ED-MEDIA 1999 Proceedings Book - Association for the ...

Multimedia for Kids
Antonio R. Bartolomé
University of Barcelona, Spain
bartolom@doe.d5.ub.es
Karl Steffens
University of Koeln , Germany
karl.steffens@rs1.rrz.uni-koeln.de
"Multimedia for Kids" ("Mediakids") is a project of research and development in the field of multimedia design
and production, funded by “Eductional Multimedia Joint Call” from the European Commission, with the
participation of 5 universities, 4 schools and 2 private companies of 6 European countries. The project began in
September 1998, and will last for is 2 years. This is a short description of this project and its main distinctive
items.
1. Objectives and basic description
Research on educational multimedia shows that there are a number of key aspects that in general receive little
attention. To these, we want to pay particular interest:
. The fit of multimedia programs to the curriculum.
. Individual differences between teachers.
. Cultural differences.
. The level of participation of end-users in the development process.
. The consideration of metacognitive and non-cognitive dimensions in learning.
. The integration of CD-ROM multimedia material and Internet based material into instructional processes.
The project will evaluate the design, development and integration of multimedia materials into instruction
processes through two parallel conceptions. The objective of the research is not to compare both ones but to
analyze how end users participation in design and production process affects the final integration of products,
and how two different multimedia designs could be integrated in actual educational environments.
"Geometry for Kids" is a CD-ROM multimedia program, with Internet based communication elements, in an
open -modular, flexible, interchangeable- design, to be developed by software companies but with participation
of end-users -students and teachers- during the production process, and in a context of a methodological
approach that takes into consideration the national and individual differences between countries, schools and
teachers, as well as the metacognitive and non-cognitive aspects of learning.
"As we were" is a Internet multimedia environment -the history of childhood in Europe- with some CD-ROM
based resources. This environment affords a high level of communication of schools involved either at national
or European level. The environment is composed of elements and tools as well as methodological suggestions
that teacher and students could integrate freely into their own curricular design. The CD-ROM offers multimedia
elements -e.g. tools, samples as designs, video sequences, and sounds- compiled by schools that participate in
the project.
Our evaluative research will aim at clarifying if these proposals answer schools needs and, at the same time, how
they will offer possibilities of being developed in an cost-efficiency way in an open market.
This is a complex and important project, funded with half a million of dollars. There are other lines of research
as well. One linked to pedagogical research is to develop solutions that try to apply to commercial products the
results of recent research about learning and related metacognitive aspects.