Effects of a multi-level concept mapping-based question-posing approach on students' ubiquitous learning performance and perceptions

The literature indicates that the use of mobile devices, wireless communication and sensing techniques can enhance students' learning in authentic environments and improve their learning effectiveness. Good learning strategy guides are essential for successful inquiry learning, and the question-posing strategy has been acknowledged as a type of high-level cognitive strategy that plays an important role in facilitating students' knowledge integration in the inquiry learning process. However, question posing seems challenging for many students and may lead to heavy cognitive load when appropriate scaffolding is not available. To solve this problem, the present research imported a concept mapping knowledge representation model as an auxiliary strategy for question-posing activities based on the research finding that visual knowledge representations are conducive to high-order thinking. It also developed a ubiquitous learning system which integrated multilevel concept mapping and question-posing strategy guidance to investigate the application effects of this learning model. A quasi-experimental design was applied, and an experiment was conducted to measure 5th graders' learning of a plant unit of the natural science curriculum. Students in the experimental group learned with the proposed ubiquitous learning system based on the multilevel concept mapping and question-posing approach, while those in the control group learned with the ubiquitous learning system based on the question-posing approach. The results showed that the students in the experimental group significantly outperformed those in the control group from the perspectives of learning achievement and question-posing performance, but no significance was found in their cognitive load, meta-cognitive awareness, and science learning strategies.