Multimedia Textbook Research Articles

Characteristics of multimedia textbooks that affect post‐test scores

Abstract The evaluation of computer software relies on the relationship between the characteristics of the software and the efficiency of its use. To find out which characteristics of the software can influence the level of acquired knowledge, an experiment was carried out with tenth grade students in Estonian schools. Fifty‐four students studied 35 units from different multimedia textbooks. Correlation coefficients between the post‐test score of the students and different characteristics of the textbooks were calculated. The correlation coefficients revealed five factor groups for the post‐test score: text, presentation of information on the computer screen, graphics, navigation, and students' self‐control.

Reviews of Multimedia Textbook Ancillaries

Reviews of Multimedia Textbook Ancillaries

Reviews of Multimedia Textbook Ancillaries

Reviews of Multimedia Textbook Ancillaries

Multimedia textbook for virtual education environment

This paper discusses a proposed multimedia textbook to be implemented in a virtual education environment (VEE) at the Multimedia University in Cyberjaya, Malaysia. The aim of the multimedia textbook, which is targeted at engineering courses, is to bring out a student's creative abilities and to minimise basic study and learning time so that more subjects can be provided to prepare students for future interdisciplinary R&D and industrial work. The multimedia textbook is designed both for students on-campus and for those scattered locally and internationally. Shorter learning times have already been confirmed using an experimental multimedia textbook having a limited set of interfaces (see, hear, click). The remaining interfaces will be implemented next and AI software included to enable a students learning behaviour to be monitored and to customise learning materials according to the student's level of understanding.

Developing a Participatory Textbook for the Internet*

AbstractThis paper summarizes the design and development of a participatory calculus textbook offered as a subscription site on the Internet. The project contains nearly 19,000 HTML files presenting the complete single and multivariable calculus curriculum in addition to a wealth of supplemental content. As an interactive multimedia textbook, it integrates text, graphics, animation, simulation, and live mathematics. The text also features collaborative environments similar to the familiar online chat and news. We call the convergence of interactive multimedia course materials with context‐sensitive collaborative environments a participatory document. The structure of this project represents over four years of design research while implementation represents several person‐years. Hundreds of students have used the text and based partly on their feedback, we are now preparing a number of additional projects. We present the principles developed in designing, implementing, and hosting participatory textbooks and show the applicability to a wide range of disciplines.

MED40/472: A WWW Multimedia Textbook of Internal Propedeutics

IntroductionTraditional ways of teaching techniques of physical examinations in the first clinical courses are rather demanding in terms of teacher involvement and a pool of patients suitable for demonstrations. For a long time, various audio-visual tools have been used to save teachers' and students' time and patients' patience. The modern technology of WWW publishing of multimedia allows good access to such teaching materials - and there already exist several collections of heart sounds, breath sounds etc. The aim of our project is to design and set up a comprehensive multimedia textbook of internal propedeutics that would present various physiological and pathological findings (auscultation, inspection, basic imaging) in the context of diagnostic patient investigation - the status praesens - as it is taught in the first clinical courses.MethodsUnlike classical textbooks, hypertext presentation allows to ogranize the material into several structures - reflecting various approaches: systemic (digestive, cardiovascular etc.) approach, nosological, differential diagnoses, etc. To identify and implement the various useful approaches is the most difficult part of the task. The accompanying illustrative material is being prepared with the use of modern technologies - digital camera, scanner, video-camera and digitizer, digital audio recording, etc.ResultsIn the first year of the project, the skeleton of the multimedia presentation is being constructed - corresponding to the various approaches to the subject. Concurrently, suitable illustrative material is being gathered from cases of the Internal Clinic. Various existing WWW presentations dealing with heart and breath sounds and other relevant investigations have been searched and listed.DiscussionExperience and feedback from other projects of this type confirm that a rather elaborate logical and technical construction of multimedia textbooks is rewarded by a good acceptance by both students and teachers. Good access to Internet, sufficient for multimedia transfers, however, is a necessary prerequisite. Internal propedeutics is a very suitable field for internet-based multimedia textbooks: instant access to audio and video recordings is much welcome in development of clinical skills. The project is supported by a grant of the Czech Universities Development Fund.

