Chapter 2

Review of Related Literature and Studies

The purpose of this study is to find out the impact of using e-learning on reading

skills among selected Grade six students’ in Immaculate Heart of Mary College –

Parañaque. This chapter includes the ideas, finished thesis, generalization or

conclusions, methodologies and others. Those that were included in this chapter helps in

familiarizing information that are relevant and similar to the present study.

In the research study of Dr. Mayer’s primary research interests is multimedia

learning. In his work, he applies basic findings from cognitive psychology to practical

questions in learning, teaching, and communication, most notably: How can individuals

effectively design visual content (e.g., PowerPoint presentations) to accompany their

verbal presentations and written text?

Dr. Mayer introduced his research by defining the Mathematics of Learning for the

audience and where multimedia learning fits. He emphasized an important distinction

between learning as information acquisition, and learning as knowledge construction:

“We are really in the knowledge business in education. It’s difficult to view learning as

some commodity that can be taken from the outside world and placed in someone’s

head. People always relate it to their prior knowledge, rearrange it, try to make sense

out it. That’s how learning works.” His research is focused on knowledge construction,

which requires an active-learning approach (although, Mayer noted, the level of

cognitive activity applied to a lesson is more important than the level of behavioral

activity).
 Multimedia instruction helps learners understand concepts with the use of words

and images. Dr. Mayer explained that there are three cognitive processes required for

meaningful learning: selecting, organizing, and integrating. The multimedia techniques

of his research aim to prime these processes. 

People learn better from words and pictures than from words alone (Mayer, 2009) … but

not all graphics are created equal. “People learn better from multimedia messages when

they are designed in ways that are consistent with how the human mind works and are

consistent with research based principles.” 

The graphic above shows the results of nine studies, where the black bars

represent presentation in words and pictures, while the white bars represent

presentation of words alone. The Y axis is the percentage correct on a transfer test. “It

is what gets me excited about the idea of multimedia learning: I think we can greatly

increase peoples’ understanding, at least in this case of how things work, by including

graphics.” He later added that additional research into multimedia learning and

instruction is necessary.
 Dr. Mayer framed the remainder of his presentation around three top level-goals in

the design of multimedia instruction for the most meaningful learning: reduce

extraneous processing, manage essential processing and foster generative processing.

RESEARCH-BASED PRINCIPLES FOR THE DESIGN OF MULTIMEDIA MESSAGES

Multimedia principle: People learn better from words and pictures than from words

alone.

Principles for managing essential processing

 Segmenting principle: People learn better when a multimedia lesson is

presented in learner-paced segments rather than as a continuous unit.

 Pre-training principle: People learn better from a multimedia lesson when they

know the names and characteristics of the main concepts.

 Modality principle: People learn better from animation and narration than from

animation and on-screen text.

Principles for reducing extraneous processing

 Coherence principle: People learn better when extraneous words, pictures, and

sounds are excluded rather than included.

 Redundancy principle: People learn better from animation and narration than

from animation, narration, and on on-screen text.

 Signaling principle: People learn better when the words include cues about the

organization of the presentation.

 Spatial contiguity principle: People learn better when corresponding words and

pictures are presented near rather than far from each other on the page or screen.
 Temporal contiguity principle: People learn better when corresponding words

and pictures are presented simultaneously rather than successively.

Principles based on social cues

 Personalization principle: People learn better when the words are in

conversational style rather than formal style.

 Voice principle: People learn better when words are spoken in a standard-

accented human voice than in a machine voice or foreign-accented human voice.

 Image principle: People do not necessarily learn better from a multimedia lesson

when the speaker’s image is added to the screen.

One last principle

 Individual differences principle: Design effects are stronger for low-knowledge

learners than for high-knowledge learners. Design effects are stronger for high-

spatial learners than for low-spatial learners.

Based on the University of Hartford, If you are designing a PowerPoint presentation,

developing an online course or preparing to flip your classroom, you may need to

reconsider how you will get students to engage with the material without the traditional

face-to-face interaction. In the book Multimedia Learning (Cambridge Press, 2001),

Richard E. Mayer discusses twelve principles that shape the design and organization of

multimedia presentations:

1. Coherence Principle – People learn better when extraneous words, pictures and

sounds are excluded rather than included.

2. Signaling Principle – People learn better when cues that highlight the organization of

the essential material are added.

3. Redundancy Principle – People learn better from graphics and narration than from

graphics, narration and on-screen text.

4. Spatial Contiguity Principle – People learn better when corresponding words and

pictures are presented near rather than far from each other on the page or screen.

