The NCSeT Research Site at the University of Oregon is preparing for field trials of its video supported biology text.
In preparation for a robust set of component study field trials in north and central Oregon high schools in Spring of 2008, The Center for Electronic Studying (CES) research team for The National Center for Supported Electronic Text has been exploring evidence-based instructional design techniques for presenting supported etext to students with learning disabilities.
Engaged in a rapid prototyping process to determine the most accessible and non-distracting method for students with learning disabilities to view a 9th grade biology text passage on the subject of "mitosis," the CES Team has developed seven distinct iterations of this SAME passage within the last several months. This prototyping has, thus, allowed the team to try out various methods for presenting text, hyperlinks, the placement of icons, and the relative "chunking" and placement of text adjacent to illustrations (either static or dynamic).
The systematic dialogue around this process has informed the development of a static vs. illustrative support comparison trial. Use of Instructional Design principles – some specifically for students with learning disabilities – to create an instructionally sound design for this student population will, we believe, make for a most robust comparison – with only the dynamic illustration (the movie) and the static illustration (the picture) being the variable that is moderated between the two conditions. A third condition, created by using the particular textbook company's online text of this same passage, will serve as a control. {youtube}8S20quKyvYk&rel=1{/youtube}
These field trials are nearly ready for the CES Research Team and will be implemented in the local high schools in early February 2008.