Which Comes First the Simulation or the Lecture?

Research into the instructional effectiveness of computer-based simulations has yielded inconsistent results. Part of this inconsistency can be attributed to the inappropriate instructional roles for which simulations are used. Two of the most promising roles of simulations in instruction are to: 1) establish a cognitive framework or structure to accommodate further learning in a related subject area, and 2) provide an opportunity for reinforcing, integrating and extending previously learned material. Thus, the effectiveness of a given simulation may depend upon when it is administered within an instructional sequence. The purpose of these two studies was to: 1) ascertain the value of a particular simulation to the learning of genetics principles, and 2) determine whether the position of the simulation, within the sequence of instructional events, altered its effectiveness. In both studies, students receiving the stimulation as a framework for understanding prior to formal classroom instruction scored significantly higher on an applications posttest than did students using the simulation as an integrating activity following formal instruction. Both groups scored higher than a control group which did not use the simulation prior to the posttest.

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