Syllabus Design Research

During our recess, perhaps some of us are thinking about the next term, so I would like to share research on "The Effects of Syllabus Design on Course Information Retention." The author used the cognitive theory of multimedia learning to explore the effect of a multimodal information delivery method (infographic) on the retention of information. A quasi-experimental approach was used where the control group received only the traditional text-based syllabus, and the two experimental groups received an infographic addendum along with the traditional text-based syllabus. First semester freshman students were tested at three and ten weeks.

ANOVA tests and correlational analysis was conducted to answer:

1) does syllabus design impact the retention of course info - 3 weeks, no significant difference (p=.176); 10 weeks, statistical significance (p= .044)

2) do demographics impact course info retention - NO significant difference

3) does prior academic preparation impact retention of course info - statistically significant for high school GPA. Both 3 and 10 weeks are significant (p = .024 & .050)

4) do graphics impact course info retention - 3 weeks, NO significant difference (p=.092), although the mean score for both groups that received the infographic addendum was higher; for 10 weeks, statistical significance (p = .028)

5) does color impact course info retention - 3 or 10 weeks, NO significant difference.

Mocek, E. (2016). The effects of syllabus design on course information retention by at-risk first semester college students. Theses and Dissertations. https://knowledge.library.iup.edu/etd/1368