The Effects of Individual Cognitive Differences on Secondary Education Students' Understanding of the IF-THEN-ELSE Structure

• In Event: 45.095 - Sheraton Roundtable Seven - Osgoode Ballroom
  In Roundtable Session: 45.095-4 - Division C Section 1e Roundtable 1

Abstract

The research investigated whether there were any statistically significant differences in the performance of Field-Dependent (FD) and Field-Independent (FI) school students during learning about the IF-THEN-ELSE structure using two computer software, namely VD and LD, and whether the order in which they used the software differentially affected their learning. The results of this study showed that the FD learners who used the VD software first followed by LD outperformed the FD learners who learned first with the LD software and then with the VD software. The findings are consistent with the latest developments in the field of individual cognitive differences explicating that FD learners’ weakness to understand complex visual representations can be addressed through an appropriate learning design.

Authors

• Charoula M. Angeli, University of Cyprus

• Katerina Tortouris