EDCI 337 Elizabeth Lewis

Theme by Anders Norén

Stress Relief Multimedia Project

The following is a documented lesson plan for our multimedia project on stress relief:

Goal:  Our goal is to provide learners with different methods for relieving stress in their everyday lives.

Learning Outcomes: By the end of this lesson, learners will gain knowledge on several simple and effective activities to do that will help them feel more relaxed. They will also understand the benefits of stress relief. More specifically, learners will be able to:

  • Understand the importance of stress relief
  • Practice meditation involving a focus on breathing
  • Have options for exercises that can relieve stress
  • Gain knowledge on tips for sleeping well
  • Know how journaling can help when overwhelmed

Prior knowledge:

  • It may be beneficial for learners to have a previous experience with meditation, since the delivery of the content on meditation will not be extremely in-depth.
  • Anyone who is wanting a few tips on ways to reduce stress can watch our presentation as it intended for anyone to try.

Delivery:

  • Infographic created using Canva:
    • Five tips that can aid learners with meditation techniques
      1. Planning a time for meditation routine
      2. Sitting with good posture in a comfortable position
      3. Deep breathing
      4. Focus on breath and movement of breath in the body
      5. Be kind and note any distraction as a thought or feeling
    • Each of these tips will have corresponding images
  • Slideshow presentation with narrated video
    • Information on why it’s good to relieve stress
    • How exercising, journaling, sleeping well and yoga will help reduce stress levels when practiced

After creating this lesson plan, we began developing multimedia content to achieve our goal and learning outcomes.

First is the following infographic titled “Tips for Meditation”.

When creating this infographic, I (Beth) kept the following multimedia learning principles in mind in order to effectively transfer knowledge.

  • Coherence principle – Each step in the infographic is fairly short and simple which will keep help maintain a low cognitive load.
  • Contiguity principle – Each step has corresponding and relevant images.
  • Segmenting principle – Breaking the information into five steps is helpful so learners can stop and reflect on what they have read.
  • Learner control principle – The infographic allows learners to read the information at their own pace.
  • Signalling principle – This principle is followed in the infographic because the numbered steps will help the reader easily understand the organization of essential material.

Next, a slide presentation and video was created.

As I (Aliocha) created the slide presentation video I made sure to follow along with multimedia learning principles to ensure efficient learning outcomes. 

  • I made sure to make each slide’s information clear and simple as humans learn best when distracting material is not included. This followed the Coherence Principle.
  • I also made each slide title and key points obvious so that learners know exactly what to pay attention to. This followed the Signaling Principle. 
  • For the video narration process I made sure not to put too much text on each slide and to add points as I talked. I did not want to overpower my presentation by adding a lot of text as well as narration. This followed the Redundancy Principle.

Updated Canva Brochure

I have chosen to make improvements on my Canva brochure while keeping a deeper understanding of multimedia principles and other theories in mind.

Here is a screenshot of the new travel brochure that I have created:

The brochure was originally a guide for travelling to Japan, with different photos, titles, and colours.

There are several ways that updating the brochure to this one has increased the effectiveness of knowledge transfer due to multimedia learning principles and other theories.

First, I chose a different template which I believe is more simplistic and easier to read when compared to the brochure in the tutorial. This helps to avoid a cognitive overload.

In addition to this, I used coolors.co to create this colour scheme. I followed these colours throughout the brochure and made sure that there are only three main colours, blue, brown, and green. This keeps the brochure minimalistic and captivating.

Furthermore, I updated the headlines to match the photos that I added which are related to Tofino. For example, there is a photo of a surfer near the “Surf” headline, and a bakery near the “Shops” headline. This follows the contiguity multimedia learning principle since corresponding words and pictures are presented near to each other.

Another multimedia learning principle that is followed in this template is the signalling principle, since there are cues that highlight the organization of the material. More specifically, the arrows on the second page signal the information that each photo is linked to. This will help readers with focusing their attention.

The segmenting principle is also followed in this brochure. The information is broken up into small sections, each with their own headline. This gives learners the opportunity to read it at their own pace, and without being intimidated by a continuous wall of text. It also allows them to stop and start reading without being disorganized.

Overall, this brochure is much more effective for transferring knowledge after considering all of the aspects mentioned above.

