Undergraduates' metacognitive knowledge about the psychological effects of different kinds of computer-supported instructional tools

Literature about metacognition suggests that learners develop personal beliefs about the educational technologies that they are asked to employ and that such beliefs can influence learning outcomes. In this perspective, opinions about the psychological effects of computer-supported instructional tools were analysed by means of a questionnaire which included items about the motivational and emotional aspects of learning, the behaviour to have during the learning process, the mental abilities and the style of thinking required, and the cognitive benefits. Items were presented five times: each time they made reference to a different kind of tool (online courses, hypertexts, Web forums, multimedia presentations, and virtual simulations). The questionnaire was filled out by 99 undergraduates attending engineering courses. Results showed that students ranked the psychological effects of the computer-supported tools in a relative different order according to the kind of tool and attributed distinctive effects to each tool. Gender and expertise played a minor role in modulating undergraduates' beliefs. Implications for instruction were discussed.

[1]  Jean-François Rouet,et al.  Multimedia learning : cognitive and instructional issues , 2001 .

[2]  Mary Richardson,et al.  Challenging minds? Students' perceptions of computer-based World Class Tests of problem solving , 2002, Comput. Hum. Behav..

[3]  J. Stratford,et al.  Student perceptions of a virtual field trip to replace a real field trip , 2001, J. Comput. Assist. Learn..

[4]  Susanne P. Lajoie,et al.  Computers As Cognitive Tools , 2020 .

[5]  Benoît Dardenne,et al.  Metacognition: Cognitive and Social Dimensions , 1998 .

[6]  Rainer H. Kluwe,et al.  Cognitive Knowledge and Executive Control: Metacognition , 1982 .

[7]  Gilly Salmon,et al.  E-tivities: the key to active online learning, 2nd ed. , 2002 .

[8]  Louis Narens,et al.  The Feeling of Another Person′s Knowing , 1993 .

[9]  Amy L. Baylor,et al.  Permutations of Control: Cognitive Considerations for Agent-Based Learning Environments , 2001 .

[10]  Mingming Jiang,et al.  A Study of Factors Influencing Students’ Perceived Learning in a Web-Based Course Environment , 2000 .

[11]  Marc M. Sebrechts,et al.  HANDBOOK OF VIRTUAL ENVIRONMENTS , 2014 .

[12]  Arie W. Kruglanski,et al.  Knowing thyself and others: Progress in metacognitive social psychology , 1998 .

[13]  P. Pintrich,et al.  Handbook of self-regulation , 2000 .

[14]  Kjell Erik Rudestam,et al.  Handbook of Online Learning , 2009 .

[15]  A. C. K. Lee,et al.  Undergraduate students' gender differences in IT skills and attitudes , 2003, J. Comput. Assist. Learn..

[16]  J. Flavell.  Metacognition and Cognitive Monitoring: A New Area of Cognitive-Developmental Inquiry. , 1979 .

[17]  F. Weinert,et al.  Metacognition, motivation, and understanding , 1987 .

[18]  Hope J. Hartman.  Metacognition in Learning and Instruction , 2001 .

[19]  M. V. J. Veenman,et al.  Initial inductive learning in a complex computer simulated environment: the role of metacognitive skills and intellectual ability , 2002, Comput. Hum. Behav..

[20]  John R. Wilson,et al.  Experimental Comparison of Virtual Reality with Traditional Teaching Methods for Teaching Radioactivity , 2000, Education and Information Technologies.

[21]  Rosemary J. Redfield,et al.  Does the medium change the message? The impact of a web-based genetics course on university students' perspectives on learning and teaching , 2002, Comput. Educ..

[22]  Chin-Chung Tsai,et al.  Exploring high school students' and teachers' preferences toward the constructivist Internet‐based learning environments in Taiwan , 2005 .

[23]  Karen Littleton,et al.  Understanding Computer-Related Attitudes through an Idiographic Analysis of Gender- And Self-Representations , 2004 .

[24]  Donald R. Griffin,et al.  Animal Mind — Human Mind , 1982 .

[25]  Neal Helman,et al.  Can University Faculty Affect Student Attitudes Toward Electronic Mail , 1995 .

[26]  Kevin Tierney,et al.  The relation of gender and background experience to self-reported computing anxieties and cognitions , 2001, Comput. Hum. Behav..

[27]  Michael Z. Hackman,et al.  Perceptions of Proximate and Distant Learners Enrolled in University-Level Communication Courses: A , 1995 .

[28]  J. Richardson,et al.  An evaluation of Virtual Learning Environments and their learners: do individual differences affect perception of virtual learning environments , 2001 .

[29]  Shu-Sheng Liaw,et al.  An Internet survey for perceptions of computers and the World Wide Web: relationship, prediction, and difference , 2002, Comput. Hum. Behav..

[30]  Chin-Chung Tsai,et al.  Preferences toward the constructivist Internet-based learning environments among high school students in Taiwan , 2005, Comput. Hum. Behav..

[31]  Student Perception: Phase One to Building a Center for Media Training and Research , 2003 .

[32]  Alessandro Antonietti,et al.  Can Students Identify Different Psychological Implications in Multimedia, Hypertext, and Interactive Educational Tools? , 2004 .

[33]  Jocelyn Wishart,et al.  Students' and teachers' perceptions of motivation and learning through the use in schools of multimedia encylopedias on CD-ROMs , 2000 .

[34]  M. Volman,et al.  Gender Equity and Information Technology in Education: The Second Decade , 2001 .

[35]  G. Glass,et al.  Distance education and distributed learning , 2002 .

