Mental models and effects of presentation and retrieval cue codality in multimedia learning

The cognitive processing of pictorial information in acquiring knowledge is one of the major topics in the present discussion about learning with multimedia. However, the availability of the knowledge acquired depending on different codalities of retrieval cues have been less examined. In two experimental two-group-studies with n(1) = 42 and n(2) = 40 participants, two variants of a multimedia training system, that differed in the codality of the learning material (picture vs. text), were compared. The acquisition of declarative knowledge which did not require mental model construction and the acquisition of procedural knowledge which demanded the use of mental models were tested by criterion-referenced tests. The procedural knowledge test was composed of two subtests, differing in the codality of test items (picture vs. text). As expected, the results show no differences in the acquisition of declarative knowledge. Concerning the acquisition of procedural knowledge, however, we found that pictorial presentation of information supported knowledge acquisition when test items were also presented in pictorial form. The results lead to the assumption that the effects of different information codalities on knowledge aquisition have to be considered as an effect of the interaction between presentation and retrieval cue codality.