Applying Redundancy and Animation in a Multimedia Learning Application on a Computer Science Domain

This research aims to investigate the affects and advantages of the various media so that instructions and learning can be more effective. The principle of redundancy states that students learn better from animation and narration than from animation, narration, and text. This study applied the redundancy principle and investigated how students benefited from different types of animation and modes of instruction on the topic of memory management in the subject of Operating System concepts. In this study, learning effects of four multimedia-based learning applications (2-D Animation & Voice, 2-D Animation & Text & Voice, 3-D Animation & Voice, 3-D Animation & Text & Voice) were compared from a total of 72 students. The students who were identified as low prior knowledge (from a prior knowledge survey) on the subject were given a test on recall and transfer knowledge after viewing the learning applications. Early results demonstrated the superiority of the 3-D animation & Voice combination over the three other conditions in the recall test. No differences were found between the four experimental groups for the transfer test questions. This research may provide useful guidance for instructional designers specifically in the area of computer science.