Linear and Non-Linear Hypertext in Elementary School Classroom Instruction.

This exploratory study was designed to introduce hypertext as a component of classroom instruction in a situation similar to that which might prevail in a public school setting. Linear and non-linear treatments of the same text were employed as an information source for a supplemental learning task prescribed by a teacher as part of classroom instruction. Participants were 80 4th grade students in an elementary school in a suburban school district. The students were grouped by experience with video game technology (high and low) in order to study the influence of that experience on their performance and satisfaction with the two hypertext versions of the learning task. The hypertext used in this study, the geological regions of Minnesota and their products, is related to, but does not duplicate, the content of a required fourth grade social studies unit. In the non-linear version, a hypertext web radiates from numerous graphic choice screens, which allows students at any point to select screens viewed earlier in the lesson, move on to new information, return to previous choice points, or quit the lesson. The linear versions presents all screens in a predetermined sequence, and only has options of continuing the sequence, reversing the sequence one screen at a time, or quitting. Performance was assessed by a student activity sheet, a delayed post-measure, and an attitude survey. No significant main effects or interactions were found for any of the dependent variables. A post hoc exploratory analysis revealed a significant main effect for gender on attitude toward lesson organization. Males found the lesson, regardless of treatment, more clearly organized than did females. (Contains 36 references.) (MAS)