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Abstract BackgroundUsing simulations in science instruction can help make abstract topics more concrete and boost students' understanding. AimsThe current research examined whether using a simulation as an exploratory learning activity before an accompanying lecture has additional learning and motivational benefits compared to a more common lecture‐then‐simulation approach. SamplesParticipants (Experiment 1,N = 168; Experiment 2,N = 357) were undergraduate students in several sections of a first‐year chemistry course. MethodsStudents were randomly assigned to explore a simulation on atomic structure either before a lecture (explore‐first condition) or after the lecture (instruct‐first condition). In Experiment 1, the simulation activity time was limited (15 min) and the activity varied in whether self‐explanation (‘why’) prompts were included. In Experiment 2, the activity time was lengthened (20 min), and only ‘why’ prompts were used. After the activity and lecture, students completed a survey and posttest. ResultsIn Experiment 1, students in the explore‐first condition scored lower on posttest conceptual knowledge scores and reported lower curiosity compared to students in the instruct‐first condition. Scores for basic facts and transfer knowledge, and self‐reported situational interest, self‐efficacy, and competence, were equal between conditions. No effects of prompt condition were found. In Experiment 2, with longer activity time, the results reversed. Students in the explore‐first condition scored equally on basic facts and higher on conceptual knowledge and transfer measures, while also reporting higher curiosity, situational interest, self‐efficacy, competence, and cognitive engagement. ConclusionWhen properly designed, placing simulations before—rather than after—lecture can deepen learning, motivation, and competence.
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Save Your Strokes: Chinese Handwriting Practice Makes for Ineffective Use of Instructional Time in Second Language Classrooms
Handwriting practice is the most time-consuming activity for learners of Chinese as a foreign language (CFL). CFL instructors report allocating at least one third of their course time to handwriting practice although it prevents students from engaging in meaningful communication, especially in the earliest stages of learning. Given the amount of time students spend in a college course is relatively fixed, the preregistered study presented herein examines the best use of students’ time when primary goals are word acquisition and communication. This work replicates a pilot study examining CFL word recognition in an online learning environment (ASSISTments) and the effects of supplemental handwriting practice. We examined word acquisition and recognition while manipulating condition (no-handwriting practice and with-handwriting practice), and posttest test point (1 [immediate], 2 [1 day delay], and 3 [1 week delay]). Two-way repeated measures analyses of variance revealed significant main effects for both condition and posttest test point in online and on-paper measures of word recognition and handwriting. Potential implications for CFL instruction and directions for future work are discussed.
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- PAR ID:
- 10191076
- Date Published:
- Journal Name:
- AERA open
- Volume:
- 5
- Issue:
- 4
- ISSN:
- 2332-8584
- Page Range / eLocation ID:
- 1-15
- Format(s):
- Medium: X
- Sponsoring Org:
- National Science Foundation
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- Free Publicly Accessible Full Text
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Accepted Manuscript1.0
- Journal Article:
- https://doi.org/10.1177/2332858419890326
