than merely having a graph shown to them.
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[http://www.thinkoutsidetheslide.com/ten-secrets-for-using-powerpoint-effectively/ Ten Secrets For Using PowerPoint Effectively] offers some basic advice.
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The website [http://serc.carleton.edu/econ/media/index.html ''Starting Point: Teaching and Learning Economics''], which was created by KimMarie McGoldrick (University of Richmond), Scott Simkins (North Carolina A&T University), Mark Maier (Glendale Community College), and Cathy Manduca (Carleton College), contains more information concerning technology in the economics classroom.
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== "9 Ways to Reduce Cognitive Load in Multimedia Learning" (Mayer & Moreno, 2003) ==
 
== "9 Ways to Reduce Cognitive Load in Multimedia Learning" (Mayer & Moreno, 2003) ==
  
This paper by Mayer and Moreno addresses the problems inherent of using multimedia when teaching.  The author propose a theory of multimedia learning based on 3 assumptionsthe dual-channel assumption, the limited-capacity assumption, and the active-processing assumption. The '''dual-channel assumption''' asserts that humans process verbal and visual in separate systems. The '''limited-capacity assumption''' asserts that a limit exists as to the amount of information each system can process at any given time. The '''active-processing assumption''' asserts that meaningful learning represents necessitates higher cognitive processes such as building connections between verbal and visual representations of information. Based on these assumptions, the authors put forth the idea of '''Cognitive Overload''' which occurs when a learner's cognitive capacity is exceeded by the amount of cognitive processing desired by the learner. Having identified the problem of '''Cognitive Overload''' and the assumptions made, the authors proceed to propose several ways of alleviating it. These ideas/theories are as follows:
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Mayer and Moreno propose a theory of multimedia learning and cognitive overload based on 3 assumptions. Cognitive overload is a term used in cognitive psychology to describe the overwhelming effects of a large amount of information on a person's working memory. Mayer and Moreno's theory involves three assumptions about cognitive overload. The first is called the dual-channel assumption and says that humans process verbal and visual in separate systems. The second, the limited-capacity assumption, argues that a limit exists as to the amount of information each system can process at any given time. Lastly, the active-processing assumption says that meaningful learning represents necessitates higher cognitive processes such as building connections between verbal and visual representations of information. Oftentimes, multimedia presentations bombard students with text, pictures, and audio all at the same time. If the assumptions in Mayer and Moreno's theory hold, multimedia learning may present a challenge to student's mental capacity, particularly for students who are not strong visual and/or verbal learners. The authors propose several ways of alleviating Cognitive Overload here: [["9 Ways to Reduce Cognitive Load in Multimedia Learning" (Mayer & Moreno, 2003)]].
  
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== Evidence ==
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{{hidden|'''Effective Use of Visuals- Bartsch & Cobern, 2003.'''|While PowerPoints can be an effective teaching tool, it is important that teachers use visuals and effects judiciously. Bartsch and Cohen (2003) discussed two separate studies which examined the the effectiveness of and reaction to the use of PowerPoint presentations in college lecture classes.
  
1.'''Modality Effect''' - students show better comprehension of concepts presented as diagrams/animations when they are presented with narration rather than text.  
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The first study compared and contrasted PowerPoint presentations with transparencies as a tool to improve student performance and satisfaction in a course. Lecturers presented students with three types of multimedia: transparencies, basic PowerPoint (text only), and expanded PowerPoint (animated text, pictures, and sound). While researchers found no difference in students' liking of the three formats, the students felt that they learned more from PowerPoint presentations. However, students performed approximately 10% worse when presented with material in the expanded PowerPoint treatment than in the basic PowerPoint or the transparency treatment. This suggests that excessive use of visual effects may be harmful to the learning process.In light of this finding, Bartsch and Cohen next looked at whether the relevancy of graphics affected the impact of a presentation on performance. Students watched three types of PowerPoints: text-only, text and relevant visuals, and text and irrelevant visuals. They then were tested on their memory of facts from the PowerPoint Results showed that relevant visuals did not cause students to perform better or worse than a text-only PowerPoint, but that irrelevant visuals caused students to perform worse than in the other two conditions. Bartsch and Cohen conclude that while PowerPoints can be beneficial, "material that is not pertinent to the presentation can be harmful to students' learning.
  
2.'''Segmentation Effect''' - students show better comprehension of multimedia explanations when it is presented in paced, student-controlled segments rather than a continuos presentation.  This way, the student can make sure they understand one concept before being presented with another, presumably more complex one.
 
