Learning with Animation: Research Implications for Design

The use of animations has recently become common in multimedia teaching and learning. Animations are assumed to increase interest and motivation, direct attention, illustrate procedures, and explain how things work. Recent research shows that animations are not inherently effective. Their educational effectiveness depends on how the characteristics of animations interact with the psychological functioning of the learner. Clarifying and integrating the major themes of current research, this book explores requirements for the principled design of learning resources that incorporate animation. Such materials can only be successful if their design reflects principles governing how learners develop understandings with animations, and the goal of this book is to improve the way educational animations are designed and used within a variety of learning contexts.

Wolfgang Schnotz is a full Professor of General and Educational Psychology at the University of Koblenz-Landau in Germany where he is the head of the Multimedia Research Group and the head of the Graduate School on Teaching Processes. He was formerly a professor at the Friedrich-Schiller University of Jena in Germany and a lecturer at the University of Vienna in Austria. Dr Schnotz was the chief editor of the International Journal of Learning and Instruction, was a member of the Executive Committee of the European Association for Research on Learning and Instruction, and acted as the chair of the Division of Educational Psychology. He gave keynote addresses at numerous international conferences in the field of educational psychology and research on learning media. He has published extensively in European and international psychology journals. Dr Schnotz is a member of the American Educational Research Association, the American Psychology Association, the European Association for Research on Learning and Instruction, the European Society for Cognitive Psychology, the German Association of Psychology, the Association for Cognitive Science, the International Association of Applied Technology, and the Society for Text and Discourse.

Richard Lowe is Professor of Learning Technologies at Curtin University in Perth, Australia. Following undergraduate studies in chemistry and education, he completed a Ph.D. in educational psychology at Murdoch University. As a result of his work in industry, education, and textbook publication, he developed an interest in factors influencing the effectiveness of explanatory graphics. From an early focus on the comprehension of static graphics, his research has extended in recent years to include investigations of the educational effectiveness of animated and interactive graphics. In addition to his research, he continues to work as a practicing instructional designer for industry and government organizations that rely on complex and dynamic graphic information displays for their operations. He is currently Associate Editor for the international journal Educational Research Review.