ORIGINAL RESEARCH article
Front. Educ.
Sec. STEM Education
Volume 10 - 2025 | doi: 10.3389/feduc.2025.1568406
This article is part of the Research TopicEmpowerment Through Education Innovative Interventions for Higher Education StudentsView all 15 articles
Using Multimedia Hints to Facilitate Conceptual Problem Solving in Physics: Investigating the Effect of Multiple Modalities
Provisionally accepted
- 1University of Connecticut, Storrs, United States
- 2Northwestern University, Evanston, Illinois, United States
- 3Educational Testing Service, Princeton, New Jersey, United States
- 4Kansas State University, Manhattan, Kansas, United States
- 5Purdue University, West Lafayette, Indiana, United States
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Previous research has shown that graphical hints can improve learners' problem-solving performance on conceptual physics problems. In this study, we examine the effects of graphical, typographic, and vocal hints, as well as all possible combinations thereof. A total of 162 participants from a conceptual physics class were recruited for individual interviews, during which they solved four sets of problems. Each set included an initial problem, six training problems, one near transfer problem, and one far transfer problem. Using a 2 (graphical hint/no graphical hint) × 2 (typographic hint/no typographic hint) × 2 (vocal hint/no vocal hint) between-participant quasi-experimental design, we investigated the effects of hint modalities on problem-solving performance. Paired-sample t-tests showed significant performance improvements from pretest to both near and far transfer problems, indicating that working through isomorphic problems with hints can support learning. Results also revealed that graphical hints were more effective than typographic or vocal hints in solving training problems. Presenting typographic and vocal hints together resulted in worse performance than presenting each modality alone, contradicting to auditory superiority effect. Based on these findings, we provide design recommendations for multimedia instructional materials, emphasizing the effectiveness of visual hints and the careful integration of multiple modalities.
Keywords: Physics, problem-solving, multimedia hints, auditory superiority effect, modality
Received: 12 Feb 2025; Accepted: 28 Apr 2025.
Copyright: © 2025 Wu, Li, Zu, Hutson, Loschky and Rebello. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.
* Correspondence: Xian Wu, University of Connecticut, Storrs, United States
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