  
3.'''Pretraining Effect''' - students show better understanding of a multimedia explanation when they are presented with background information (i.e. relevant jargon) prior to the lesson. An example of this would be providing a list of relevant vocabulary prior to powerpoint lectures.
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Click [http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0360131503000277  here] to read the full study.}}
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{{hidden|'''Effective Use of Text- Jamet & Le Bohec, 2006.'''|When presenting a PowerPoint presentation, it is important that what the presenter is saying is not directly replicated in the text on the screen. Eric Jamet and Olivier Le Bohec, of the Université Rennes, examined the effects of redundant text on performance when using multimedia as a teaching technique. They showed three groups of students three different types of multimedia. The first group saw no written text. The second group viewed written text and then heard the same information spoken. The third group saw and heard the information at the same time. Results showed that duplication of the text, regardless of whether it was sequential or static, resulted in lower retention of material in subsequent memory tests. These findings suggest that overloading a student with both visual and auditory signals may actually be detrimental to their academic performance.  
  
4.'''Coherence Effect''' - students show better understanding of multimedia explanations when they lack extraneous information, sounds and images. It is believed that unnecessary factors 'take up' cognitive processing away from necessary ones.  
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Click [http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0361476X06000294/ here] to see the study.}}
  
5.'''Signaling Effect''' - in multimedia presentations that do cannot exclude extraneous information, students show better understanding when educators include signals as to what information is important (i.e. bolding important terms or underlining them).
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{{hidden|'''Effective Use of Graphs- Stern, Aprea and Ebner, 2006.'''|Graphs are an integral part of teaching economic concepts, but can be ineffective if not used properly. Stern, Aprea and Ebner looked at how people can use graphs to transfer knowledge from one topic in economics to another. In their studies, participants first learned about stockkeeping in one of three ways. The first group was shown text and a graph about the topic, but did not have to engage with the graph. The second group were shown text and learned how to construct a linear graph about this topic through a set of instructions. A control group merely received text about the topic. Then, all the participants had to process a text and answer questions regarding a different economics topic, revenue functions and break-even points of companies. The questions could easily be answered through the construction of a linear graph similar to the one shown to the first two groups. The study found that groups who actively engaged in drawing graphs about stockkeeping  performed better on later questions, particularly if they drew a graph to answer the questions about revenue functions. This study presents strong support for the practice of requiring students to draw graphs to illustrate theories rather than merely asking them to describe the theories in words.
  
6.'''Spatial Contiguity Effect''' - student understanding is better when text is placed near the image it corresponds to.  
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Click [http://www.ifvll.ethz.ch/research/history/stern_aprea_ebner_2003.pdf/ here] to see the study.}}
  
7.'''Redudancy Effect''' - comprehension is negatively affected when on-screen text mirrors lecture.  For example, an explanation of diminishing marginal utility is given by a professor, but also concurrently presented in text on a powerpoint slide. 
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== Conclusion ==
  
8.'''Temporal Contiguity Effect''' - when presented with mixtures of narration and multimedia (i.e. a verbal explanation and an animation) students show better understanding if both forms are presented simultaneously rather than successivelyFor example, instead of explaining the income effect and ''then'' showing an animation that explains it again, the explanation and the animation should be presented in a sequential, simultaneous manner.
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Multimedia should serve as a guide to lecture, not compete with the teacherThis means that teachers have to be careful to not only keep student attention, but also make smart multimedia decisions to ensure every minute of lecture is transmitting information to the student in an efficient, engaging way.  
  
9.'''Spatial Ability Effect''' - this effect has to do personalizing multimedia presentations for each student.  It holds that high spatial learners benefit more from simultaneous presentation of narration, sound and images and therefore should be presented with it.
 
  
For the original article, click [http://www.elizabethoc.com/9ways/article.pdf/ here].
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{{hidden|Sources|Bartsch, R. and K. Cobern. "Effectiveness of PowerPoint Presentations in Lectures." Computers & Education 41.1 (2003): 77-86. Print.
  
== Evidence ==
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Jamet, E., and O. Lebohec. "The Effect of Redundant Text in Multimedia Instruction." Contemporary Educational Psychology 32.4 (2007): 588-98. Print.
  
