Research Information System
BRITISH JOURNAL OF EDUCATIONAL TECHNOLOGY, vol.27, no.2, pp.106-115, 1996 (SSCI)
The study investigated the cognitive impact of three different types of multimedia simulation (physical, procedural and process) for teaching the concept of energy to 14 year old students, A six cell design was used to control for gender and for three levels of prior achievement within a random sample of 36 students for each simulation, Pre and post-tests were administered, The results showed a significant, consistent cognitive gain for the physical simulation - a surrogate exploration of how electricity is made in a power station. Results for the procedural and process simulations revealed a more complex and varied pattern of interaction between type of simulation and student characteristics which can be linked to specific design features.