Running head: COMPARING THE MODALITY OF CONTENT DELIVERY METHODS 1

Comparing the Modality of Traditional, Multimedia, and Mixed Content Delivery Methods in

Physical Education

Erin Strickland

Coastal Carolina University

COMPARING THE MODALITY OF CONTENT DELIVERY METHODS 2

Introduction

With the current global turn to technology within the classroom, many studies have

emerged to test the successfulness of students presented with traditional, multimedia, and

blended content delivery. Physical education classrooms have also been challenged with the

contradictory change to incorporate technology. In addition, the global pandemic has forced

physical education classes to take place online through learning management systems, either

synchronous or asynchronous. As a subject used to steer students away from screen-time and get

them more active, physical educators are looking for innovative ways to incorporate multimedia

infused technology without taking away from the actual physical activity part of physical

education class.

Traditional content delivery has proven to be successful from the beginning of education

with the use of teacher lectures, demonstrations, and feedback. Multimedia content delivery

draws in different engagement aspects for learners, but can create cognitive overload if not

designed well. In addition, content delivery using a mixed method provides the opportunity for

traditional delivery to be enhanced with multimedia aspects. After the use of online learning

management systems across the board at the beginning of the current pandemic, the return to

school has sparked an increase in mixed methods – providing students with in-person instruction

accompanied by technology and multimedia in the classroom.

As physical education classes also try to incorporate technology without reducing activity

time, the use of technology to actually deliver the content appears to be a possible best practice.

To test this theory, a fifth grade tennis unit was used to pose the question: would multimedia

content delivery produce improved cognition and performance of a tennis serve compared to

traditional and mixed content delivery? Tennis is a popular sport in the current test subject area,
COMPARING THE MODALITY OF CONTENT DELIVERY METHODS 3

and students are learning at a younger age. Content delivery methods were able to be tested in

three ways, with three different fifth grade classes, to assess both cognitive understanding of the

history and rules, as well as learning how to articulate a proper serve. The overall study

investigated how the modality of delivery methods impacted both cognitive and psychomotor

student performance in tennis. The findings can impact how future lessons are gaged to help

students succeed in their learning and mastery of a subject or skill.

Review of Literature

Multimedia approaches to teaching have been around for quite some time, and with the

emerging online platform capabilities, researchers (Choe et al., 2019; Hung et al., 2018;

McKethan et al., 2001; Papastergiou et al., 2014; Vernadakis et al., 2012) have compared the

outcomes of students learning with traditional and mixed, or blended, methods. Quantitative data

was used to assess the cognitive knowledge of topics in the physical education realm, finding

that the majority of students learn best through multimedia or mixed delivery methods.

Quantitative data was also used to measure skill mastery, but findings did not note any

significant changes in the studies. Qualitative data was used to evaluate the preferred technique

of how the content was delivered, yielding that students also preferred multimedia or mixed

methods.

When it comes to traditional versus a multimedia approach, Choe et al. (2019) and Hung

et al. (2018) both conducted studies that yielded a preferred method of multimedia for content

delivery. Students showed preference toward personal and engaging video styles aligned with

Mayer’s multimedia principles (Choe et al., 2019), as well as increased motivation to succeed in

the course. The students’ abilities to pace themselves in the overall course and receive immediate
COMPARING THE MODALITY OF CONTENT DELIVERY METHODS 4

feedback lead to the overall increase in motivation, as well as a more holistic view of specific

sports (Hung et al., 2018).

In addition, Vernadakis et al. (2012) and Papastergiou (2014) conducted research that

yielded similar quantitative results, concluding that a mixed method, using both traditional and

multimedia approaches, were preferred over the stand-alone traditional method. Vernadakis et al.

(2012) also added that an instructor that provides their content through a mixed method may see

an increase in overall student satisfaction.

The history and rules for certain sports were also measured quantitatively to compare

methods. Student cognition was positively affected through pre- and posttests in two studies

with multimedia delivery methods. However, when it comes to the physical performance of a

skill, results expressed that there was no significant increase or decrease in the mastery of the

skill using a multimedia approach (Papastergiou et al., 2014; McKethan et al., 2001).

