Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

A Preliminary Investigation of the Influences of Refutation Text and Instructional Design

  • Original research
  • Published:
Technology, Knowledge and Learning Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

Teachers are often tasked with changing their students’ conceptions about scientific topics. One strategy that has been found effective for conceptual change is the use of refutation text. However, reviewing the literature revealed that many practical questions around the use refutation text have not been adequately addressed. A secondary issue is that teachers often create instructional videos for their students to view outside of class, but little guidance exists on how to design these videos. This study begins to examine the intersection of refutation text, conceptual change, and instructional video design by testing (a) the effects of traditional refutation text and soft refutation text on conceptual change when presented as narration in an instructional video, (b) the effects of traditional refutation text compared to soft refutation text when presented as narration on conceptual change in an instructional video, and (c) the influence of the presence of a human hand in the instructional video on cognitive, affective, and conceptual change scores. The results indicated that traditional refutation text and soft refutation text retain their effectiveness when presented as narration in an instructional video; soft refutation text and traditional refutation text produced nearly identical conceptual change when presented as narration in an instructional video; and the inclusion of a human hand in the instructional video did not influence conceptual change, learning, or the learners’ perceptions of the instructor. The preliminary implications for theory and practice are discussed and suggestions for future research are provided.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Fig. 1
Fig. 2

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  • Adesope, O. O., & Nesbit, J. C. (2012). Verbal redundancy in multimedia learning environments: A meta-analysis. Journal of Educational Psychology, 104(1), 250–263.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Atkinson, R. K. (2002). Optimizing learning from examples using animated pedagogical agents. Journal of Educational Psychology, 94(2), 416–427.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Borel, B. (2014). Core truths: 10 common GMO claims debunked. Popular Science. Retrieved from http://www.popsci.com/article/science/core-truths-10-common-gmo-claims-debunked on January 12, 2015.

  • Craig, S. D., Twyford, J., Irigoyen, N., & Zipp, S. A. (2015). A test of spatial contiguity for virtual human’s gestures in multimedia learning environments. Journal of Educational Computing Research, 53, 3–14.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Ferry, N., & Gatehouse, A. M. R. (Eds.). (2009). Environmental impact of genetically modified crops. Oxfordshire, UK: CAB International.

    Google Scholar 

  • Field, A. (2013). Discovering statistics using IBM SPSS statistics. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.

    Google Scholar 

  • Frechette, C., & Moreno, R. (2010). The roles of animated pedagogical agents’ presence and nonverbal communication in multimedia learning environments. Journal of Media Psychology, 22(2), 61–72.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Ginns, P. (2005). Meta-analysis of the modality effect. Learning and Instruction, 15(4), 313–331.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Heidig, S., & Clarebout, G. (2011). Do pedagogical agents make a difference to student motivation and learning? Educational Research Review, 6, 27–54.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Herreid, C. F., & Schiller, N. A. (2013). Case studies and the flipped classroom. Journal of College Science Teaching, 42(5), 62–66.

    Google Scholar 

  • Mattis, K. V. (2015). Flipped classroom versus traditional textbook instruction: Assessing accuracy and mental effort at different levels of mathematical complexity. Technology, Knowledge, and Learning, 20, 231–248.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Mayer, R. E. (Ed.). (2014a). The Cambridge handbook of multimedia learning (2nd ed.). New York, NY: The Cambridge University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Mayer, R. E. (2014b). Principles based on social cues in multimedia learning: Personalization, voice, image, and embodiment principles. In R. Mayer (Ed.), The Cambridge handbook of multimedia learning (2nd ed., pp. 345–368). Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press.

    Chapter  Google Scholar 

  • Mayer, R. E., & Fiorella, L. (2014). Principles for reducing extraneous processing in multimedia learning: Coherence, signaling, redundancy, spatial contiguity, and temporal contiguity principles. In R. E. Mayer (Ed.), The Cambridge handbook of multimedia learning (2nd ed., pp. 279–315). New York, NY: Cambridge University Press.

