Probing Student Choice: Text or Video Content Preference by Elementary Science Methods Students

As part of a grant-supported pilot study using digital methods to teach assessment models, students in an elementary science methods course were given the choice of one or both types of content access: 1) Video (5 web-based videos) or text (the text Seamless Assessment in Science). A controlled study was designed and post-test data from the fall semester 2010 in the elementary science methods course was compared with data obtained pre and post instruction spring semester of 2011 using choice of method. Questions examined were: 1) Will the elementary science methods students choose to read their textbook? 2) Will these students choose to view 5 videos over the same content offered by their textbook? 3) Will these students choose neither method (text or video)? Or, 4) Will student content understanding of assessment models depend one or more of the choice(s) listed above? Fall posttest data provided a control on all instruments. Students in both semesters were surveyed about preferences for learning method. The following data were obtained. Student textbook self-report data was gathered (by interview). Student content understanding was measured each semester using a common content exam. Survey data was obtained (control group posttest only) and (treatment group pre/post). Analyses of the data comparing results for the control and treatment groups on the posttest, students in the spring 2011 course preferred learning from web-based materials 18.3 % more often. The spring semester students increased their preference for learning from web-based materials from the pre to post survey by 2.8 %. Students in the spring semester increased their comfort level with web based materials by 5.0 %.  On the student self-report survey for each semester, 68% of students in the fall purchased their textbook while only 46 % of spring students purchased their text book. Of the fall 2010 students who purchased their textbooks, 91% claimed to read it often. Of the spring 2011 students who purchased the textbook only 71% of students claimed to read it often. The web-based videos were not available to the fall 2010 semester students. But, in spring 2011, 100% of students viewed web-based videos 1, 2, 3 and 5 at least once, 90% of student s viewed the fourth video at least once. The data suggests that elementary science methods students prefer to learn by methods other than reading. Both groups of students, when surveyed suggested that they do not prefer to learn from reading the text. Content data also indicated that all students had a high (90%) comfort level with computer learning in both semesters. Students who had a choice of learning method did not necessarily increase their content knowledge, however, compared to students who had no choice. As some data was inconclusive and the implications are not as clear as hoped, additional data are being obtained during the 2011-2012 academic year.