Hemant Lata

This study investigated the effect of Computer Multimedia instruction on academic achievement of students. Eighty students studying in two sections of 7th class of “The Sunshine Sr. Sec. School, Rohtak” were used as subjects of the study. Multimedia Instruction was utilized in the experimental group while the traditional instruction method was used for the control group. This study utilized the pre-test, post-test, control group Quasi-Experimental design with a purposive sample in the form of intact sections and ‘t’ test was employed for testing the significance of difference between the means of pupils’ achievement on pre-test, post-test and mean gain scores. Results show that the two groups in pre-test were almost equal in their level of knowledge before introduc¬ing any treatment but difference was found in mean scores and mean gain scores of two groups in post-test. Experimental group (exposed to Computer Multimedia Instruction) achieved higher mean scores and mean gain scores than the control group (exposed to traditional instruction) on achievement at post-test stage. This implies that subjects exposed to Computer Multimedia Instruction were found to be higher on achievement in comparison to those exposed to traditional instruction. Introduction The promise of educational benefits, anticipated since the early days of computer use, has accelerated with the increased availability of computers in schools. The widespread proliferation of computers in schools is based on the assumption that computers have a significant role to play in education and that their use can and will result in the advancement of education (Drenoyianni, 1998). Students are expected to learn more through computer use: test scores can rise, and students would learn at a faster rate (Hokanson, & Hooper, 2000). Moreover, computer-assisted education could assist students in their preparation to enter and compete in a modern, global workforce (Oppenheimer, 1997). A relatively new educational innovation in classrooms entitled, “multimedia” possesses the potential to influence student learning and knowledge acquisition. Viewed by Halal and Liebowitz (1994, p.21) as the technological key to future education, multimedia is defined as “a powerful combination of earlier technologies that constitutes an extraordinary advance in the capability of machines to assist the educational process. Multimedia is a multi-faceted approach. It is the exciting combination of computer hardware and software that allows integration of multiple media elements (audio, video, graphics, text, animation etc.) into one synergetic and symbiotic whole that results in more benefits for the end user than any one of the media element can provide individually. Multimedia in Education has been extremely effective in teaching individuals a wide range of subjects. Multimedia enables students to represent information using several different media. Some students learn by interpreting text, while others require more graphical or aural representations, allows for self-pacing and discovery. Thus a multi-sensory experience can be created for the audience, which in turn, elicits positive attitudes towards its application (Neo and Neo, 2000). Multimedia has also been shown to elicit the highest rate of information retention and result in shorter learning time (Ng and Komiya, 2000). Thus Student’s exposure to such technologies results in better teaching-learning as compared to traditional method. With multimedia, the process of learning becomes more goal oriented, more participatory, flexible in time and space, unaffected by distances and tailored to individual learning styles, and increased collaboration between teachers and students. Multimedia makes learning friendly and fun-oriented without fear of inadequacies or failure. Multimedia encourages users to embrace, internalize, and learn more from information because users can attack the information from multiple directions. In other words, users of multimedia applications have an opportunity to read about information, and to see it, hear it, and watch it move. Review of Literature: A review of the research literature shows that the trends of research have undergone tremendous shift especially with the introduction of multimedia use. It has been observed lately that applications of multimedia have resulted into higher strides of achievement for the learners. Studies conducted by Adegoke (2011) examined the effect of multimedia instruction on senior secondary school students’ and found that students under multimedia instruction performed better than the lecture group. Aloraini (2012) also find out the positive impact of multimedia on students’ academic achievement. Maree, et al. (2013) showed significant effect of Multimedia Instructional Strategy on academic achievement. Satyaprakasha & Sudhanshu (2014) found that Multimedia significantly promoted achievement with respect to knowledge, understanding, application and total achievement. The literature related with the use of multimedia suggests that Multimedia learning is a sense-making activity in which the learner seeks to build a coherent mental representation from the presented material. Unlike information, which is an objective commodity, that can be moved from exact form, from one mind to another. This is why two learners can be presented with the same multimedia message and come away with different learning outcomes. Sensing the vast capabilities of multimedia in the educational realm, computer companies have developed multimedia software packages that can be used as teaching tools by instructors. Objectives: The study was designed to attain the following objectives: 1. To compare the pre test achievement scores of Control and Experimental group. 2. To compare the post test achievement scores of Control and Experimental group. 3. To compare the mean gain achievement scores of Control and Experimental group. Hypotheses: The following hypotheses were formulated and tested: 1. There is no significant difference in pre-test achievement scores of Control and Experimental group. 2. There is no significant difference in post-test achievement scores of Control and Experimental group. 3. There is no significant difference in mean gain achievement scores of Control and Experimental group. Method: In the present study, pre-test-post-test control group quasi experimental design was employed with a purposive sample in the form of intact sections (equated on intelligence). The sample