Learning Retention of Computer Simulation Software Assisted Technical Instruction

[[abstract]]The purpose of this study was to investigate the learning and retention effect of computer simulation software assisted technical instruction. Two softwares, the Toolkit for Interactive Network Analysis Professional Edition (TINA Pro) and the Digital Breadboard, both of which are believed to be effective skill instruction assists, were selected and applied to students’ study of digital logic circuit in the course of Practice of Electronic Circuit as experimental teaching. The subjects of the experimental teaching were all of the 2nd grade students in the Department of Control Engineering, Taipei Municipal Nei-Hu Vocational Industrial School, totaling 104 students. They were divided into three groups. The Traditional group (TRA group) received “traditional instruction,” the TINA group received the TINA Pro assisted technical instruction, and the DB group received the Digital Breadboard assisted technical instruction in their study of digital electronic technique. The teaching units in the course contents were the same for all the three groups, and all the students were required to practice circuit design and operation on the breadboard. After each teaching unit was done, a performance test was given to all the students, and after that three further tests were given to all the students with an interval of 14 days between tests for the purpose of testing students’ cognition and skill retention after learning. The results of the tests were then used to analyze differences of learning effect and feedbacks as seen existing among the groups after receiving different learning methods. The following conclusion was drawn following the four-month experimental teaching period. 1. Among the three different groups, the group using the TINA Pro assisted technical instruction achieved significantly higher cognition learning results than the group using “traditional teaching material” in all tests out of the four administered in different times; however, out of the four tests, the group using the TINA Pro assisted technical instruction achieved significantly higher skill learning results in 1st. test and 4th. test , thus confirming that the TINA Pro assisted instruction is helpful to students’ skill learning, especially in the area of cognition learning. 2. In a 11-facet learning satisfaction questionnaire survey, the students receiving TINA Pro assisted technical instruction expressed significantly higher satisfaction in teaching material design than did the students receiving “traditional instruction,” while the students receiving TINA Pro assisted technical instruction expressed significantly higher satisfaction in the difficulty/ease level of the teaching material than did the students either receiving the “traditional instruction” or the Digital Breadboard software assisted technical instruction. No significant differences were found in the other nine facets of the same satisfaction questionnaire survey between students receiving computer simulation software assisted technical instruction, including the TINA Pro and the Digital Breadboard, and students receiving “traditional instruction.” 3. In three learning retention pop quizzes administered in three different times, no significant differences in cognition retention were found between the students receiving computer simulation software assisted instruction, including the TINA Pro and the Digital Breadboard, and the students receiving “traditional teaching.” The cognition retention rate of each group in each of the three tests was smaller than 1, which corresponded to the characteristic of forgetfulness. In skill retention, the significant differences were found in the test administered 14 days and 42 days after the experimental course was over, in which the students receiving “traditional instruction” and the students receiving the Digital Breadboard assisted technical instruction achieved significant better scores than did the students receiving the TINA Pro assisted technical instruction. In the other test, no significant difference in skill retention was found among the groups.