Students received an online multimedia lesson on how a solar cell works that consisted of 11 narrated
slides with a script of 800 words. Concerning instructional media, students received the lesson on a desktop
computer (i.e., iMac) in a lab or on a mobile device (i.e., iPad) in a courtyard. Concerning instructional
method, students received a continuous lesson with no headings (standard method) or a segmented lesson
in which the learner clicked on a button to go onto the next slide with each slide having a heading
corresponding to the key idea in the script for the slide (enhanced method). Across both media, the
enhanced group outperformed the standard group on a transfer test (d = .67), yielding a method effect
on learning outcomes for both desktop and mobile media. Across both methods, the mobile group produced
stronger ratings than the desktop group on self-reported willingness to continue learning
(d = .60), yielding a media effect on motivational ratings for both standard and enhanced methods. Effective
instructional methods can improve learning outcomes across different media, whereas using handheld
instructional media may increase students’ willingness to continue to engage in learning.
2012 Elsevier Ltd. All rights re