The effects of instructional methods on students' learning outcomes requiring different cognitive abilities: context-aware ubiquitous learning versus traditional instruction

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to explore the effects of the context-aware ubiquitous learning (u-learning) approach versus traditional instruction on students' ability to answer questions that required different cognitive skills, using the framework of Bloom's taxonomy of educational objectives, including knowledge, comprehension, application, analysis, and synthesis. In this study, 230 third- and fourth-grade students in 8 classes were counterbalanced and assigned to the u-learning approach and traditional instruction for learning different topics in two separate plant-observing activities. The results showed that the students who learned with traditional instruction performed better than those who used the u-learning approach in terms of answering questions that required their cognitive abilities of knowledge, comprehension, application, analysis, and synthesis. Moreover, an in-depth analysis of the students' learning behaviors in the u-learning context revealed that most of their learning behaviors recorded in the u-learning system were not significantly related to their cognitive abilities.

Keywords:

• ubiquitous learning
• context awareness
• Bloom's taxonomy

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

Notes on contributors

Pei-Shan Tsai is currently an assistant professor at Center for Teacher Education and Institute of Education, National Sun Yat-sen University, Kaohsiung, Taiwan. Her research interests are on e-Learning system development, and conceptions of technology-based learning.

Chin-Chung Tsai is a Chair Professor at the Graduate Institute of Digital Learning and Education, National Taiwan University of Science and Technology, Taipei, Taiwan. Since July 2009, he has been appointed as the Co-Editor of Computers & Education. His research interests deal largely with constructivism, epistemological beliefs, and Internet-based instruction related to science education.

Gwo-Haur Hwang is currently an associate professor at Department of Information Networking and System Administration, Ling Tung University, Taichung, Taiwan. His research interests are on mobile and ubiquitous learning and e-commerce.

Additional information

Funding

This study was funded by the National Science Council, Taiwan (grant contract numbers NSC 101-2511-S-011-003-MY3 and NSC 99-2511-S-275-001-MY3].