The Effects Of Signal Cues And Prior Knowledge Levels On Learning Outcomes In Immersive Virtual Experiments

In the wake of the development of new technologies,the new generation of computer simulation technology represented by Virtual Reality(VR)is developing rapidly,and Virtual Reality is also known as the learning assistant of the 21 st century.A growing number of domestic and international studies have taken the application of virtual reality technology in the field of education as the selected topic,focusing on exploring the research of virtual reality in promoting teaching effectiveness and other aspects.Currently,the goal of virtual reality in education is how to enhance learners’ learning effectiveness,however,virtual reality learning resources are not yet fully relevant to teaching reality and subject knowledge,and there are problems such as ignoring students’ individual characteristics,which may cause negative effects such as cognitive overload on learners.As the visual stimuli presented in an immersive virtual experimental environment are more numerous and complex than traditional multimedia,there are higher demands on learners’ attentional guidance.An in-depth exploration of the guiding role of signal cues in immersive virtual reality environments can emphasise the organisational structure of information,make the relationships between elements clearer,and support learners’ cognitive processes by helping them to select relevant information;and at the same time develop individual characteristics of different types of learning resources suitable for learners with different personalised learning resources for learners with different levels of prior knowledge can help to meet a wider range of needs.On the other hand,the design of visual elements and task scenarios in immersive virtual experimental environments in conjunction with instructional design principles and learner characteristics can reduce cognitive load and enhance learners’ experience,which is of great significance in promoting the deep integration of virtual reality and education.This study designed an immersive virtual experiment based on signal cues and prior knowledge.By analysing the application of signal cues in virtual reality and the influence of prior knowledge on virtual learners,two types of visual cues that are more applicable in immersive virtual environments,namely text annotations and colour cues,were extracted,and a model of immersive virtual experiment integrating signal cues and prior knowledge was constructed,based on which an immersive virtual experiment scene with signal cues and prior knowledge was designed An immersive virtual experiment scenario with signal cues is designed based on this,while an immersive virtual experiment scenario without signal cues is designed without affecting the experiment content,and an immersive virtual experiment is developed based on the Unity 3D platform.This study applied an experimental research method to explore the effects of signal cues and learners’ prior knowledge on their learning outcomes in the immersive virtual experiment.The subjects were first divided into two types of learners,high and low a prior knowledge,using a pre-test questionnaire.40 subjects were recruited and four experimental groups were set up.A2-signal cue(signal cue,no signal cue)X 2 prior knowledge(high prior knowledge,low prior knowledge)intergroup design was used.Data analysis was conducted to discuss the effects of signal cues and a prior knowledge levels and the interaction effects of the two factors on learners’ learning outcomes.The study showed that(1)learners’ a prior knowledge levels significantly influenced learners’ learning outcomes,and learners with high a prior knowledge levels had significantly higher learning outcomes than learners with low a prior knowledge levels,but did not have significant effects on intrinsic motivation and cognitive load;(2)signal cues in the application of signal cues in the immersive virtual experiment environment did not have a significant effect on learners’ academic performance,intrinsic motivation and cognitive load;(3)the interaction effect between signal cues and prior knowledge level had a significant effect on learners’ cognitive load,but the interaction effect between the two did not have a significant effect on learners’ intrinsic motivation and academic performance.Through the experimental study,this paper concludes that(1)compared with nosignal cues,signal cues direct the attention of learners with low prior knowledge,effectively helping them to select relevant information and generating a lower cognitive load.providing signal cues,on the other hand,affects the thinking and cognitive processes of learners with high levels of prior knowledge,resulting in higher cognitive load during the learning process;(2)learners with low levels of prior knowledge benefit more from signal cues and when designing immersive virtual learning environments for novice learners,it is recommended that signal cues in the form of text annotations and colour changes are used to support learners and achieve better learning outcomes.learners with high levels of prior knowledge do not require additional signal cues to support learning and therefore the immersive virtual environment needs to be designed with individual learner differences in mind.This study extends the principles of multimedia design to the immersive virtual experiment environment and demonstrates empirically that signal cues have different effects on learners with high and low prior knowledge: for learners with low prior knowledge,multimedia design principles can be followed and signal cues that are highly relevant to the content and learner personality characteristics need to be added to reduce the cognitive load of learners and improve for learners with high a prior knowledge,the experimental scenarios and teaching strategies in the immersive virtual experiment design can be carefully designed without adding additional signal cues;meanwhile,the results of this study show that learners’ intrinsic motivation is high in the immersive virtual experiment environment,and most learners are willing to use immersive virtual reality technology to carry out experimental investigations,so further exploration of the use of immersive virtual reality technology in engineering experiments can be conducted.The results of this study showed that the majority of learners were willing to use immersive virtual reality to conduct experimental investigations.