This study aimed to examine the relative effectiveness of using an animation versus static pictures in terms of supporting the learning of genetics. To provide a methodologically sound comparison, the two sessions were constructed to be equivalent and were designed based on principles provided by the cognitive theory of multimedia learning and the…

Gender differences in reading development are a global phenomenon, with girls typically performing better than boys. Some studies have reported gender differences favouring girls in reading comprehension in South Africa, but little systematic evidence exists about gender differences in the cognitive-linguistic abilities that underlie reading…

This research examined whether the informational advantage of an animation over a static picture (and over no visualizations as a control condition) can be compensated by presenting the information in the text that constitutes this informational advantage. In addition, it was investigated whether learners' spatial abilities acted as a compensator…

Discussions on how to conserve and provide enough water has become one of the most highly debated issues in modern society. Although many Extension efforts have engaged the public in understanding behavior and attitudes toward water conservation, limited research has focused on understanding how agriculturalists respond to water conservation…

Peer moderation has been used as a beneficial strategy in asynchronous online discussions to assist student learning performance. However, most studies in peer-moderated asynchronous online discussions (PMAOD) have focused only on learning effectiveness and perceptions of students rather than on students' knowledge dimensions and cognitive…

A mixed methodology study measuring the use of Augmented Reality (AR) information overlay mapping in online instructional design courses, and the impact on participant's working memory is presented. Novel AR technological expansions, and the rapid proliferation of powerful computing tools embodied by emerging mobile and wearable computing devices,…

The importance of forming intercultural competences and various aspects of the development of an employee's intellectual activity in today's multicultural society has been stressed. Urgent problems of cross-cultural training of employees, such as the formation of intercultural (cross-cultural) competence of future employees in the process of their…

Purpose: Reading requires the ability to decode and comprehend. Impairments in working memory (WM) are often implicated in students who are poor decoders. It is unclear whether this is a domain-specific issue or a task-specific issue. Therefore, this study examined how auditory-verbal (AV) WM, visual-spatial (VS) WM, and cognitive load affected…

Spatial reasoning is a critical skill in the Geosciences. Using a randomized control study with 592 undergraduate students enrolled in introductory and advanced Geology courses, our data indicates that regular, short interventions throughout an academic semester improve students' spatial thinking skills significantly with a moderate to large…

We developed a method for using Coh-Metrix to automatically analyze tutorial dialogues. Coh-Metrix, a web-based tool for automatically evaluating text, is freely available to researchers. We applied the method to 190 tutorial dialogues between women and "BRCA Gist" from two experiments. "BRCA Gist" is an intelligent tutoring…

From a social semiotic perspective, image designs in science textbooks are inevitably influenced by the sociocultural context in which the books are produced. The learning environments of Australia and Taiwan vary greatly. Drawing on social semiotics and cognitive science, this study compares classificational images in Australian and Taiwanese…

Intuitive knowledge seems to influence human decision-making outside of consciousness and differs from deliberate cognitive and metacognitive processes. Intuitive knowledge can play an essential role in problem solving and may offer the initiation of subsequent learning processes. Scientific discovery learning with computer simulations leads to…

This study explored the effectiveness of online instructional modules for providing supplementary instruction in basic mathematics and physics concepts. The modules were developed in accordance with a cognitive apprenticeship model. Participants (N = 47) were students enrolled in a required Statics course at a midwestern university. Participants…

Psychological inertia, the process by which social-cognitive variables help maintain behavioral patterns over time, has been found to explain crime continuity. The present study sought to determine whether psychological inertia can also be used to explain continuity in bullying behavior. A group of 1,161 youth (567 male) from the Illinois Study of…

The Ruminative Thought Styles Questionnaire (RTS) conceptualizes rumination as repetitive, recurrent, intrusive, and uncontrollable thinking. This article outlines the development and validation of a Chinese language version of the RTS, the RTS-CH. Following independent translation, back translation, and final translation checking, the factor…