Designing and Using Flexible Digital Media in the Classroom

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Designing and Using Flexible Digital Media in the
Classroom

• Randall Boone
• Kyle Higgins
• Joy Zabala

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Design Considerations for Digital Content
Meeting the Needs of Students with Disabilities

• Randall Boone
• Kyle Higgins
• University of Nevada Las Vegas

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What do you get when you cross a computer with
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What do you get when you cross a computer with
an airplane?
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What do you get when you cross a computer with
a camera?
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What do you get when you cross a computer with
a bank?
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What do you get when you cross a computer with
a teacher?
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You get a computer!!!
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This leads to cognitive friction

• Digital is different
• This is cognitive friction

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This leads to cognitive friction

• In general, we all know that buttons are for
  pushing and knobs are for turning.
• But digital buttons and knobs work differently

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This leads to cognitive friction

• On this Nokia phone, press the 1 key and it
  dials the 1
• But press and hold for 2 seconds and it speed
  dials my voice mail

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This leads to cognitive friction

• Multiple functions are a hallmark of digital
  devices
• A significant source of
• cognitive friction

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Students with disabilities

• Technology-induced cognitive friction

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• In the remainder of this presentation, we will
  discuss a few of those design challenges
• And we hope to provide you with a strategy for
  dealing with the others when you encounter them.

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Students with disabilities
This software evaluation tool outlines specific
instructional design elements for students with
disabilitiesbased on the professional literature
and a content-validity process conducted in 2004.

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Students with LD
The form includes specific suggestions in the
areas of instruction directions
documentation feedback evaluation content ind
ividualization accessibility
This software evaluation tool outlines specific
instructional design elements for students with
disabilitiesbased on the professional literature
and a content-validity process conducted in 2004.

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Current multimedia design principles
multimedia principle contiguity
principle coherence principle modality
principle redundancy principle
This software evaluation tool outlines specific
instructional design elements for students with
disabilitiesbased on the professional literature
and a content-validity process conducted in 2004.

-Richard Mayer
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Multimedia Principle
Multimedia Contiguity Coherence Modality
Redundancy

• Use words AND graphics rather than words alone

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Contiguity Principle
Multimedia Contiguity Coherence Modality
Redundancy

• Place printed words near corresponding graphics

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Also described as the gestalt principles
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Some relevant gestalt principles

• Similarity
• Proximity

• Connection
• Enclosure

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Common mistakes

• Separation of text and graphics on scrolling
  screens
• Separation of feedback from questions
• Lesson screens covered by linked screens
• Directions separated from the work or exercise
  screen

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Coherence Principle
Multimedia Contiguity Coherence Modality
Redundancy
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Adding entertaining or motivational material can
hurt learning.So, in order to counter high
e-learning drop-out rates, some designers attempt
to spice up their materials by adding
entertaining or motivational elements such as
dramatic stories or background music. We believe,
however, that adding interesting but unncecssary
material to elearing can harm the learning
process in several ways DISTRACTIONDISRUPTIONS
EDUCTION
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Adding entertaining or motivational material can
hurt learning.So, in order to counter high
e-learning drop-out rates, some designers attempt
to spice up their materials by adding
entertaining or motivational elements such as
dramatic stories or background music. We believe,
however, that adding interesting but unncecssary
material to elearing can harm the learning
process in several ways DISTRACTIONDISRUPTIONS
EDUCTION
Extraneous sounds
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Adding entertaining or motivational material can
hurt learning.So, in order to counter high
e-learning drop-out rates, some designers attempt
to spice up their materials by adding
entertaining or motivational elements such as
dramatic stories or background music. We believe,
however, that adding interesting but unncecssary
material to elearing can harm the learning
process in several ways DISTRACTIONDISRUPTIONS
EDUCTION
Extraneous graphics
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Adding entertaining or motivational material can
hurt learning.So, in order to counter high
e-learning drop-out rates, some designers attempt
to spice up their materials by adding
entertaining or motivational elements such as
dramatic stories or background music. We believe,
however, that adding interesting but unncecssary
material to elearing can harm the learning
process in several ways DISTRACTIONDISRUPTIONS
EDUCTION
EXTRANEOUS WORDS
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Modality Principle
Multimedia Contiguity Coherence Modality
Redundancy

• Present words associated with graphics as audio
  narration rather than on-screen text

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Modality vs. Multimedia Principle

• Multimedia principle suggests that you use Text
  and Graphics rather than Text alone
• Modality principle suggests that Graphics with
  Audio might be more effective than Graphics with
  Text

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• Cognitive processing channels
• Visual
• Auditory
• Words with Graphic are both visual tasks (i.e.,
  visual and visual)
• Audio with Graphic splits the task channels
  (i.e., visual and auditory)

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However,

• Some difficult narrative may need to remain on
  the screen regardless.
• Math formulas
• Lines of poetry
• Syntactically complex content
• Semantically difficult content
• Foreign language phrases

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Redundancy Principle
Multimedia Contiguity Coherence Modality
Redundancy

• Presenting words in both text and audio narration
  can hurt learning

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Redundant on-screen text

• 1. A graphic
• 2. An audio narrative description
• 3. A text narrative description
• Isnt 3 ways better than 2?

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Redundant on-screen text
Overloaded visual channel
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BACK TO THE EVALUATION FORM
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• This suggestion is highlighted in the General
  Form for all students.
• It is strongly recommended on the Specific Form
  for students with LD.
• It is concurrent with Multimedia Principle.
• It makes sense when viewed from the UDL
  perspective.

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But..

• It also has the potential for being used
  inappropriately if
• doesnt follow contiguity principle (text
  separate from graphic)
• doesnt follow modality principle (audio vs.
  text with graphic)
• doesnt follow redundancy principle (narration
  of verbatim text)

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• Feedback is determined to be important on both
  the General Form and on the Form for students
  with LD.
• Both its content and form are found to be
  important.

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But..

• It also has the potential for being used
  inappropriatelyespecially if it doesnt follow
  the contiguity principle
• feedback is separated from input event
  (e.g.,answer to a question).

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Online help in the form of a tutorial, sequenced
instruction, or directions is clearly important
for students with LD.
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But..

• Online support also has the potential for being
  used inappropriately especially if it doesnt
  follow the contiguity principle

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Text-to-speech output and digital voice narration
have long been a significant part of design of
instruction and other content for students with
disabilities. Students with LD as well as
students who are blind or have low vision
benefit from this design feature.
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But..

• There are many opportunities to get in conflict
  with the final two eLearning design principles
  Redundancy and Modality
• parallel audio narration of text that is
  currently being shown on the screen violates the
  Redundancy principle (except in special
  situations)
• using on-screen text with a graphic, when audio
  narration is available, violates the Modality
  principle

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Leave you with an animal story
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Leave you with an animal story

• Dancing Bear-Ware

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Leave you with an animal story

• Dancing Bear-Ware

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Pilot error or design error?
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Photographer error or design error?
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User error or design error?
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Student error or design error?
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CEC 2009
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• Joy Zabala
• Center for Applied Special Technology

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