Instructors of psychology typically use a variety of methods to teach concepts. The present double-blind experiment is intended to determine the effectiveness of popular television clips as exemplars of Piagetian concepts compared to verbal descriptions of the same exemplars among a sample of 86 undergraduate students enrolled in an introductory psychology course in a US college. Results indicated an advantage in learning the concept of conservation at follow-up stage for students exposed to the popular television exemplars, but there were no differences in overall learning at initial assessment, or on the three other Piagetian concepts.
References
1.
AlexanderM., & WaxmanD. (2000). Cinemeducation: Teaching family systems through the movies. Families, Systems, & Health, 18(4), 455–466. http://dx.doi.org/10.1037/h0091869
BaduraA. S. (2002). Capturing students' attention: Movie clips set the stage for learning in abnormal psychology. Teaching of Psychology, 29, 58–60.
4.
ChristopherA. N.WalterJ. L.MarekP., & KoenigC. S. (2004). Using a ‘new classic’ film to teach about stereotyping and prejudice. Teaching of Psychology, 31, 199–202.
5.
ClarkJ. M., & PaivioA. (1991). Dual coding theory and education. Educational Psychology Review, 3(3), 149–210. http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/BF01320076
6.
CurchL. M. (2010). Using prime-time animation to engage students in courses on aging. Gerontology & Geriatrics Education, 31(4), 361–382. http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/02701960.2010.528276
7.
EatonJ., & UskulA. K. (2004). Using The Simpsons to teach social psychology. Teaching of Psychology, 31, 277–278.
8.
GruberH. E., & VonecheJ. J. (Eds.). (1977). The Essential Piaget. New York: Basic Books.
9.
HesleyJ. W., & HesleyJ. G. (1998). Rent two films and let's talk in the morning: Using popular movies in psychotherapy. Hoboken, NJ: John Wiley.
KrappA.HidiS., & RenningerK. A. (1992). Interest, learning, and development. In RenningerK. A.HidiS., & KrappA. (Eds.). The role of interest in learning and development (pp. 3–25). Hillsdale, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum.
12.
LilienfeldS. O.LynnS. J.NamyL. L., & WoolfN. J. (2011). Psychology: From inquiry to understanding (2nd ed.). Boston, MA: Pearson.
13.
McNeillyD. P., & WengelS. P. (2001). The ‘ER’ seminar: Teaching psychotherapeutic techniques to medical students. Academic Psychiatry, 25, 193–200. http://dx.doi.org/10.1176/appi.ap.25.4.193
14.
MorenoR., & Ortegano-LayneL. (2008). Do classroom exemplars promote the application of principles in teaching education? A comparison of videos, animations, and narratives. Educational Technology, Research and Development, 56(4), 449–465. http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s11423-006-9027-0
15.
MorenoR., & ValdezA. (2007). Immediate and delayed effects of using a classroom case exemplar in teacher education: The role of presentation format. Journal of Educational Psychology, 99, 194–206. http://dx.doi.org/10.1037/0022-0663.99.1.194
MyersD. G. (2010). Psychology (9th ed.). New York: Worth.
18.
PaddockJ. R.TerranovaS., & GilesL. (2001). SASB goes Hollywood: Teaching personality theories through movies. Teaching of Psychology, 28, 117–121. http://dx.doi.org/10.1207/S15328023TOP2802_11
19.
PaivioA. (1975). Coding distinctions and repetitions effects in memory. In BruerG. H. (Ed.), The psychology of learning and motivation (Vol. 9, pp. 179–214). New York: Academic Press.
20.
PekrunR.GoetzT.TitzW., & PerryR. P. (2002). Academic emotions in students' self-regulated learning and achievement: A program of quantitative and qualitative research. Educational Psychologist, 37, 91–106. http://dx.doi.org/10.1207/S15326985EP3702_4
21.
PoonatiS., & AmadioD. (2010). Use of popular television to enhance students' understanding of operant conditioning. Psychology Learning & Teaching, 9(1), 25–29. http://dx.doi.org/10.2304/plat.2010.9.1.25
22.
ScanlanJ. T., & FeinbergS. L. (2000). The cartoon society: Using The Simpsons to teach and learn sociology. Teaching Sociology, 28(2), 127–139. http://dx.doi.org/10.2307/1319260
