In the cognitive tools approach , multimedia is not a form of instruction to learn from , but rather a tool for constructing and learning with . Learners may create their own multimedia knowledge representations that reflect their own perspectives on or understanding of ideas . Or learners may collaborate with other learners to develop a classroom or school multimedia knowledge base .
Research Results
Ideally , tasks or problems for the application of multimedia construction software as a cognitive tool should be situated in realistic contexts with results that are personally meaningful for learners . Beichner ( 1994 ) reports on a project where these conditions were met in a unique way . The subjects in this study were seventh and eight grade students enrolled in a middle school located on the grounds of a large , metropolitan zoo . The school is a magnet school emphasizing the study of science to which students are admitted based upon a lottery . A primarily qualitative , observational investigation was conducted over a two-year period while the students worked cooperatively to create interactive displays for a touch-sensitive multimedia kiosk for the zoo .
Several categories emerged out of the qualitative analysis of the data which included extensive videotapes , interviews , observations , and student-created materials . The students ' strong appreciation that they were preparing multimedia materials for a real audience emerged as the core category in the analysis . Related findings were : 1 ) students demonstrated great concern for accuracy in their displays , 2 ) students quickly assumed the major responsibility for content and editing decisions despite the fact that the original task of designing the displays had been structured for them by the teacher , 3 ) students accessed wide ranges of science materials and sources to find the content they desired , and 4 ) their commitment to and enthusiasm for the project remained very high .
On the negative side , the project failed to integrate its activities into the larger curriculum in the school or to attract the participation of teachers other than the computer coordinator . The bottom line was that by establishing an environment where creative thinking about content is combined with real-world assignments , students learned the content , enjoyed the learning process , and recognized that they had created something worthwhile .
Lehrer ( 1993 ) describes the development , use , and results of a hypermedia / multimedia construction tool called HyperAuthor that was used by eighth graders to design their own lessons about the American Civil War . This study exemplifies the principle that : " Cognitive tools empower learners to design their own representations of knowledge rather than absorbing knowledge representations preconceived by others ." As Perkins ( 1986 ) maintains , knowledge is a process of design and not something to be transmitted from teacher to student . Thus , students should be engaged in “ HyperComposition ” by designing their own hypermedia . The process requires learners to transform information into
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