Typographic Access Structures for Educational Texts

Waller, Robert

doi:10.1007/978-1-4684-0994-9_11

Cited by 22 publications

(11 citation statements)

References 17 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Unclassified

Order By: Relevance

“…The phrase "access structures" was coined by Waller (1979) to describe a variety of features of text design that help readers to find their way around or to gain access to complex texts. These devices comprise items such as contents pages, indexes, summaries, headings, subheadings, table and figure captions, and various numbering systems (ranging from page to paragraph numbers).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

A research strategy for text desigbers: The role of headings

Hartley

Trueman

1985

Instr Sci

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

This article describes some of the issues confronting research workers who want to carry out research on the effects of"access structures" -devices which enable people to gain access to a text (such as summaries, headings, and numbering systems). Although this paper focusses specifically on the role of headings, two general points can be made: (1) the literature on any access structure is diffuse and inconclusive and (2) some order may be gained from the chaos by carrying out a series of systematic studies which replicate and build upon themselves. A third, more contentious, point is that we need descriptive and a-theoretical studies first in order to clear the ground for later theoretical work.This article presents the results from seventeen experiments on headings which illustrate these points. The first nine experiments centre on three main variables, (1) the position of headings (marginal or embedded); (2) the form of headings (statements or questions); and (3) the nature of the task (free recall, searching unfamiliar text, and retrieval from familiar text). The results showed that the position of the headings (marginal or embedded) had no effect, but that headings in either form aided the recall, search and retrieval of information from the text used in these experiments with 14-15 year old participants.These experiments were then replicated using a different text in a further four experiments with 1 1-12 year old participants. These experiments showed that headings aided l 1-12 year old's search and retrieval but not their recall from this second text. However, an additional study with 14-15 year olds and the second text showed that headings again aided recall with this groupsuggesting a developmental trend in children's capacity to use headings as recall devices. Finally, another three experiments tested whether headings in the form of questions helped lower-ability readers more than headings in the form of statements (a hypothesis which had emerged from both the preceding and other earlier studies conducted by the authors). In these three studies, however, no significant differences were found to result from the different forms of heading. 0020 4277/85/$ 03.30

show abstract

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

A research strategy for text desigbers: The role of headings

Hartley

Trueman

1985

Instr Sci

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…This rather artificial arrangement of text passages and questions restricts the generalizations one can make to the paradigmatic case or close approximations thereof rather than to in-text questions in general, (p. 193) Duchastel (Note 1) makes a similar point when he notes that the appeal of adjunct questions in instructional text "is all too seldomly tempered, it would seem, by a consideration of the ecological validity of the experimental studies on which the theoretical foundation of mathemagenics is based" (p. 2). Waller (1979), speaking more generally, suggests that "researchers have too rarely addressed questions that those who write, edit, and design textbooks actually need answers to " (p. 178).…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

Students' Studying Processes on Course Related Texts: The Impact of Inserted Questions

Schumacher

Moses

Young

1983

Journal of Reading Behavior

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Abstract. This article reports the results of two studies which investigated the impact of inserted questions on the studying activities of students reading their own course related materials. In both studies macro eye-movements of the students were monitored as they studied texts with or without inserted questions. In Study 1, involving 36 undergraduate university students, the Question Group showed more lookbacks to relevant information than the No Question Group with one of two sets of questions, and more lookbacks to incidental information with both sets of questions. However, neither reading time nor performance on a test differed between the two groups. Study 2 was designed to extend the findings to elementary school children and to examine the effects of ability. A sample of 54 fifth-grade better and poorer readers were given course related materials either with or without inserted questions. Children given inserted questions did not look back to relevant material more often than children without questions. Poorer readers given one of two sets of Preliminary versions of the studies discussed in this article were presented at

show abstract

“…On the one hand we find methodological problems, on the other hand there are theoretical shortcomings: 0 Most research focuses on single and isolated ESD, and this research is mainly not set up a "distance education" setting (see e.g. the reviews of Waller, 1979or Rothkopf, 1970. l Reviewing the research on ESD, it is striking that the ecological validity of the research contexts can be questioned.…”

Section: Embedded Support Devices Questionedmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…l Moreover, the question is not only whether students use the support devices or whether they know how to use them, but also if they need the support provided. Waller (1979) mentions different user objectives when dealing with study texts: entertainment, recapitulation/reviewing, browsing, studying in depth, searching for a particular item, etc. Each user perspective affects the potential effects/functions of ESD.…”

Section: Embedded Support Devices Questionedmentioning

confidence: 99%

Functions, use and effects of embedded support devices in printed distance learning materials

Martens

1996

Learning and Instruction

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

In distance education, the design and elaboration of the learning materials are of prime importance. Despite the potential of new information technologies, printed learning materials are still the dominant delivery format. To support the learning process, the printed materials are enriched with "embedded support devices" (ESD), such as schemes, illustrations, examples, pre-and post-questions, tasks, margin texts, etc. Developers of learning materials assign functions and effects to these ESD. The validity of these assumptions has hardly been empirically researched in a distance education setting. In this article three studies are presented that focus on this issue. In the studies presented, three research methods are used to cope with methodological and theoretical problems as observed in earlier research in relation to ESD. It is concluded that ESD are used and appreciated by students and lead to better study results. The impact of individual characteristics of students was less clear.

show abstract

Typographic Access Structures for Educational Texts

Cited by 22 publications

References 17 publications

A research strategy for text desigbers: The role of headings

A research strategy for text desigbers: The role of headings

Students' Studying Processes on Course Related Texts: The Impact of Inserted Questions

Functions, use and effects of embedded support devices in printed distance learning materials

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About