Gary R. Morrison

Old Dominion University | ODU · The Instructional Design and Technology program

One current focus of research regarding online courses concentrates on identifying effective design and delivery methodologies. This non-experimental comparative research study investigated two types of learner-to-learner interaction techniques: designed and contextual interactions and their effects on learner achievement, social presence, interact...

The community of inquiry (CoI) framework suggests social presence, teaching presence, and cognitive presence are essential elements to foster successful educational experiences in computer-mediated distance learning environments. Although thousands of CoI-based articles have been published, those critical of the framework and related research sugge...

This paper presents results from an experimental study that examined embedded strategy prompts in digital text and their effects on calibration and metacomprehension accuracies. A sample population of 80 college undergraduates read a digital expository text on the basics of photography. The most robust treatment (mixed) read the text, generated a s...

Last fall, we received a large number of submissions from international authors. To help us expedite the process, I asked several individuals to provide an extended review of selected manuscripts and offer detailed feedback to help the authors revise their submissions. We did not select every manuscript for publication, but I would like to thank th...

As faculty members and researchers, we are expected to publish scholarly articles that report and reflect our research. If we review the acceptance rate of a quality journal, we will find that acceptance rates can range from

Instructional technology research is broad both in terms of topics and explorations of basic and applied research. In this chapter, we examine various types of stimulus materials that instructional technology researchers have used to study different phenomena. Specifically, we discuss and illustrate how the choice of stimulus material (e.g., actual...

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effects of redundancy when learning from realistic science materials. Participants received instruction where redundancy was manipulated between text and diagrams with captions, text and diagrams, and text only. Participants reported levels of cognitive load, responded to questionnaire items and complet...

With each new technological innovation, we have added another layer of complexity on top of the existing classroom without seeking to redesign the very foundation on which the instruction is based. In this chapter, we will examine the lessons learned from past and present technologies to propose how to use both old and new technologies to refine an...

The digital revolution is shifting print-based textbooks to digital text, and it has afforded the op-portunity to incorporate meaningful learning strategies and otherwise separate metacognitive ac-tivities directly into these texts as embedded support. A sample of 89 undergraduates read a digi-tal, expository text on the basics of photography. The...

Introduction. Human working memory becomes increasingly prone to errors as learning tasks become more complex. This is of particular importance to those working with instruction that requires the novice learner to simultaneously maintain and manipulate many elements of information for learning with understanding to occur. Under such circumstances,...

Accession Number: 2012022480. Language: English. Entry Date: 20130315. Revision Date: 20130329. Publication Type: journal article; research; tables/charts. Journal Subset: Allied Health; Blind Peer Reviewed; Editorial Board Reviewed; Expert Peer Reviewed; Peer Reviewed; USA. Special Interest: Occupational Therapy; Physical Therapy. No. of Refs: 59...

While distance education continues to grow in higher education, students express the concern that they feel isolated. The purpose of this study was to determine if the implementation of a cooperative learning strategy would affect social presence and achievement. Each group completed an individual assignment and a cooperative learning assignment wo...

In this rejoinder to Mazoué (J Comput High Educ, 2012) article, “the deconstructed campus,” we react to his arguments regarding the replacement of face-to-face teaching on college campuses with computer-supported approaches, including on-line learning, intelligent cognitive tutors, and open-ended learning environments where, rather than being confi...

As technologies continue to evolve and develop, instructional designers are presented with a growing list of possibilities for designing and delivering instruction. It is easy for an instructional designer to be seduced by a new or even older technology and focus on the affordances of the technology resulting in instruction that is both ineffective...

http://www.cedtech.net/articles/11/112.pdf

Evaluation is an essential component of the instructional design process: (a) as the products are being developed, (b) when they are in completed form and ready for release and (c) as they are being employed over time. Evaluation can and should take place at different phases of the instructional design process. The evaluation applications have name...

What Evaluation Entails Summative Evaluation Confirmative Evaluation Methods Summary References

Serious games are, at their core, exploratory learning environments designed around the pedagogy and constraints associated with specific knowledge domains. This focus on instructional content is what separates games designed for entertainment from games designed to educate. As instructional designers and educators, the authors want serious game pl...

Serious games are, at their core, exploratory learning environments designed around the pedagogy and constraints associated with specific knowledge domains. This focus on instructional content is what separates games designed for entertainment from games designed to educate. As instructional designers and educators, the authors want serious game pl...

The focus of this chapter is the results of a 3-year implementation of a one-on-one laptop program in a Midwestern school district. Using a mixed methods quasi-experimental design including classroom observations; perception data from students, teachers, and parents; and achievement scores from state-mandated and supplementary assessments of writin...

In this study, we examined the effectiveness of instructional materials designed to control redundancy and split attention in the teaching of complex orthopedic physical therapy skills. Participants included 41 first-year physical therapy students. The modified instruction group received a modified unit of instruction designed to reduce cognitive l...