5. Temporal Contiguity Principle – People learn better when corresponding words and

pictures are presented simultaneously rather than successively.

6. Segmenting Principle – People learn better from a multimedia lesson is presented in

user-paced segments rather than as a continuous unit.

7. Pre-training Principle – People learn better from a multimedia lesson when they know

the names and characteristics of the main concepts.

8. Modality Principle – People learn better from graphics and narrations than from

animation and on-screen text.

9. Multimedia Principle – People learn better from words and pictures than from words

alone.

10. Personalization Principle – People learn better from multimedia lessons when words

are in conversational style rather than formal style.

11. Voice Principle – People learn better when the narration in multimedia lessons is

spoken in a friendly human voice rather than a machine voice.

12. Image Principle – People do not necessarily learn better from a multimedia lesson

when the speaker’s image is added to the screen.

 A research made by Von Glasersfeld (2000) advocated constructivism and held

that the acquisition of knowledge is actively constructed by learners. Therefore, the

student-centered learning paradigm becomes the desired learning environment, one in

which the relationship between teachers and students is recast as learning with teachers

rather than learning from teachers. Nowadays, learning technology also treats network

technology as a learning partnership, with the paradigm becoming one of learning with

technology rather than learning from technology. Some theoretical aspects of networked

learning and the basic concepts of integrating information technology into teaching are

described below. The Internet has had a positive impact on learning. Its characteristics

include the following:

1) Learning tools: Thinking Reader®, a commercially available product developed by

Tom Snyder Productions (Scholastic), embeds strategy instruction into award-winning

novels for intermediate and middle school students. It is based on a research

prototype that was demonstrated to improve struggling adolescent readers'

comprehension (Dalton, Pisha, Eagleton, Coyne, & Deysher, 2001). The books are

digitized and embedded with multiple supports, including human voice narration,

text-to-speech, a multimedia glossary, hyperlinks to support background, strategy

instruction, and a work log. Animated agents prompt the students to apply reading

strategies and provide corrective feedback on their performance.

2) Connectivity: To provide wide connectivity through networks and e-mail in order to

achieve interactivity among classmates, teachers, parents, and domain experts

3) Student-centeredness: To encourage learners to participate actively in learning with

the teacher as the facilitator. The teacher plays the role of a tutor who provides
 motivation and learning support, while the student is an active thinker as well as the

key player in the learning activity.

4) Knowledge sharing: To share, broaden, and expand the delivery of information and

promote innovation.

5) Unbound: To enable learners to not only benefit from learning in a classroom but also

from learning from the knowledge available on the Internet.

In a study conducted by Cheung and Slavin (2013) had analyzed the effectiveness

of technology. According to their studies when technology is used in unprotected or

simply replacing the use of the teachers, typically there are no product of learning. It

must be a merging of teacher and technology with teacher help interactive learning,

exploration, and creation (instead of “drill and kill” techniques) leads to higher

engagement and learning gains.

In the addition to that Duke and Pearson (2012) Building comprehension skills

requires more than just practice; strategy instruction requires modeling of the reading

strategy, guided practice with well-chosen texts, and reflection on the flexible use of a

range of strategies.

Gaba (2004) anticipated that simulation is a technique that to replace experiences

with guided experiences that suggests extensive aspects of real world in fully interactive

manner.

Fluency, particularly its relationship to comprehension, has been the focus of much

recent reading research. Readers who lack fluency have few cognitive resources left to

develop comprehension skills. The potential of technology-based approaches to improve

fluency in struggling readers has received considerable attention. Wolf and colleagues

have conducted a multiyear line of research into the RAVE-O Program, a multimedia
language and reading training program that addresses the specific deficits of young

readers with language or learning disabilities.

The program addresses three instructional goals within an engaging, game-like

multimedia design:

• Fluency and comprehension

• Orthographic and phonological awareness

• Engagement

Interventions using this program have consistently shown a positive impact on

students' reading skills and reading attitude, and the program has been adopted in

further large-scale studies (Wolf, Miller, & Donnelly, 2000).

