Preservice Computer Teachers as Hypermedia Designers: The Impact of Hypermedia Authoring on Knowledge Acquisition and Retention.

This study aims to assess the impact of hypermedia designing as a cognitive tool on knowledge acquisition and retention in comparison to traditional instruction. A pretest-posttest control group design was used. The study included 48 second-year preservice computer teachers who enrolled in “Instructional Technology and Material Preparation ” course at one of the universities in Turkey. The subjects were assigned to experimental and control groups through “matched-pair technique. ” Both groups were given a pretest to measure their prior achievement level in “Instructional Technology & Material Preparation ” course content. While the control group was exposed to traditional instruction, the experimental group developed hypermedia on the course content in a constructivist learning context for 14 weeks. A posttest was given at the end of the treatment, and a retention test was given eight weeks after the treatment to both groups. The results showed that the use of hypermedia as a cognitive tool resulted in similar level of student achievement as traditional instruction.