A highest education in the year 2049

In his 1962 paper Day in the Life of a Student in 2012, Ponte describes the university of 2012 through the eyes of a student. Such a paper may be written to predict the future, to influence changes, or simply to highlight shortcomings and opportunities in the present. His motivation seems to be prediction, so it is best to view the paper in that light. Ponte's prophecy still has over a decade to play out. One vision not yet true, but likely, is the obsolescence of the lecture hall-his Professor Faraway gives recorded, masterful lectures that are broadcast to students, who gather in teams of 30 around a task master. Indeed, the lecture hall does seem antiquated today-it may be replaced by a learning hall, where faculty and students gather physically to engage in a discussion and projects, supplemented by a multimedia textbook, which students use to self study. One-way lectures can be satisfactorily replaced by store and playback, with a substantial improvement in productivity, but what cannot be readily displaced is an intellectual give-and-take discussion among faculty and students, accompanied by friendship and community building. Thus, Ponte's task masters and closely knit group projects seem likely to arise together with multimedia study materials. We now offer a new essay in the spirit of his. Our objective is not so much prediction, but rather to speak to our own era, using a speculative view of the future to point out today's shortcomings and opportunities. Like Ponte, our essay reflects both our hopes and our fears for the future. Reflecting the greater pace of change today, this vision is a more radical departure than Ponte's. Fifty years from now, this essay will probably be only mildly amusing, since the details of our prediction are unlikely to reflect reality. A more realistic goal is to influence the course of education today.

WWW extends "Apprentice's Assistant" to global medical resource

An effort to produce a multimedia textbook on diffuse lung disease grew wings the day the authors saw Mosaic run for the first time. Since that day in late 1992, the CD ROM project planned by Jeffrey Galvin, an associate professor and director of chest imaging at the University of Iowa Hospital's radiology department in Iowa City, has grown into the University of Iowa's Virtual Hospital, a World Wide Web based resource of medical text and images. The collection of data now takes up 32 Gbytes of hard disk space and is served out daily by an IBM RS/6000 running Netscape's communications server to doctors, patients, and medical students all over the world. The original idea behind the project, and the one that has guided its development and growth, was to build into health professionals' work routines a way to keep up with the latest findings in their fields.

The Anesthesiology Discussion Group

The Anesthesiology Discussion Group

Longitudinal comparison of multimedia textbook instruction with a lecture in radiology education

The purpose of this prospective randomized study was to compare the long-term instructional effectiveness of a computer-based radiology multimedia textbook (MMTB) with that of a traditional lecture. Volunteer faculty/fellows and residents were randomly assigned to either a computer-based MMTB group or to a lecture group. The course content for each instructional group was the same. Pretests, posttests, and 1-year long-term retention tests were administered to both groups. The same 10 questions were on all tests. The resulting data were analyzed using analysis of variance procedures available on the Statistical Analysis System. A comparison of the long-term instructional effectiveness of an MMTB versus a lecture showed that the MMTB computer instructional method was at least comparable in spite of the initial short-term appearance of lecture superiority. These results suggest a promising future for MMTB and other forms of computer-based education in radiologic instruction for medical students and radiologists.

The networked multimedia textbook: distributing radiology multimedia information across the Internet.

The purpose of this project was to create an approach for global radiology multimedia publishing using the internet that would address the two largest problems facing radiology multimedia publishers today: the high percentage of radiologists who are computer novices and the variety of personal computers (Macintosh, Microsoft Windows/IBM-PC, X-Windows, Amiga) whose software is incompatible. We developed a client/server approach to multimedia publishing, the networked multimedia textbook, that has a simple booklike user interface to facilitate use by computer novices. Once created, a networked multimedia textbook can be viewed on all current popular personal computers. The networked multimedia textbook is based on the internet, World-Wide Web, Mosaic, and Wide Area Information Servers software technologies, all of which are in the public domain. We created six radiology networked multimedia textbooks. This networked multimedia textbook approach for the global distribution of multimedia radiology information brings the benefits of multimedia publishing on the Internet to radiologists today.

The multimedia textbook. A revolutionary tool for pediatric education.

Textbooks are now available via computers. These new electronic or multimedia textbooks appears similar to conventional books but differ in function. In addition to text and images, they contain video and audio clips and allow readers to interact with the content. Multimedia textbooks contain digital media, can be quickly and inexpensively updated and repurposed for lectures and handouts, and are available on-line via computer networks for distance learning. We present the concept of computer-generated multimedia text-books; describe their creation by an easy-to-use, sophisticated authoring system; and describe the underlying instructional design approach to guide future authors of multimedia textbooks.

An approach to the creation of multimedia textbooks for radiology instruction.

We developed a standardized approach for creating computerized multimedia textbooks based on four principles: (1) multimedia textbooks should resemble printed books, (2) the creation of multimedia textbooks should be relatively inexpensive, (3) multimedia textbooks should be completely digital, and (4) the construction of multimedia textbooks should be simple. To facilitate this approach, an inexpensive, user-friendly multimedia authoring tool called The Annotator was used. The Annotator, a Hypercard-based program that runs on any Macintosh computer, helps authors rapidly create sophisticated radiologic multimedia textbooks. This program provides a textbooklike shell that can be filled with digitized media (video clips, audio clips, images, and text). This approach, which is applicable to any multimedia hardware platform, allows the authorship of multimedia textbooks that can be easily transported to any future multimedia platform.