Related Experiment Video
Updated: Aug 31, 2025
10:26
Problem-Solving Before Instruction PS-I: A Protocol for Assessment and Intervention in Students with Different Abilities
Published on: September 11, 2021
4.0K
Investigating Students' Answering Behaviors in a Computer-Based Mathematics Algebra Test: A Cognitive-Load
Jing-Fong Wang1,2, Tzu-Hua Wang1,2, Chao-Hsien Huang1
1Department of Education and Learning Technology, National Tsing Hua University, Hsinchu 300193, Taiwan.
Behavioral Sciences (Basel, Switzerland)
|August 25, 2022
Summary
Computer-based algebra tests increase cognitive load with higher element interactivity. Practice significantly reduces this load, benefiting high-efficiency students, though low-efficiency students may need more computer-based testing experience.
Area of Science:
- Educational Technology
- Cognitive Psychology
- Mathematics Education
Background:
- Computer-based testing (CBT) is increasingly used for evaluating mathematics learning.
- Algebra problems present a high cognitive load due to multi-step calculations, potentially impacting CBT performance.
- Understanding cognitive load in CBT algebra assessments is crucial for effective evaluation.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate students' cognitive load during computer-based algebra testing.
- To examine the influence of element interactivity, practice effect, and individual differences on cognitive load.
Main Methods:
- Developed seven levels of algebra exam questions using unary and simultaneous linear equations.
- Measured cognitive load using inverse efficiency scores in a computer-based testing environment.
- Tested forty undergraduate and graduate students.
Main Results:
- Cognitive load increased with higher element interactivity of test materials.
- High-efficiency students exhibited lower cognitive load than low-efficiency students.
- Practice effect significantly reduced cognitive load, especially for advanced items (levels 6-7).
Conclusions:
- Element interactivity is a key factor influencing cognitive load in CBT algebra.
- Student efficiency impacts cognitive load; high-efficiency students are advantaged in CBT.
- Practice is vital for reducing cognitive load, and low-efficiency students may need more CBT experience to bridge performance gaps.
Keywords:
cognitive loadcomputer-based testingelement interactivityindividual differencesmathematics algebra questionspractice effectMore Related Videos
Related Concept Videos
02:16Surveys
15.2K
Often, psychologists develop surveys as a means of gathering data. Surveys are lists of questions to be answered by research participants, and can be delivered as paper-and-pencil questionnaires, administered electronically, or conducted verbally. Generally, the survey itself can be completed in a short time, and the ease of administering a survey makes it easy to collect data from a large number of people.
15.2K
01:26Metacognition
264
Metacognition is a conscious process where individuals are aware of their cognitive and executive processes, such as planning before solving a problem or self-monitoring during reading. For instance, a writer may need help with composing a piece. The situation involves a writer who is working on a piece of writing, but while doing so, they realize that something is missing. They notice that their characters lack depth or details. This realization occurs because the writer is reflecting on their...
264
01:37Social Loafing
35.6K
Another way in which a group presence can affect performance is social loafing—the exertion of less effort by a person working together with a group. Social loafing occurs when our individual performance cannot be evaluated separately from the group. Thus, group performance declines on easy tasks (Karau & Williams, 1993). Essentially individual group members loaf and let other group members pick up the slack. Because each individual’s efforts cannot be evaluated,...
35.6K