learning by creating multimedia

there is research on learning-by-teaching and peer-tutoring (but nothing on making multimedia, which is not face-to-face)

examples of making:

• making a video
• writing a blog
• making a test question
• making a slow-mation (or stopmotion)

why does it promote learning?

• retrieval practise (preparation -> making from memory)
• cognitive explanation (generative processes create germane load; elaboration/monitoring) (+ exposes knowledge gaps – more metacognitive tho)
• social cognitive explanation generative processes yay but social presence as mediating/in-between factor

social presence = degree to which people are aware of audience (from online learning, where it is related to increased participation) (because if it feels alone, you might do less bc less motivation)

OR: via psysiological arousal (forms of stress) there is a link between arousal and performance and there is a link between arousal and determinants for learning (memory etc.)

(there is a threshold where it is no longer positive; then overwhelming)

SO:

• creating multimedia triggers retrieval practise. by retrieving information from ltm and processing it, we learn more. it gets more ‘solidified’ in ltm.

• creating multimedia makes use of generative processes. these kinds of cognitive processes facilitate learning by elaborating/monitoring own performance. and can also expose knowledge gaps.

• social presence has two influences:

  1. it increases motivation and participation, especially in online settings
  2. is creates psysiological arousal, which is a bodily state of ‘activation’ (aka ustress?) that is positively linked with a) performance and b) learning determinators(?)

vlogging works as learning strategy

experiment: study + restudy vs study + vlog (so time on task is constant) vlogging works better

not clear whether cognitive processing or social presence

research conducted in lab, teenagers&adults, not children there are studies in classrooms, but those are flawed (no control group, or time on task not constant, or video as group, so could be collab effect too)

children have less working mem, not paying attention, problems remembering

vlogging vs restudy vs summarizing (summarizing also has generative processes)

• effect on motivation / enjoyment ^if students do not like a strategy they will not use it even tho effective ^also time is relevant; cannot take too much

summarizing and vlogging take more effort but vlogging leads to higher achievement

beneficial effect depended on (perceived) effort? so effort did not explain the difference

enjoyment did. so in part vlogging works better because people like it more. so probably motivational.

based on generative process explanation, we’d expect summarizing also to be better. so the social explanation holds up better. BUT: summarizing might not elicit the same amount/type of generative processes. further research required.

alt explanation: modality-effect: diff. in modality between speaking and writing speaking is better for more higher-order learning (whatever that means??)

homework is ineffective; making it more enjoyable and effective using vlogging is possible

further research:

lotte van kesteren

• beliefs about effectiveness
• why vlogging work??
• do benefits generalize for:
  • different types of students
  • different types of materials/courses
• do benefits last?
  • does it work repeatedly?
  • novelty effect? <- clark

creating materials for others:

does it help students learn? does leeropbrengst depend on subject, field etc.

meta analayse:

• research design
• use of control group
• sample size for conditions
• mean & sd across conditions
• type of product (animation, video, text, questions, games, audio, photo atlas)
• educational level
• content area / subject matter
• access to source (retrieval practise!)

finding: small but significant effect (.17) in favour

moderators:

• control group: compared to bad strats (passively reading), works better. otherwise, (so compared to summarizing), not so much.

• access to materials: do retrieval practise– just reading aloud does not help, but doing that in own words from memory does.

audio(visual) products do better.

discussion:

• can we improve effectiveness?
• meta-analysis shallow: types of learning outcomes? (achievement, retention, understanding, transfer, motivation etc.)

is vlogging works, does blogging also? (bc blogging does not use sound etc. – easier to implement)

compared to restudy, blogging did worse. WHY????

expl.: maybe writing is slower than talking so less and less good explanations. tested typing instead, on older people, but still no.

modality effect:

• writing better for conceptual knowledge (lower-order)
• oral better for transfer (higher-order)

first evidence for modality effect for MAKING instead of TEACHING

vlogging at end, of vlogging in the middle? (bc vlogging exposes knowledge gaps -> restudy to improve after vlog)

so based on theories:

• retrieval practise: better, because said knowledge gaps etc. (+ more spaced learning is better, so varied learning is better too?)
• generative processes: no difference
• social presence: no difference

YAY i was right.

does the audience matter?

conditions:

• restudy
• fictious audience (low social presence)
• real audience (high social presence)

real audience impaired learning compared to other conditions ^arousal through the roof -> stress consumes working mem resources

same goes for larger audience. (no effect on learning outcomes, but the perceived larger audience does take more effort which does not pay of)

in line with social psychology: if you know something well, having an audience improves performance, if you do not know something well, having an audience impairs performance.

vlogging works better about conceptual knowledge (how does something work? relations?) not so much for procedural knowledge (do this in these steps)

takeaways:

• study, vlog, restudy
• spoken > written
• explain from memory
• for conceptual knowledge, not procedural
• possibibly supplemented by learning-by-drawing
• avoid too high social pressure/presence (bc too stressful)

the effect is not merely a retrieval-practise, also a little bit of generative processes and social presence.

and:

• works for a lot of people
• students might need help with quality of explanations
• suggestions that it is more motivating
• some evidence for same effects in collab settings