UNESCO (2002), headed for ICT in school, described that it is like an ecosystem

that invades by different species, where in there a span of time for the organisms to be

adjusted and may find a time to be knowledgeable in the new environment, also, to able

the people who are involved in the changing environment like ICT in school, there are 4

phase in order to adjust, first purchasing of computer or the emerging phase, second is

exploring of ICT software and other parts, third applying where it will be used for the

pending task, and, last is the realization that the ICT is the vital part of the school

system, hence, the effect of having an ICT changes the physical setting methodology of

teaching and the learning, Thus, appropriate using ICT contributes positively to the

learning in schools and for it to be effective, it requires the conscious effort of all the

species in the school ecosystem, that is the principal, teachers, parents and students to

make it work.
 Bayraktar (2001:02), sights from his study that computers were more effective

when used in simulation or tutorial modes. This statement is also agreed by Turcano

(2005) that using of ICTs for simulations and modeling in science and math have been

shown to be effective, as have word processing and communication software (e-mail) in

the development of student language and communication skills, also claimed by Davis,

et.al (1999:05) ICTs have the potential to accelerate, enrich, and deepen skills, to

motivate and engage students, to help relate school experience to work practices, create

economic viability for tomorrow's workers, as well as strengthening teaching and helping

schools change, it was also proved by the study of Paris (2004), when it comes to the 10

students performance towards using OWAL (online web assisted learning), were the data

was collected through questionnaire and it was manifest that the students a strong

positive trough OWAL rather than paper assisted learning.

Munyantware (2006) in his study ‘Problems affecting teachers’ adoption of

technology in classrooms among science and mathematics teachers in Kisoro District’,

reported that in addition to social support from colleagues, perceived support from the

school 45 influences teachers adoption decision. The study suggested that continuous

support to teachers gives them confidence in using computers in teaching their relevant

courses in institutions of higher learning.

Cheung and Slavin (2013) had analyzed, that using ICT will lead to higher learning

gains if the teacher use the ICT in more interactive learning, exploring and creating with

the supervision of educators .

According to Anderson (2003:1), “reading is an active, fluent process which

involves the reader and the reading material in building meaning”. Crystal (2007:209),
likewise, points out that reading “crucially involves appreciating the sense of what is

written: we read for meaning”. (Emhemmad Masoud Albeckay / Procedia - Social and

Behavioral Sciences 123 ( 2014 ) 175 – 181) From the foregoing, one can conclude

that, during the reading process, information from visual, semantic, conceptual and

linguistic sources combines to make sense of sentence and phrases.

Teaching students how to read is an important objective of primary education.

However, many students experience learning to read as challenging. Teachers devise a

lot of strategies just so to enhance the reading skills of the students. Teaching students

how to read is an important objective of primary education. However, many students

experience learning to read as challenging. Individual differences in reading

comprehension crystallize soon and the gap between good and poor readers remains

stable or even increases during reading development (Pfost et al., 2014). Therefore, it is

important to devise reading interventions that effectively help poor readers in primary

school to catch up with the reading level of their peers. (https://ac.els-

cdn.com/S1877042814014505/1-s2.0-S1877042814014505-main.pdf?_tid=8a8f7b00-

fa54-11e7-8423-

00000aacb35d&acdnat=1516062847_e6ab6d63c1cb29f0566fdda667553c87 )

Today’s students are digital natives. This means that they have been raised with

access to a variety of technology and have spent many hours using such devices as

computers, video games, digital music players, iPads, e-readers, and cell phones. A child

even ate the age of two is somehow familiar with the use of technology.

According to the International Electronic Journal of Elementary Education, 2014,

6(2), 199-212, “Correct perception, sound recognition, word recognition, word

discrimination, semantics, syntax, linguistic processes and comprehension are basic

requirements needed for the acquisition of effective reading skills and healthy reading.

Establishing reading environments with respect to these requirements may be effective

in overcoming reading difficulties. Teaching through appropriate methods and

considering the individual differences in individuals may contribute to the reduction of

these difficulties. In addition to this, the early detection of students with reading

difficulties and the application of intervention programs for reading difficulties are of

great importance. Enrichment reading programs can be a good means of such an

intervention.” (https://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/EJ1053627.pdf) Thus, e-learning is a

great source of improving the skills of the students. It could be an intervention since one

can do it alone. Sometimes, good quality of intervention is also an impact to the

students.
 As stated by Cogent Education Journal of 2016, Students’ daily lives outside of

school are affected by technology and students want technology in their classrooms.

(Larson, 2008) Thus, literacy instruction in the classroom should incorporate our

student’s lives outside of the classroom to make learning meaningful. Digital devices are

a relevant part of our student’s daily lives. Therefore, reading instruction has the

opportunity to become more relevant to our students by integrating guided reading with

e-readers.

In the study of E-readers and The Effects on Students’ Reading Motivation,

Attitude and Comprehension During Guided Reading, 2016 “Effective e-Learning comes

from using information communications technology (ICT)-to broaden educational

opportunities and help students develop the skills students will need to thrive in the 21st

century and has been shown to have positive effects on student learning.”

(http://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/2331186X.2016.1197818)