Instructors' Gestural Accuracy Affects Geology Learning in Interaction with Students' Spatial Skills

Area of Science:

• STEM Education
• Structural Geology
• Cognitive Science

Background:

• Complex STEM concepts are often taught using iconic gestures.
• Previous research suggested a link between gesturing and expertise, but was largely correlational.
• Concerns exist regarding the accuracy of instructional gestures.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the presence and impact of inaccurate instructional gestures in STEM.
• To examine the effect of accurate versus inaccurate gestures on learning structural geology concepts.
• To explore the role of spatial perception skills in gestural learning.

Main Methods:

• Study 1: Analyzed gestures of novices and experts explaining geological strike.
• Study 2: Assigned novices to watch videos with accurate, inaccurate, or no gestures for learning strike.
• Assessed learning via a strike-mapping task and considered spatial perception skills.

Main Results:

• Inaccurate strike gestures were observed in both novices and geology experts.
• Novices with high spatial perception performed worse with inaccurate gestures.
• Accurate gestures did not benefit high spatial perception learners, while inaccurate ones harmed them.

Conclusions:

• Instructional gestures must be accurate to be effective.
• Recommendations for gesture use in STEM instruction should prioritize accuracy.
• Professional development is crucial to mitigate inaccurate gesture use in education.