Performance and Behavioral Outcomes in Technology-Supported Learning: The Role of Interactive Multimedia

摘要

Understanding the impact of different technological media on the achievement of instructional goals enables the delivery of subject matter more effectively. Among the various instructional technologies that advance learning, educators and practitioners recurrently identify interactive multimedia as a very powerful tool for instruction and training. This study measures the effects of multimedia technology on learning project management topics by comparing outcomes of its use to both traditional classroom and text-based instruction. It analyzes learners' performances within a knowledge representation framework that looks at recall and application of facts, concepts, principles and rules, and procedures as representations of instructional outcomes. A pretest-posttest quasi-experimental design was used to address methodological concerns expressed in earlier comparison analyses. The quasi-experimental design supports the examination of selected instructional objectives achieved within a specific timeframe (short-modules of instruction). The results present an actionable matrix tying the use of a selected medium of instruction to specific learning objectives. While the matrix is developed to take into account different complexity levels of the subject matter, future research is needed to expand this analysis beyond a single field of study.