Assignment 4

https://docs.google.com/present/edit?id=0AT3iD_Q-HogZGdyYjg3YndfNDdmNDN4NDJrcw&hl=en_US

week 9 & 10 class activity

Chang, Dooley and Tuovinen – Gestalt Theory in Visual Screen Design – A new look at an Old Subject

1.       Gestalt theory usually expressed as laws is one of the foundations for instructional screen designs and it is widely used to improve educational screen design consequently leading to effective learning. It has many variants (as many as 114 Helson 1933) of the laws which are closed related if not overlapping. The paper presents literature review of the eleven Gestalt laws applicable to screen design – visual form. These include: Law of Balance/Symmetry (visual object will appear incomplete if not balanced); Law of continuation (the instinct to follow direction derived from visual field); Law of closure (openness in objects or shapes perceived as incomplete visual pattern); Law of figure-ground (change of background/foreground in visual can lead to different perceived objects; Law of focal Point (focal point catches attention); Law of Isomorphic correspondence (images meanings varies as people read them different); Law of Good from; law of proximity; Law of similarity; Law of simplicity; Law of unit/harmony

2.       The above laws are applied to visual design of educational multimedia program. The results after applying the laws to the visual screen design we deemed effective with better usability compare to the first one. The usefulness of the Gestalt visual design principle for learning was highly ranked – therefore deem effective. It recognised as it add value to their learning with less enthusiasm will therefore need further research to leverage support. 

Week 9 & 10 class activity

 Learner Control, Cognitive Load and Instructional Animation – Hasler, Kesten & Sweller 2007

1.       Computer animation is increasingly be used in computer-based education across all subject domains and education levels. However, inappropriate design of animations can hinder learning. These can occur due to the high cognitive processing demands on human limited temporal working memory. To address this problem instructional animation based on appropriate designs as a result of cognitive load theory (CLT) research. The CLT research has demonstrated that if instructional activities are aligned to cognitive architecture are likely to results increased knowledge in the information store. Therefore CLT aims to decrease unnecessary cognitive load which is aligned to the limited learner’s working memory making effective transfer of information to long term memory store. As a result CLT minimizing the cognitive overload thus making mental resources readily available for the effective learning.

2.       The paper study address the gap due to the inconsistence results from multimedia learning pacing and segmentation. While pacing and segmentation is one of the instructional effects and design principles to overcome high unnecessary, ineffective cognitive load (extraneous) through controlled pace of the materials or division of instruction into meaningful segments. The results of the experiment shows learners learn better when given information (borrowing and reorganising) instead of exploring (randomness). This becomes critical to how information is then presented to them within the limits of working memory. Also the study highlights that the use of audio-visual animations didn’t add any significant difference to learning outcome therefore it deemed redundant for this experiments. Results provide conclusive support that learner-controlled pacing of animated presentation is advantageous to schema construction. The stop-play group in the study used random as genesis instead of borrowing and reorganising principles as they engaged in reflection of what they seen previously thus engaging in germane cognitive load for expository instructional material. They monitored what they learned as they used the paused the animation. The pausing is critical to schema construction and germane cognitive load lead to effective learning. Compared to continuous running of the animations may lead to learner paying less attention to what the learning. The results obtained in this paper offer insight on effective use of CLT in multimedia learning and support why it is appropriate to be applied. Learner control is to be integrated in educational animations to improve instructional efficiency.  

Week 9 & 10 class activity

Mayer & Moreno 2003 – Nine ways to reduce cognitive load in Multimedia learning

1.       This paper is centred on the use of words and pictures either static or dynamic for learning – multimedia learning. This could be computer based narrated animations utilized to make deeper understanding thus it is important how the material is organised for easy processing. The presentation of the important aspect needed for understanding presented materials has proved to be challenge to researchers in multimedia learning. This often led to cognitive load overload as learners tried to process substantial information exceeding learner’s cognitive processing capacity. Consequently instructional designed have to considerate of the limited learner processing capability in order to affect meaningful learning. If it is ignored it how the human cognitive systems (human information process systems) works it is likely to result in cognitive overload. Potential problem of learning task exceeding the processing capacity of the cognitive system can be due to essential processing, incidental processing and or representational holding.

2.       The authors proposed the nine ways of dealing different types of overload. These are; overload due to off-loading when one channel is overloaded with essential processing demands which can be addressed through modality effect – the use of words as narration; overloading due to segmenting and pre-training when both channels are overload overloaded with essential processing demands in working memory can solved by successive segmentation of presentation and pretraining effect; overload due to weeding and signalling when the system is overloaded by incidental processing demands due to extraneous material can be addressed by removing material unrelated to learning activity and by providing cues to learners on how to organise and select material; overload due to aligning and eliminating redundancy when system is overload by incidental processing demands attributable to how the essential material is presented through aligning words and pictures and removing redundant material; overload due to synchronizing and individualizing when the system is overload by the need to hold information in working memory can be reduced by presenting corresponding visual and auditory  material  together and through spatial ability effect. At the end the researchers’ established cognitive theory of multimedia learning based on core principles of cognitive science and conducted various predictions on numerous methods for reducing cognitive load based empirical experiments. This will enhance learn using animations.

Assignment 3

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1IqW6r2LxfxTd1IQia0ZLF1o6MwEWntRlF7Res7EwvI4/edit?hl=en_US#

Deconstruction activity

Although Amazon is well accomplished online company, based on accessibility of information in the site has been slighted clustered with lots of unrelated information. Therefore for the first users this can be an overwhelming task in finding what you users are looking for. This is based on the tenets and practice of the accessible web aim to ensure users finding the web a valuable resource, and that they have access, enjoy the sites and thus are more likely to make return visits. The Amazon may offer pleasant experience for experienced or returning users but not new user. Information overloading is common problem on internet which Amazon on login doesn’t seem to address but once user has an account and login it then offers customization of content, access and presentation. One example of bad experience site is from aquarelle.com (mainly sells flowers) which offers no integration of architectures of various sites on differnt countries. Customer profile at aquarelle.co.uk and aquarelle.be are not related to the mother company account (aquarelle.com). If customer registers in all of the sites would be flooded with same advertisements of the same product on different language creating spam and unwanted mail.  

esoteric words phrases

I found these website match the three words

1. Abstract Thought   http://abstractthought.livejournal.com/

2. Aspiration  http://whohastimeforthis.blogspot.com/2011/02/aspiration.html

3. Aura  http://www.psychic.com.au/aura.htm