Abstract
Increasingly, multimedia technology is permeating the educational arena
worldwide, and many colleges and universities are moving towards the use of
digital technology to enhance the teaching and learning process of both the
students and educational practitioners (Kachian & Wieser, 1999:[online]; Mat,
2000:[online]). South Africa is a developing country that is undergoing radical
social, political, economic and cultural changes and advances in computer
technology have also dramatically changed the learning and teaching process
and provided new learning opportunities and access to educational resources
beyond those traditionally available.
This research study describes a design experiment in which a multimedia
learning environment (MMLE) was crafted for nursing students in neonatology at
a university in Johannesburg, South Africa. At the outset, the integrated design
principles derived from the constructivist perspectives on learning, multimedia
learning design principles generated from Instructional Design Theory and the
learning styles according to Kolb’s Learning Style Inventory, are established as a
theoretical point of departure. This theoretical position led to the generation of a
design framework that exploits the congruencies between constructivist
perspectives on learning, the individual attributes of learners as defined by
learning styles and multimedia design principles.
The design experiment is conducted in five phases: the establishment of the
design framework after an extensive literature review, the development of the
MMLE, a pilot study, the final implementation and data analysis. Both
quantitative and qualitative data are collected. The preliminary results of the
study show that the students had an overwhelmingly positive experience of the
MMLE, and that their preferred learning style had some influence on their
experience.
Little evidence has been found in the literature about the interaction between
learning styles and constructivist learning principles for the design of multimedia
learning and it is in this area that the study makes a contribution. The study also
makes a contribution to the field of Nursing Science education, as it designs and
develops multimedia learning materials, and assesses the value of those learning
materials for learners which may be adopted in similar contexts within the
broader South African context.
Prof. D. Van Der Westhuizen