Comparative Effects of Video-Plus-Text Versus Text-Only Instructional Formats on Acquisition and Generalization of Concept Learning to Real Life Situations

Abstract

Although generalization from training to practice is one of the most important goals of education, generalization oftentimes does not occur spontaneously and deliberate planning is necessary. One way to enhance generalization to real-world settings is to build in similarities between training and test situations by including video in training. Although previous research has demonstrated that video materials are effective in teaching skills, few studies have shown that video materials can be used to teach concepts. This study compared the effects of traditional text-based training with training that incorporated text-and-video on acquisition and generalization of the concept of stimulus discrimination. The results showed that both text and video tutorials produced acquisition of the concept of stimulus discrimination but no differences between methods were found.