Effects of Associative Reasoning on Learning Retention

• Main Authors: Jia-Hang Liang, 梁嘉航
• Other Authors: Bin Shyan Jong
• Format: Others
• Language: zh-TW
• Published: 2016
• Online Access: http://ndltd.ncl.edu.tw/handle/v39exh

碩士 === 中原大學 === 資訊工程研究所 === 104 === During the past years, technology became more and more advanced. Many researchers used course content and game elements, combined with computers or mobile devices, to produce Digital Game-based Learning. Many studies also confirmed that digital game-based learning can indeed help with students’ learning performances. Even those different studies adopted differnent games or strategies, the contents almost always involve multiple-choice questions. In previous studies of digital game-based learning, it was also very common to investigate whether the teaching strategies used can enhance learning motivation and achievement; however, it was less common to investigate the issue of learning retention. In this study we developed a digital game-based learning system, which allow the control group to work on multiple-choice questions, while allowing the experimental group to do what is referred to as“associative reasoning”in this thesis. By “associative reasoning”, it is meant that the students were not instructed to answer some specific question; instead, they must identify one “answer”that is “less related” to other “answer”. In this study, students are expected to learn by making associations in their reasoning. In theory, this could stimulate their active thinking processes and thus enhance their learning performances. Since the knowledge was acquired through understanding and integration, it was more likely to be stored in long-term memory, thus leading to better learning retention From the experiment, it was found that there were no significant differences between the experimental and control groups in learning achievement, which involved short-term memory. But in learning retention, which involved the long-term memory, the experimental group which used associative reasoning significantly better. This means that using associative reasoning in learning can help students retain knowledge for a longer period of time. The use of associative reasoning forces students to go through observation and reasoning in a logical way of learning. This will cause modest increase in cognitive load. However, the cognitive load of both group of students were not higher. Therefore, the use of associative reasoning in this experiment did not cause unbearable load pressure on the subjects.