Since the introduction of lantern slides in the early 1900s, educators have sought to enhance the teaching and learning process through the use of technology. We have pursued television, film, overhead projectors, computer-based instruction, and distance education. Yet, each of these technologies has failed to produce significant learning gains. In...

The purpose of this study was to investigate the use of an automated design tool by naive, novice, and expert instructional designers. A talk-aloud protocol, attitude survey, performance assessment, and direct observation were used to gather data. While the expert designers used the tool, they used it as a word processor with a rich database of ins...

There has been a rapid proliferation of online courses and shareable content objects. These courses often include a vast array of information, yet they are not instructionally sound. The primary purpose of this article is to provide a procedure (tool) that will help instructional designers determine if existing e-learning courses and sharable conte...

Training simulations have long been the mainstay of technology-supported instruction. As the technology evolves and is accepted, new applications for the technology emerge as well. Driven by the entertainment industry, gaming has become a pervasive recreational endeavor. This paper explores aspects of gaming as applied to instructional applications...

The purpose of this article is to review and critique each of the research studies published in this special issue. We will critique each article, derive one or more instructional design heuristics based on the findings for each study, and provide recommendations for extending particular lines of research. Three suggestions are provided concerning...

EXPERIMENTAL METHODS have been used extensively for many years to conduct research in education and psychology. However, applications of experiments to investigate technology and other instructional innovations in higher education settings have been relatively limited. The present paper examines ways in which experiments can be used productively by...

Human working memory can be defined as a component system responsible for the temporary storage and manipulation of information related to higher level cognitive behaviors, such as understanding and reasoning (Baddeley, 1992; Becker & Morris, 1999). Working memory, while able to manage a complex array of cognitive activities, presents with an unexp...

In this study, we examined the educational effects of providing fifth-, sixth-, and seventh-grade students with 24-hour access to laptop computers. Specifically we examined the impact of laptops on classroom activities, and on student use of technology and their writing and problem-solving skills. Participating teachers received computer integratio...

HE EFFECTS OF MULTITASKING IN THE CLASSROOM were investigated in students in an upper level Communications course. Two groups of students heard the same exact lecture and tested immediately following the lecture. One group of students was allowed to use their laptops to engage in browsing, search, and/or social computing behaviors during the lectur...

Professors who want to integrate computers into problem-based learning lessons can use the design model presented in this article. The model is based on a theory of students using computers as problem-solving tools.

The World Wide Web offers unique teaching and learning opportunities. To take advantage of these opportunities, professors and designers need to understand not only how the Web can support learning but also how to design courses to make the most of Web capabilities.

As tools for multimedia and computer-based instruction (CBI) increase in sophistication, it becomes easier for instructional designers to incorporate a range of animations in instructional software. Designers, however, should ask whether animation has the potential to contribute to student learning before investing the resources in development. Thi...

Presents results of an analysis of distance education research as reflected in "The American Journal of Distance Education" and "Distance Education." Examines the types of research published in the two journals using the categories: primary research, conceptual-theoretical articles, literature reviews, evaluation, how to, and other. Discusses impli...

Since students' technology process and products are intertwined, both can be assessed using these techniques.

This article proposes that educators must go beyond computer literacy to achieve technological competence if successful integration of technology into the classroom is to occur. An educator who is technologically competent understands the relationship between basic computer functions and student learning. They use this understanding to design, faci...

This paper describes a study designed to investigate the effectiveness of narrative versus step-by-step instructions for a computer task. The participants in this study were 31 undergraduate education students enrolled in a computer literacy class at the University of Memphis during the Summer 1996 semester; none of the participants had prior knowl...

From the Publisher:This text focuses on integrating computers into teaching through the use of an inquiry-based, easy-to-use model for creating lesson plans. Teachers can use this 10-step process to design student-centered learning environments in which computer technology is integrated as a tool for learning rather than as a delivery mechanism. In...

This study investigated the effects of camera angle and monitor placement in a simulated distance-learning environment. Of particular interest were the effects on perceived instructor credibility and immediacy behaviors. A videotape of a lecture on an academically relevant topic was produced using a high-angle and an eye-level camera. Participants...

The present research consisted of a comprehensive evaluation of a hypertext model for teaching process writing at the junior high and high school level. Interests were to determine how two teachers and three different age groups of students used and reacted to the model, specifically, its embedded design features of model stories, note cards, idea...

College student subjects indicated preferences for learning from computer-based instruction (CBI) text screen designs representing four different levels of screen density. Conditions for the presentations were varied on the basis of the number of screens presented for each density level (single screen vs. multiple frames) and the realism of the tex...

The effects on learning of three feedback strategies (Answer Until Correct, Knowledge of Correct Response, and Delayed) were compared to two control strategies (No feedback and No questions) under two conditions of incentives. Task incentives rewarded subjects for successful task completion regardless of level of achievement while performance incen...

In this chapter we will review developments in program evaluation with particular attention to implications for the design and future application of automated evaluation systems. We will first review briefly some key historical events in educational technology, followed by a review of traditional evaluation models and approaches. We then turn in mo...