Feedback on Aliocha’s Blog Post 8

Aliocha’s blog post is focused on a presentation video about Simone Biles that she created. The post also describes how the video follows multimedia principles, along with Do’s and Don’t from David Phillips talk on slides. I enjoyed reading the bullet point summary of multimedia principles followed and the mention of using Ariel font.

As Aliocha mentions, her video follows the Redundancy, Multimedia, Modality, and Signalling principles. In addition to this I enjoyed that it follows the voice principle, since there is a human voice presenting rather than a machine generated voice. I also liked that it followed the pre-training principle, since the video begins by explaining the key concept of who Simone Biles is.

Furthermore, Aliocha’s video follows Cognitive Load theory, since it does not have an overload of information on each slide and each slide has a discussion on one main concept.

I wonder if adding a personal touch would help to capture the learners attention. For example, saying “I am a big fan of Simone Biles because she is an inspiration for women in gymnastics”, since it would follow the personalization principle.

Overall this is a great blog post. I enjoyed reading it and watching the presentation!

Learning with sketchnoting and storyline games

One multimedia learning principle that the Bad News game follows is the personalization principle. This is because the storyline follows a conversational style. The game also follows the Modality principle, since both images and narration are provided. I believe there could be improvement by considering the pre-training principle. It may not be clear to some users that the intention of the game is to gain insight into what to look for when thinking critically about the news that we see. If the player is first provided with information on what fake news is, perhaps they could learn more about the tactics used.The following is a screenshot of my score after completing the game.

For my sketch note I chose to use a different article titled “How to Stop Worrying” by Kevin Ngo. Here is a scan of my notes:

One multimedia principle that sketchnoting follows is the self-explanation principle since sketching your own notes is essentially generating your own explanations that make sense to you.

For me, I would find it difficult to practice sketchnoting during my university classes. I already find it difficult listen and type quickly so I would not have enough time to understand and jot down the concepts and doodle. However, with online courses I can see how this would be helpful when learning since some classes provide videos that can be paused. It would add some more fun and creativity to learning.

The following list are some examples of using active learning methods in EDCI 337:

  • Group projects
  • Blog posts
  • Reviewing classmates blog posts
  • Creating Twine stories
  • Annotating
  • Creating interactive videos
  • Analyzing presentations

Interactive story

Here is the link to the Twine story that I created this week: https://elizabethtlewis.github.io/index.html

The first multimedia principle that my Twine story follows is the Contiguity Principle, since the photos I have added are presented near the corresponding words. For example, directly below the text “You have found your house.”, there is a relevant photo of a house.

Another principle followed by the Twine story that I created is the learner control principle. This says that people may learn better when they are controlling the pace which information is presented. Since the user following my story can take as much time as they would like before moving on to the next step.

There are several ways that this format of storytelling could be useful for educational purposes. For example, after providing an explanation, the teacher could have one option as “I understand the content”, and the other could be “I need more explanation”. If the learner chooses the second option, perhaps more in depth instructions could be provided. Furthermore, this would be beneficial since it would not hinder learners who move at a faster pace or who have prior experience in the subject.

Another way that Twine stories could be used is by providing information, and then using it as a situational test. For example, if the learner makes a wrong decision in the provided situation, they can receive feedback and see what could go wrong if they make that decision in real life. Then, they can always return to the previous page and choose the correct answer.

Updated interactive H5P Etsy video

For this assignment, I have chosen to remake my interactive H5P video with more of the Multimedia learning principles in mind. By doing this, I hope that is has increased the effectiveness of knowledge transfer. Here is the updated video:

One way that the video was improved was by focusing more on the pre-training principle, which says that people learn better from a multimedia message when they know the names and characteristics of the main concepts. This is why I stated off the video with some facts about Etsy, such as when the site was launched.

Furthermore, I have included what I believe are more difficult questions to accompany the numerical facts that I explained. This aligns with the prior knowledge principle, since the video can be applicable for more advanced learners along with novices on the subject.

This being said, I kept a simple question as well, so that the video still follows the Students portion of the SECTIONS model. Since I do not know the kinds of students that the video will reach, it is beneficial to keep both simple and more advanced questions so that it’s applicable to a larger audience.

Additionally, I added some content which follows the personalization principle. This principle says that people learn better when information is portrayed in conversational style. I did this when I mentioned that I like to purchase crafts on Etsy, and make embroideries.

I also improved the feedback principle. For example, when asking “In 2019, how many sellers did Etsy have?”, I provided feedback for the “45.7 million” answer because that number was mentioned in my video. The number was actually the number of people who purchased goods, which I thought may have caused confusion for the learner.

