Adding illustrations to texts might improve students' science achievement. This meta-analysis of 121 effect sizes from 63 studies of 7,621 students across five decades determines both the overall effect and moderators that account for differences across studies. Our random-effects model shows a positive effect of adding illustrations to texts on…

Whether visual information belongs in second language (L2) listening tests has long been a subject for scholarly debate, with L2 learners' performance on and perceptions of video-based tests being the primary sources of evidence. The research into L2 teachers' perceptions, however, is scarce, as is the research into stakeholders' views of content…

The purpose of this study is to investigate whether students are more successful on abstract or illustrated test questions. To this end, the questions on an abstract test were changed into a visual format, and these tests were administered every three days to a total of 240 students at six middle schools located in the Erzurum city center and…

In recent years, improvements in technology have enhanced the possibilities of teaching and learning various subjects. This is specially the case in foreign language instruction. The use of technology and multimedia brings new opportunities for learning different areas of language. In this regard, the present study attempts to find out if the use…

This study investigated the effects of (1) verbal instruction alone vs. verbal instruction complemented by simple line drawings; (2) visual testing vs. nonvisual testing; (3) verbal cueing vs. free recall on achievement; and (4) order of testing on subsequent achievement. Interactions among type of instruction, type of testing, and order of…

The purpose of this study was to examine the effect that coding (black and white, and color) and testing mode (visual/verbal) has on the achievement of students categorized as field independent (FID)/field dependent (FD) learners. One hundred eighty-three students enrolled in basic college level educational psychology courses were classified as…

This paper explores the comparability of item calibrations for three types of items: (1) text only; (2) text with photographs; and (3) text plus graphics when items are presented on written tests and computerized adaptive tests. Data are from five different medical technology certification examinations administered nationwide in 1993. The Rasch…

The purpose of several studies was to examine the effects that differentially coded (black and white or color) illustrations had on students who were classified as field independent, field neutral, and field dependent on tests measuring different educational objectives. The effects of visual and verbal test formats were also examined. In general,…

This study was conducted to determine whether the symbolic form of achievement test items influences student performance and whether teachers' use of different symbolic forms during instruction influences estimates of student achievement. The analyses conducted to examine these issues used student achievement test data and teacher responses to…