'''Bartsch & Cobern, 2003.'''  This study, titled "Effectiveness of PowerPoint Presentations in Lectures," examined the differences in preference, perceived learning and test performance between class units taught using transparencies, a basic powerpoint presentation and an advanced powerpoint presentation including images and sounds. Students were surveyed directly after each lecture and at the end of the course and performance was measured using class averages on assessments administered for each unit. The study found no significant difference in preference between the three modes of presentation for end-of-class ratings, but a preference for powerpoints in the end-of-semester ratings. Students believed they learned more from both types of powerpoint presentations than from transparencies. It was found that students performed about 10% worse on the units taught using the advanced powerpoint presentation that included images and sounds.  Upon this finding, researchers decided to examine the effect of relevant and irrelevant powerpoint images on test performance and enjoyment.  Participants were shown 30 slides that included a fact and an image that was either relevant or irrelevant to the fact.  Afterwards, participants were given a test on the slides' information.  It was found irrelevant images had a significant negative effect on both performance and enjoyment.  On the other hand, relevant images had neither a negative nor positive effect on performance and enjoyment of the material.  Click [http://www.eric.ed.gov/ERICWebPortal/search/detailmini.jsp?_nfpb=true&_&ERICExtSearch_SearchValue_0=EJ778703&ERICExtSearch_SearchType_0=no&accno=EJ778703/ here] to see the study.
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Mayer, R., and R. Moreno. "Nine Ways to Reduce Cognitive Load in Multimedia Learning." Educational Psychologist 38.1 (2003): 43-52. Print.
  
[[File:projector.JPG|center|frame|alt=alt text|source: http://www.yorkhighschool.co.uk/_files/images/classroom.JPG]]
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Stern, E., C. Aprea, and H. Ebner. "Improving Cross-content Transfer in Text Processing by Means of Active Graphical Representation." Learning and Instruction 13.2 (2003): 191-203. Print.}}
  
'''Jamet & Le Bohec, 2006.'''  This study, titled "The Effect of Redundant Text in Multimedia Instruction," examined the interactions of redundant text and spoken information in cognitive psychology students learning different theories of memory.  A lecture was presented to the students.  This lecture was accompanied by a powepoint-style presentation that included a diagram of the memory theory being taught and no text (no redundancy), text (redundancy: text mirroring the entire lecture presented all at once), or sequential text (text mirroring the text was presented sequentially, after being spoken).  Students were then assess on information retention, transfer (applying the information learned to more abstract situations) and diagram completion.  Students in the non-redundant group significantly outperformed students in the redundant conditions, both full text and sequential text.  No significant differences were observed between the full text and sequential text conditions, suggesting that redundancy itself plays the negative role, regardless of the order in which redundant information is presented. Click [http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0361476X06000294/ here] to see the study.
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Latest revision as of 21:12, 20 October 2013

Many instructors use multimedia, including presentation tools such as Microsoft PowerPoint, in the classroom to hold students' attention and to streamline class preparation. Here is what the latest research tells us about the effective use of multimedia presentations:

alt text


  • Avoid duplication. Research by Jamet and Le Bohec in 2006 showed that presenting students with a Powerpoint presentation that directly mirrored the instructor's lecture resulted in lower information recall on multiple types of tests.
  • Concise is better. Research in 2003 by Bartsch and Cohern showed that elaborate PowerPoint features such as unrelated images, sounds, and extraneous information impaired student learning.
  • Draw graphs in class. Research in 2003 by Stern, Aprea and Ebner showed that groups presented with a graph that was ‘actively illustrated’ performed better in recall tasks than groups passively presented with the same graph. 'Actively illustration' is when students are asked to develop a graph themselves rather than merely having a graph shown to them.


Ten Secrets For Using PowerPoint Effectively offers some basic advice. The website Starting Point: Teaching and Learning Economics, which was created by KimMarie McGoldrick (University of Richmond), Scott Simkins (North Carolina A&T University), Mark Maier (Glendale Community College), and Cathy Manduca (Carleton College), contains more information concerning technology in the economics classroom.

"9 Ways to Reduce Cognitive Load in Multimedia Learning" (Mayer & Moreno, 2003)

Mayer and Moreno propose a theory of multimedia learning and cognitive overload based on 3 assumptions. Cognitive overload is a term used in cognitive psychology to describe the overwhelming effects of a large amount of information on a person's working memory. Mayer and Moreno's theory involves three assumptions about cognitive overload. The first is called the dual-channel assumption and says that humans process verbal and visual in separate systems. The second, the limited-capacity assumption, argues that a limit exists as to the amount of information each system can process at any given time. Lastly, the active-processing assumption says that meaningful learning represents necessitates higher cognitive processes such as building connections between verbal and visual representations of information. Oftentimes, multimedia presentations bombard students with text, pictures, and audio all at the same time. If the assumptions in Mayer and Moreno's theory hold, multimedia learning may present a challenge to student's mental capacity, particularly for students who are not strong visual and/or verbal learners. The authors propose several ways of alleviating Cognitive Overload here: "9 Ways to Reduce Cognitive Load in Multimedia Learning" (Mayer & Moreno, 2003).

Evidence

Conclusion

Multimedia should serve as a guide to lecture, not compete with the teacher. This means that teachers have to be careful to not only keep student attention, but also make smart multimedia decisions to ensure every minute of lecture is transmitting information to the student in an efficient, engaging way.