An Investigation Into the Impact of Visual Aids in Post-Compulsory Education (Are Text-Based Slides the Optimum?)
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An investigation into the impact of visual aids in post-compulsory education (Are text-based slides the optimum?) Submitted by Nick Louis Napper to the University of Exeter as a thesis for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Education in April 2014 This thesis is available for Library use on the understanding that it is copyright material and that no quotation from the thesis may be published without proper acknowledgement. I certify that all material in this thesis which is not my own work has been identified and that no material has previously been submitted and approved for the award of a degree by this or any other University. Signature: ………………………………………………………….. 1 2 Abstract This study seeks insight into the use of visual aids in contemporary post-compulsory teaching. The importance of the study is linked to the large number of students who enter Higher Education; many of whom regularly receive lectures supported by visual displays which comprise textual summaries of a lecturer’s speech. This thesis comprises a two-part study and employs a mixed methods approach. The first part inquires into teachers’ and lecturers’ practice with regard to their visual aids, and the second compares the effectiveness of text, images and imagery displayed in support of a lecture. The investigation into lecturers’ practice found many post-compulsory teachers and lecturers had received no training in the design and use of visual aids during their initial teacher training. It is suggested this privation may underpin a de facto choice of projected text as a visual aid, the use of which is not clearly supported by contemporary models of memory and mental processing. In a comparison of visual modalities, an increase in learner engagement was recorded for the display of carefully designed images, and also for directed imagery. No positive impact was recorded for text summaries of 50-64 words displayed concurrently with speech, although recall was improved when text was restricted to five words or fewer. The conclusion is drawn that the display of this modality without temporal pauses may offer limited educational advantage to students, and a method of planned apportionment of speech and text is proposed in which contemporary theories of memory and processing are taken into account. These observations have significant implications for a lecture environment in which such text summaries are often relied upon for visual support. The findings of the thesis are combined to propose a principle of Visual Working Memory Utilisation (VWMU), upon which future research into visual aid design and use in post compulsory education might be based. 3 4 Contents Abstract ...................................................................................................................... 3 Acknowledgements ................................................................................................. 14 Chapter 1 Introduction ............................................................................................ 15 1.1 Motivation for the thesis .................................................................................. 15 1.2 Evolution of the research questions ................................................................ 19 1.3 Overview of the thesis .................................................................................... 19 Chapter 2 What should lecturers do? Literature review ..................................... 23 2.1 Introduction ..................................................................................................... 23 2.2 Information readily available to teachers & lecturers ...................................... 23 Visual aid literature ............................................................................................ 23 Popularist sources of visual aid guidance ......................................................... 27 2.3 What theory might inform visual aid design? .................................................. 29 Cognitive Load Theory ...................................................................................... 29 Working Memory Theory ................................................................................... 31 Dual Coding Theory .......................................................................................... 34 Cognitive Theory of Multimedia Learning .......................................................... 36 Integrated Model of Text and Picture Comprehension ...................................... 37 Cognitive styles and learning styles .................................................................. 38 2.4 Images as an aid to learning ........................................................................... 45 Images may not automatically support learning ................................................ 48 2.5 Textual iteration of the spoken word ............................................................... 51 The Redundancy Effect ..................................................................................... 52 2.6 Depiction of abstract topics ............................................................................. 64 2.7 Reality simulation and imagination ................................................................. 66 Imagery and learning ........................................................................................ 70 2.8 Discussion ...................................................................................................... 74 2.9 Conclusion ...................................................................................................... 75 Chapter 3 What do lecturers do? Literature review ............................................ 77 3.1 Introduction ..................................................................................................... 77 3.2 Setting the scene ............................................................................................ 77 3.3 Analysis of the technology .............................................................................. 80 3.4 Ubiquity of text-based visual aids ................................................................... 84 3.5 Lecturers’ knowledge and skills ...................................................................... 86 3.6 Lecturer effect: Gesture and expression ......................................................... 94 3.7 Discussion ...................................................................................................... 95 3.8 Conclusion ...................................................................................................... 96 5 Chapter 4 What cultural influences might impact upon lecturers’ practice? ... 99 4.1 Introduction ..................................................................................................... 99 4.2 Images and language: A chequered relationship ............................................ 99 4.3 Visual literacy in society ................................................................................ 102 4.4 Visual literacy among teachers and lecturers ............................................... 105 4.5 Initial Teacher Training ................................................................................. 107 4.6 Discussion .................................................................................................... 109 4.7 Conclusion .................................................................................................... 110 Chapter 5 Methodological issues ....................................................................... 111 5.1 Introduction ................................................................................................... 111 5.2 Selecting an appropriate research design .................................................... 111 Mixed methods ................................................................................................ 115 5.3 Quality .......................................................................................................... 117 Generalisability or transferability? ................................................................... 118 5.4 Ethics ............................................................................................................ 120 5.5 Conclusion .................................................................................................... 125 Chapter 6 Methods employed ............................................................................. 127 6.1 Introduction ................................................................................................... 127 6.2 Modalities exploratory study ......................................................................... 127 Analysis of results ........................................................................................... 128 6.3 Lecturers exploratory study: Survey ............................................................. 128 Analysis of survey results ................................................................................ 130 6.4 Modalities main study: Intervention study ..................................................... 131 Analysis of post-lecture questionnaires ........................................................... 132 Focus groups .................................................................................................. 134 Analysis of focus group data ........................................................................... 140 6.5 Lecturers main