[36]  Fu-Yun Yu,et al.  Incorporating e-mail into the learning process: its impact on student academic achievement and attitudes , 2002, Comput. Educ..

[37]  Kate J. Garland,et al.  Computer experience: a poor predictor of computer attitudes , 2004, Comput. Hum. Behav..

[38]  Donald A. Rock,et al.  Attitudes about the computer-based test of English as a Foreign Language , 2004, Comput. Hum. Behav..

[39]  Colin Potts,et al.  Design of Everyday Things , 1988 .

[40]  Timothy T. Perry,et al.  University students' attitudes towards multimedia presentations , 1998, Br. J. Educ. Technol..

[41]  Min Liu,et al.  Examining the performance and attitudes of sixth graders during their use of a problem-based hypermedia learning environment , 2004, Comput. Hum. Behav..

[42]  Benjamin Bell,et al.  Assessing the Impact of a Web-Driven, Goal-Based Scenario in the Science Classroom , 2001 .

[43]  David A. Huffaker,et al.  The New Science of Learning: Active Learning, Metacognition, and Transfer of Knowledge in E-Learning Applications , 2003 .

[44]  Douglas J. Hacker,et al.  Metacognition in educational theory and practice. , 1998 .

[45]  Chin-Chung Tsai,et al.  Preferences toward Internet-based Learning Environments: High School Students\u2019 Perspectives for Science Learning , 2005, J. Educ. Technol. Soc..

[46]  J. Elshout,et al.  Metacognitive mediation in learning with computer-based simulations , 1994 .

[47]  D. Bolliger.  Key Factors for Determining Student Satisfaction in Online Courses , 2004 .

[48]  W. P. Dickson,et al.  Children's oral communication skills , 1981 .

[49]  Rainer Bromme,et al.  Writing hypertext and learning : conceptual and empirical approaches , 2002 .

[50]  Gregg T. Vesonder,et al.  On the ability to predict one's own responses while learning , 1985 .

[51]  Cornelia Weiner,et al.  Key Ingredients to Online Learning: Adolescent Students Study in Cyberspace – The Nature of the Study , 2003 .

[52]  Alex Koohang.  A Study of Users' Perceptions toward E-Learning Courseware Usability. , 2004 .

[53]  J. Dinet,et al.  An exploratory study of adolescent's perceptions of the Web , 2003, J. Comput. Assist. Learn..

[54]  Michelle Selinger,et al.  Telematics in Education: Trends and Issues , 1999 .

[55]  Albert L. Ingram,et al.  What Do Learners Like? Ratings of Off-the-Shelf Web-Based Training Courses , 2003 .

[56]  Michael H. Small.  MBA Student Perspectives on Online Degrees and Courses: An Empirical Analysis , 2003 .

[57]  Nigel Marlow,et al.  The role of student learning styles, gender, attitudes and perceptions on information and communication technology assisted learning , 1999, Comput. Educ..

[58]  R. Ocker,et al.  Collaborative Learning Environments: Exploring Student Attitudes and Satisfaction in Face-to-Face and Asynchronous Computer Conferencing Settings , 2001 .

[59]  K. Frank,et al.  Factors Affecting Technology Uses in Schools: An Ecological Perspective , 2003 .

[60]  T. Gao.  The Effects of Different Levels of Interaction on the Achievement and Motivational Perceptions of College Students in a Web-based Learning Environment , 2003 .

[61]  Richard K. Lowe,et al.  External and internal representations in multimedia learning , 2003 .

[62]  Alessandro Antonietti,et al.  The Representation of Virtual Reality in Education , 2000, Education and Information Technologies.

[63]  Pierre-Jean Marescaux,et al.  Metacognition : process, function and use , 2002 .

[64]  Michael Workman,et al.  Performance and perceived effectiveness in computer-based and computer-aided education: do cognitive styles make a difference? , 2004, Comput. Hum. Behav..

[65]  J. Metcalfe,et al.  Metacognition : knowing about knowing , 1994 .

[67]  Alessandro Antonietti,et al.  Teachers' beliefs about learning from multimedia , 2006, Comput. Hum. Behav..

[68]  Philippe Preux,et al.  "Virtual laboratory environment" (VLE): a software environment oriented agent and object for modeling and simulation of complex systems , 2003, Simul. Model. Pract. Theory.

[69]  J. Flavell.  Speculations about the nature and development of metacognition , 1987 .

[70]  A. Brown.  Metacognition, executive control, self-regulation, and other more mysterious mechanisms , 1987 .

[71]  Aman Yadav,et al.  Using Hypermedia for Learning Complex Concepts in Chemistry: A Qualitative Study on the Relationship Between Prior Knowledge, Beliefs, and Motivation , 2005, Education and Information Technologies.

[72]  TINA WILSON,et al.  What are the perceived benefits of participating in a computer-mediated communication (CMC) environment for distance learning computer science students? , 1998, Comput. Educ..

[73]  R. Azevedo.  Using Hypermedia as a Metacognitive Tool for Enhancing Student Learning? The Role of Self-Regulated Learning , 2005 .

[74]  Cathy Collins Block,et al.  Metacognition in literacy learning : theory, assessment, instruction, and professional development , 2006 .

[75]  Judith Gal-Ezer,et al.  Integrating internet tools into traditional CS distance education: students' attitudes , 2002, Comput. Educ..

[76]  Ann Colley,et al.  Gender differences in adolescents' perceptions of the best and worst aspects of computing at school , 2003, Comput. Hum. Behav..

[77]  Rainer Bromme,et al.  Writing HyperText and Learning , 2002 .