Drawing from the review of several literatures, it is hypothesized that a multimedia or

mixed content delivery method is going to yield a more positive result in comparison to the

traditional method when it comes to the cognition of the history and rules of tennis. As for the

mastery or improvement of a tennis serve, research suggests that there may be no difference

between the three content delivery methods. Furthermore, the qualitative results suggest that the

subjects may prefer the mixed content delivery method over the traditional and multimedia.

Methodology

In order to assess the cognition of students when it came to the tennis history and rules,

three fifth grade classes were tested using the same digital assessment. The three classes were in

the same grade level, as well as on a similar academic level. This allowed for the best

comparison of results, as they were selected for convenience rather than a random assignment.
COMPARING THE MODALITY OF CONTENT DELIVERY METHODS 5

Additionally, in comparison to the younger grades, fifth grade yielded the highest critical

thinking level when it comes to the assessments and performances. Each class also participated

in the same psychomotor skill assessment, and were asked the same qualitative survey and

interview questions. However, each of the three classes were presented all of the tennis unit

information with different content delivery methods: traditional, multimedia, and a mixed

method approach.

To begin, the same digital pre- and posttest were created and administered to each student

in the same time frame to test student knowledge of the history and rules of tennis. The digital

assessment was designed with modality and relevance in mind. It included ten questions, nine of

which were choice-based response questions with multiple choice answers, and one of which

was a recall, fill-in-the-blank question. The posttest was given exactly four weeks after the

pretest to allow the tennis unit to be completed. Quantitative data was collected from these

assessments to compare the scores to see if there was an increase, decrease, or no change in the

knowledge of the history and rules of tennis.

After the pretest, one group was presented all unit information traditionally – lecture style

with teacher demonstrations. The multimedia content delivery group received instruction solely

through multimedia videos, graphics, and presentations carefully selected online using Mayer’s

multimedia principles to ensure the omission of cognitive overload. Students brought their iPads

to each class and received individual instruction from Google Classroom. Finally, the third group

was presented all content with a combination of traditional and multimedia content deliveries for

the mixed method.

The skill of serving a tennis ball into a designated area was also measured with a pre- and

posttest. Each student was initially given ten attempts to serve a tennis ball into a designated area
COMPARING THE MODALITY OF CONTENT DELIVERY METHODS 6

without any instruction on how to do so, and each of the successful attempts were recorded. The

classes received the same method of content delivery for how to serve a tennis ball as they did

for the cognitive part of the study. On the last day of the unit, students performed the same ten

serve trial with the successful attempts recorded again.

Qualitative data was collected at the end of the tennis unit through a written survey and

interviews. The written survey included three questions about the students’ preference toward

learning lecture style, multimedia style, or a combination of both. Interviews were conducted

with one similar preference question and one question asking if students felt like they learned

better when taught in different ways.

Analysis

When analyzing the cognitive assessment scores, an average of the pre- and posttests

were taken and compared, as can be seen in the charts below. Figure 1.1 shows a side by side

comparison of each class displayed with the different content delivery methods. All three

methods had an increase in scores from the pre- to the posttest. The traditional and mixed

methodologies yielded similar posttest scores. The multimedia approach negatively differed from

the other two, even though its pretest scores were slightly higher.

When continuing to compare assessment scores, the percentage of increase from pre- to

posttest can also be observed in Figure 1.2. The mixed content delivery method comes in a close

second to the traditional method. As noted in conjunction with Figure 1.1, the multimedia group

showed the least amount of percentage increase when it comes to pre- and post-assessment

scores.
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Average Digital Assessment Scores

100
90
80 88.5 87.6
70
60 69.8
50
40 44.4
39.4 41.6
30
20
10
0
Traditional Multimedia Mixed
Pre-Test Post-Test
Figure 1.1

Percent Increase of Assessment Scores

110
124.6

57.2

Traditional Multimedia Mixed

Figure 1.2

The same comparison concepts were used when analyzing the successfulness and

completion of tennis serves. When each initial attempt was compared to the attempts at the end

of the unit, there was not a significant difference within each test subject group, as noted in

Figure 2.1, even though there was a slight increase seen across the board. However, when

observed as a percentage increase in Figure 2.2, the multimedia content delivery method

significantly exceeds the increase of the other two categories.

