This project addresses a documented and persistent problem in introductory physics instruction: Students taking introductory physics are loath to read the textbook prior to coming to class and are unprepared to participate in classroom activities aimed at refining conceptual understanding and promoting problem solving skills. The project's Multimedia Learning Modules (MLM) for the two-semester calculus-based introductory physics course incorporate established learning principles from research on multimedia learning by combining animated video with accompanying audio to engage students' auditory and visual working memories which improves their mastery of the material. The MLM teach basic conceptual knowledge and are used with Just in Time Teaching (JiTT) to improve students' pre-class preparation, thus freeing up class time for other uses.
A pilot study demonstrated that the use of the MLM results in significantly more student learning than the use of traditional textbooks immediately following the lessons and that students retain significantly more of the learned material presented via the MLM two weeks later. The gains favoring the MLM over the textbook were sizable and statistically significant.
The impact of the MLM on learning are evaluated by developing a set of questions that are administered to students prior to coming to each lecture both before and after the MLM are implemented, and by comparing performance on secure final exams both before and after implementation of the MLM. The materials are also being tested at partner institutions that have a very dissimilar student demographic profile from the students at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.