Without Abstract

This study investigated the utilization of microcomputers in the secondary mathematics curriculum. A sample of 128 mathematics teachers completed a survey describing their use of the microcomputer for instruction. Results from the study suggested the microcomputer was not utilized as often as expected. Findings that describe the computer-using and...

Use of subject-generated elaborations, taught via embedded and detached training strategies, was compared with experimenter-provided elaborations or no elaborations (control) on a CBI training unit on computer professional development. Subjects were 80 administrative assistants (20 per treatment) at a large corporation. Results showed advantages fo...

Learner-control strategies for selecting problem context and the level of instructional support were examined separately and in combination on a computer-based mathematics unit on the metric system. Subjects were 240 sixth-grade students assigned to 15 treatments formed by crossing five context conditions (animals, sports, clothing, nocontext, and...

This study investigated the effects of using different forms of computer-based feedback on high school students' learning of science material. The basic design consisted of two conditions of instructional support (text and questions vs. questions only), two testings (immediate vs. retention), five levels of similarity between lesson and posttest qu...

The impact of both personalizing mathematical word problems and rewording them for explicitness was tested with 68 2nd-grade students and 59 5th-grade students in a within-Ss design. Analyses of problem-solving scores showed that the 2nd grade students benefited only when personalization and rewording were used in combination. The 5th graders, howe...

This evaluation study examined the school achievement and adjustment by at-risk students one year following their participation as fifth and sixth graders in computer-intensive classrooms using the Apple Classrooms of Tomorrow (ACOT) program. Comparisons between the former ACOT subjects and a matched control group who had attended the same elementa...

We encourage each of you to consider submitting a carefully constructed proposal to AECT for the 1992 convention scheduled to be held in Washington, D.C. Begin by think-through your ideas. Then outline your proposal using the major sections and guidelines we have suggested in this article. As you write your first draft, do not count words as you go...

Two programs for providing distance tutoring for at-risk elementary school children were implemented and evaluated in successive years. Each program employed 10 college education students as tutors for approximately 25 sixth-grade children. Tutoring exercises were oriented around writing and language skills development. Program 1 was restricted to...

The continued growth of the microcomputer as an interactive medium has created a vast market for instructional software which includes applications from simple drill and practice programs to complex simulations. A survey of these programs finds both effective and ineffective applications of instructional design. More importantly though, is the reco...

The present study examines uses and effects of learner-control of the context or theme of practice examples on a statistics lesson in combination with learner control of the number of examples examined. Subjects were 227 undergraduate students assigned to 15 treatments formed by crossing five context conditions (learner control, education, business...

Learner preferences for varying screen density levels were examined using multiple screen designs (high external validity) and single screen designs (high internal validity). When viewing multiple screens for each design in Study 1, subjects indicated the highest preference for medium-density screens while tending to select higher-density over lowe...

Due in part to the diverse characteristics and training of its researchers, the field of instructional technology is currently plagued by much uncertainty regarding meaningful research questions and accepted paradigms for investigating them. Major areas in which these uncertainties are manifested concern the degree of emphasis to be placed on basic...

A critical process in developing lessons for computer-based instruction (CBI) is to determine the manner in which information will be displayed on the screen, taking care not to ignore the computer's special display capabilities. The underlying assumption of this study was that reducing the density of text presentation would be effective for improv...

This paper summarizes three research studies on text and screen density variables in a CBI lesson. The first two studies investigated the effectiveness of low-density text as an alternative to conventional formats on expository lessons taught in print and CBI modes. Results were supportive by indicating significant time savings without accompanying...

Learning from expository text in computer-based instruction (CBI) was examined as a function of text density level (high, low, or learner-controlled) and learner characteristics in achievement, attitudes, and reading ability. Low-density text was found to be as effective for learning as high-density text, but was more popular among students and als...

Presenting narrative text in computer-based instruction (CBI) is more difficult than in print lessons due to limited screen resolution and display area. The present research aimed at achieving a more compatible match between lesson content and the attributes of the presentation media. Subjects received either a print or CBI statistics lesson contai...

The training of graduate students for instructional design positions in a business environment must go beyond a knowledge of traditional instructional development models. Based upon an analysis of the business environment, three areas for skill development—group process, communication, and problem-solving skills—are identified. Strategies for incre...

Computer-based instruction (CBI) lessons require thoughtful design and careful planning during their development. Existing CBI development models are not adaptable to lessons that vary in complexity or to differing roles and skill levels of a project staff. A flexible planning process in which the CBI design is implemented on paper as an intermedia...

This research project was designed to explore ways of making computer text presentations more readable as a way of compensating for the constraints that computers impose on the display of text as compared with print-on-paper displays, e.g., limited screen resolution and display area. Forty-eight undergraduate teacher education majors enrolled in an...

The communicabllity of the emotional connotation of type was investigated in this study. Typographers, student instructional technologists, and naive readers rated 30 typefaces using a semantic differential scale. The results indicated that different typefaces arouse similar results in different subject groups, and that different subject groups agr...

Thesis (Ed. D.)--Indiana University, 1977. Vita.