Effects of embedding a problem-posing-based learning guiding strategy into interactive e-books on students' learning performance and higher order thinking tendency

• Published in: Interactive learning environments 2019-04, Vol.27 (3), p.389-401
• Main Authors: Sung, Han-Yu, Hwang, Gwo-Jen, Chen, Shan-Feng
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Cognitive Processes; Critical Thinking; Difficulty Level; E-books; Electronic Publishing; Elementary Education; Elementary School Science; Elementary School Students; Elementary Schools; Foreign Countries; Grade 4; Informal Education; Interaction; interactive e-book; Learning; Learning Motivation; Learning Strategies; mobile learning; Multimedia; Multimedia Materials; Natural Sciences; Problem Based Learning; Problem Solving; Problem-posing strategy; Science Achievement; Science Curriculum; Science Process Skills; Smartphones; Student Centered Learning; Students; Tablet computers; Thinking Skills
• ISSN: 1049-4820; 1744-5191
• DOI: 10.1080/10494820.2018.1474235

Owing to the popularity of tablet computers and smart phones, e-books have become an important medium for both formal and informal learning. However, conventional e-books are mainly designed to provide information in the form of multimedia, implying that students spend most of their time memorizing and comprehending what they read from e-books, while seldom engaging in higher order thinking. In this study, a problem-posing framework is proposed for developing an interactive e-book for guiding students to observe and pose questions. An experiment on an elementary school natural science course was conducted to demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed approach. The participants were 46 fourth-grade students. From the experimental results, it was found that the problem-posing-guiding interactive e-book can significantly improve the students' learning achievements, critical thinking tendency, and deep motive. It was also found that the proposed approach did not increase the students' cognitive load owing to the provision of proper supports during the problem-posing process, which has generally been identified as a challenging task.