    Chapter  Google Scholar 

  • Mayer, R. E., Sobko, K., & Mautone, P. D. (2003). Social cues in multimedia learning: Role of the speaker’s voice. Journal of Educational Psychology, 95(2), 419–425.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Moreno, R., Mayer, R. E., Spires, H. A., & Lester, J. C. (2001). The case for social agency in computer-based teaching: Do students learn more deeply when they interact with animated pedagogical agents? Cognition and Instruction, 19(2), 177–213.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Pintrich, P. R., Marx, R. W., & Boyle, R. A. (1993). Beyond cold conceptual change: The role of motivational beliefs and classroom contextual factors in the process of contextual change. Review of Educational Research, 63(2), 167–199.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Plant, E. A., Baylor, A. L., Doerr, C. E., & Rosenberg-Kima, R. B. (2009). Changing middle-school students’ attitudes and performance regarding engineering with computer-based social models. Computers and Education, 53(2), 209–215.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Posner, G. J., Strike, K. A., Hewson, P. W., & Gertzog, W. A. (1982). Accommodation of a scientific conceptions: Toward a theory of conceptual change. Science Education, 66(2), 211–227.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Rosenberg-Kima, R., Baylor, A. L., Plant, E. A., & Doerr, C. E. (2008). Interface agents as social models for female students: The effects of agent visual presence and appearance on female students’ attitudes and beliefs. Computers in Human Behavior, 24, 2741–4756.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Ryu, J., & Baylor, A. L. (2005). The psychometric structure of pedagogical agent persona. Technology, Instruction, Cognition, and Learning, 2, 291–314.

    Google Scholar 

  • Schroeder, N. L., & Adesope, O. O. (2013). How does a contextually-relevant peer pedagogical agent in a learner-attenuated system-paced learning environment affect learner’s cognitive and affective outcomes? Journal of Teaching and Learning with Technology, 2(2), 114–133.

    Google Scholar 

  • Schroeder, N. L., & Adesope, O. O. (2015). Impacts of pedagogical agent gender in an accessible learning environment. Educational Technology & Society, 18(4), 401–411.

    Google Scholar 

  • Schroeder, N. L., Adesope, O. O., & Barouch Gilbert, R. (2013). How effective are pedagogical agents for learning? A meta-analytic review. Journal of Educational Computing Research, 49(1), 1–39.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Schroeder, N. L., & Gotch, C. M. (2015). Persisting issues in pedagogical agent research. Journal of Educational Computing Research, 53(2), 183–204.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Sinatra, G. M. (2005). The “warming trend” in conceptual change research: The legacy of Paul R. Pintrich. Educational Psychologist, 40(2), 107–115.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Tippet, C. D. (2010). Refutation text in science education: A review of two decades of research. International Journal of Science and Mathematics Education, 8, 951–970.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Van der Meij, H. (2013). Motivating agents in software tutorials. Computers in Human Behavior, 29(3), 845–857.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Van Loon, M. H., Dunlosky, J., van Gog, T., van Merriënboer, J. J. G., & de Bruin, A. B. H. (2015). Refutations in science texts lead to hypercorrection of misconceptions held with confidence. Contemporary Educational Psychology. doi:10.1016/j.cedpsych.2015.04.003.

    Google Scholar 

Download references

Acknowledgments

The author would like to thank Todd Pavlack for their technical assistance in creating the different learning conditions.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Leadership Studies in Education and Organizations, Wright State University, 3640 Colonel Glenn Hwy, Dayton, OH, 45435, USA

    Noah L. Schroeder

Authors
  1. Noah L. Schroeder
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Noah L. Schroeder.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this article

Schroeder, N.L. A Preliminary Investigation of the Influences of Refutation Text and Instructional Design. Tech Know Learn 21, 325–340 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10758-016-9278-8

Download citation

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10758-016-9278-8

Keywords

Search

Navigation