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Average Successful Tennis Serves

10
8
6
4 3.5 3.4 3.7
2.4 2.6 2.8
2
0
Traditional Multimedia Mixed
Pre-Test Post-Test
Figure 2.1

Percent Increase of Tennis Serves

8.8 8.3

25

Traditional Multimedia Mixed

Figure 2.2

Qualitative data was also collected to analyze the subjects’ attitudes and thoughts toward

the different content delivery methods through written surveys and in-person interviews, and

then analyzed by looking for repeated thoughts, phrases, and words throughout. It was concluded

that most of the fifth graders preferred a multimedia approach because they “enjoyed using

[their] iPads in P.E. class.” When asked which method motivated them to learn more, a common
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theme was multimedia or mixed methods due to them being “different than what [they] are used

to every day” – which in this case would be the traditional method.

Findings

The findings from this investigation, in conjunction with the observations from the

review of literature, concludes that the involvement of multimedia in content delivery positively

effects the subjects’ outcomes. As a common theme of young learners, multimedia is becoming a

part of their lives. Even before the global pandemic, tablets and computers were part of their

daily routines. After introducing that approach through education when forced to learn from

home, the push to keep it in some way when students returned to the classroom made sense.

However, the way it is used is very important, especially in a physical education class that pushes

for more activity and less screen-time.

In addition, student cognition in a physical education classroom can benefit from the

incorporation of multimedia in a mixed content delivery method, as proven from this

investigation. Traditional methods used in conjunction with multimedia enhancers can bring a

positive light to learning in the physical education class. It allows students to be motivated by

learning in a different way that is also of interest to them. This was observed in both the study at

hand and the review of literature dating back to 2001 when technology and multimedia aspects

were not as present in education, especially not in physical education classes.

However, another question arises when it comes to the learning and mastery of specific

psychomotor skills. Is the psychomotor domain affected in the same way as the cognitive domain

when it comes to content delivery? The review of literature did not see a significant change when

it came down to mastery or performance of a skill. In contrast, this study showed a significant

percentage increase in the multimedia group; despite that, when the numbers were compared
COMPARING THE MODALITY OF CONTENT DELIVERY METHODS 10

individually, the students did not perform well overall. It would be interesting to test this

question with larger group sizes, as well as a larger application size; for example, instead of ten

serves, like this study presented, use a large number.

Overall, this study can help gage how not only future physical education classes can be

conducted, but also how content areas can conduct delivery. When noted that this works for the

cognitive realm of learning, it can be taken outside of the stereotypical psychomotor part of

physical education. If multimedia content is appropriately selected and applied in conjunction, as

an enhancement, to traditional delivery, there may be an increase in students’ cognitive scores,

alongside an increase in overall student motivation.

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References

Choe, R., Scuric, Z., Eshkol, E., Cruser, S. , Arndt, A., Cox, R., Toma, S., Shapiro, C., Levis-
Fitzgerald, M., Barnes, G., & Crosbie, R., (2019). Student satisfaction and learning
outcomes in asynchronous online lecture videos. CBE – Life Sciences Education. 18(4).

Hung, H., Shwu-Ching Young, S., & Lin, K. (2018). Exploring the effects of integrating the iPad
to improve students’ motivation and badminton skills: A WISER model for physical
education. Technology, Pedagogy and Education, 27(3), 265-278.

McKethan, R., Everhart, B., & Sanders, R., (2001). The effects of multimedia software
instruction and lecture-based instruction on learning and teaching cues of manipulative
skills on preservice physical education teachers. Physical Educator. 58(1), 2-13.

Papastergiou, M., Pollatou, E., Theofylaktou, I., & Karadimou, K. (2014). Examining the
potential of web-based multimedia to support complex fine motor skill learning: An
empirical study. Education and Information Technology, 19(4), 817–839.

Vernadakis, N., Giannousi, M., Tsitskari, E., Antoniou, P., & Kioumourtzoglou, E. (2012). A
comparison of student satisfaction between traditional and blended technology course
offerings in physical education. Turkish Online Journal of Distance Education, 13(1),
137-147.