Two animations, one focused on the macroscopic phenomena and particulate conception of the three states of matter and the effects of heat on these states, and the other on solution formation and solubility were produced using Adobe Flash MX software. The first was designed for and tested on elementary school (3 rd -5 th grade) students. The second was tested on secondary school chemistry students. The materials were prepared according to established multimedia learning design guidelines. A pre-and post-test study was used to compare the learning gains of the students who received the animations with those who received textbook reading time and discussion in class. The pre-and post-test data indicate that while both groups showed learning gains regardless of the provided mode of instruction, those who received the animations obtained higher scores than the control group.
Animations were prepared using Adobe Flash MX and tested on elementary (3 rd -5 th grade) and secondary chemistry students. A pre-and post-test study was used to compare the learning gains of students who received the animations with those who received textbook reading time and discussion in class. The control and experimental groups were further divided between students who had low base knowledge and those with higher base knowledge, by comparing students above and below the median on their pre-test. The data analysis indicated that students with low base knowledge and who were given the animation treatment performed at the level of high base knowledge learners. This suggested that well-prepared animations have the capacity to provide differentiated learning for low base knowledge students.
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