With these improvements, I also maintained other principles that were in my previous video. For example, the video continues to follow the multimedia, signalling, and segmenting principles, as I explained in this previous blog post.

Feedback for Cory on Blog Post 2 – Dual coding and learning

Cory’s blog post discusses flow and examples of how it may be experiences. It also discusses the importance of dual coding, and challenges that are present without learning about it. I enjoyed reading this post and think it was well written because:

  • There are several personal experiences given.
  • The information is relatable. For example, admitting to making bad presentations in the past and then stating how this can be improved since learning about the theory. This follows the personalization multimedia learning principle
  • The redundancy principle is also followed, since the information is presented in one format rather than multiple.

Perhaps making the source for the image would make the blog post more visually appealing. At first I thought it was the beginning of the references section.

I really like the concluding paragraph! Good job 🙂

Feedback for Aliocha on “Blog Post 4”

This blog post is focused on describing why a lesson plan can help the teaching process, and also the application of multimedia principles to videos with embedded multiple-choice questions. I thought that multimedia principles were used in an effective way throughout it. For example:

  • The interactive video follows the embodiment principle since the speakers image is not presented.
  • I also really like the personal  preferences discussed in the video, such as how to save the unsplash image.
  • Also, I believe that the video follows the prior knowledge principle, since it provides a brief introduction to unsplash that would not hinder expert learners.

I wonder if focusing more on the segmenting principle, which states that  people learn better when a multimedia message is presented in learner-paced segments, would help. If the embedded image was in-between the two paragraphs, I would find it less intimidating to read.

Really good post! I like the background colour 🙂

Evaluating Multimedia

The following is a link to my Google Earth tour: Google Earth

I am choosing to evaluate the H5P interactive video that is shown on my blog post from the previous week using the SECTIONS framework. I decided on this model since it will show me if this plugin was the right choice for teaching in this situation.

Beginning with the students section, since I actually do not know what audience will be looking at my video, perhaps it was not the best format. Also, the questions I provided were quite simple which shows that it may not align with the prior knowledge principle of multimedia learning. However, I believe that H5P works well for the ease of use section since it has a fairly intuitive functionality. Next are the costs. These are also satisfactory since it will require no maintenance on the video, and it is a free plugin. As I mentioned in my last post, there is functionality that this plugin is missing, such as allowing learners to input text that is not limited to multiple choice.  It would also be interesting if the teacher could receive data on how questions are answered. This being said, H5P does have some beneficial teaching functions which are straightforward. Next is interaction, which I believe that the plugin thrives on due to it’s requirement for input from the learner. There were no organizational issues since it can be easily used on WordPress and was assigned for the course. I do not believe that H5P fits with the networking segment since there is no way to communicate with outside experts. After looking at the H5P documentation here , I can see that it is safe for teachers and students to use, therefore complying with the security portion of the SECTIONS framework.

 

Multimedia Lesson Plans & Interactive Video

When using multimedia to teach, it is essential to begin with creating a lesson plan, as opposed to beginning with creating your content. Some people may use a trial and error approach where they create the content, show the content to students, and then improve the lesson based on their feedback, all without creating a lesson plan. Of course this is not beneficial to learners since some of them will not be getting the best experience. A lesson plan may include the objectives of the teaching, the content required, a timeline, brainstorming ideas, and an assessment of learners. These factors will ensure that when information is going out to learners it will be in it’s best form.

A video which includes embedded multiple choice questions or informational pop ups can relate to the following multimedia principles:

  1. Multimedia principle
    • A text pop up over a video will have both words and pictures
  2. Signalling principle
    • Important information can be highlighted with both techniques
  3. Segmenting principle
    • Pausing  and breaking up the video for a question or info will make it feel more learner-paced
  4. Pre-training Principle
    • A pop up could be used at the beginning of a video for pre-training, however, I did not do this with my demonstration
  5. Feedback principle
    • Multiple choice can be enhanced so that feedback is given depending on which answer is selected

One principle that the pop up and multiple choice techniques do not leave room for is the self-explanation principle, since the learners do not have a way to generate  their own explanations. It may be beneficial to have a H5P function where the learner enters what they believe the answer could be with an explanation, and then this explanation is submitted to the teacher. However, this would not allow for instant or automated feedback.

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