Supplementing Lecture with Simulations in Developmental Disabilities: SIDD Software

Abstract

We evaluated Simulations in Developmental Disabilities (SIDD), a multimedia software program that provides students with practice in behavioral assessment and treatment decisions for persons with developmental disabilities. Following a lecture on clinical strategies, students in an experimental group received instruction with SIDD whereas students in the control group did not. We collected assessments of students' clinical knowledge before and after the lecture, immediately after training, and several weeks later. The lecture had no immediate impact on clinical knowledge; however, there was a significant difference in test scores between the experimental group and the control group following exposure to SIDD training, which remained at follow-up.

Web-Based Tutorials for Teaching Introductory Statistics

“…Students who completed course evaluations were quite positive about the tutorials and emphasized components that have been favorably evaluated in other studies-practice exercises with immediate feedback, ability to isolate key concepts, visual presentation of material, and unlimited access to the material (Desrochers et al, 2001;Mitchell & Jolley, 1999;Varnhagen & Digdon, 2002;Wilson & Harris, 2002;Worthington et al, 1996). Students suggested additional tutorials on topics within analysis of variance, a recommendation that was consistent with the finding that the factorial analysis of variance tutorial was the only one with no demonstrable impact on learning.…”

“…Research has shown that effective use of multimedia can increase student learning (Erwin & Rieppi, 1999;Fletcher-Flynn & Gravatt, 1995;Forsyth & Archer, 1997;Kazmerski & Blasko, 1999;McNeil & Nelson, 1991) and instructors are increasingly encouraged to incorporate multimedia into classroom teaching. Computerized demonstrations that are used for active learning exercises during class sessions and for supplementary, out-of-classroom learning and review have been developed for teaching: 1) introductory psychology (Chaparro & Halcomb, 1990;Worthington, Welsh, Archer, Mindes, & Forsyth, 1996), 2) research methods (Kazmerski & Blasko, 1999;Varnhagen & Digdon, 2002), 3) clinical diagnosis (Desrochers, House, & Seth, 2001;Jachna, Powsner, McIntyre, & Byck, 1993), 4) decision-making (Misale, Gillette, & del Mas, 1996), 5) perception and cognition (Neuhoff, 2000); 6) social psychology (Sherman, 1998), 7) behavioral principles (Lambert, 1987;Silva, Yuille, & Peters, 2000), and, most relevant for the current work, 8) statistics (Aberson, Berger, Healy, Kyle, & Romero, 2000;Britt, Sellinger, & Stillerman, 2002;Franklin & Cooley, 2002;Hurlburt, 2001;Richardson & Segal, 1998;Warner & Meehan, 2001;West & Ogden, 1998). Students consistently give favorable reviews to these computerbased learning resources emphasizing their interactive nature, ease of use, graphical presentation of material, and the ability to review concepts.…”

“…Students who learned from the lecture and web site scored better on exams than students who learned only from classroom lectures on four of five content areas addressed in the tutorials. Desrochers et al (2001) reported higher scores on a clinical vignette that asked students to apply knowledge of assessment and intervention to a novel clinical situation among students who used a multimedia software program to gain practice in clinical assessment and decisionmaking compared to students who learned the material in a lecture-only format. Mitchell and Jolley (1999) also found a significant positive association between use of a self-guided tutorial on the correlation coefficient and later exam performance.…”

Assessing the Effectiveness of Web-Based Tutorials Using Pre- and Post-Test Measurements

“…Additionally, Koch and Gobell (1999) found that Web-based tutorials led to improved accuracy regarding decisions about design issues and the correct choice of statistics in an advanced course on research methods and statistics. Desrochers, House, and Seth (2001) reported higher scores among students who used Web-based tutorials to apply knowledge of assessment and intervention to a novel clinical situation compared to students who learned the material in a lecture-only format. Similarly, Wilson and Harris (2002) evaluated the use of interactive tutorials in an introductory psychology class and found that students who learned from the Web-based tutorial scored better on exams than students who learned only from classroom lectures.…”

Teaching with Multimedia: Do Bells and Whistles Help Students Learn?

“…Desrochers, House and Seth (2001) examined the use of multimedia software to supplement lecture material. Following a lecture on the use of clinical techniques for persons with developmental disabilities, subjects in the experimental group received supplemental instruction via multimedia software, whereas subjects in a control group did not.…”