Navigation in hypermedia learning systems: experts vs. novices

With the advancement of Web technology, hypermedia learning systems are becoming more widespread in educational settings. Hypermedia learning systems present course content with non-sequential formats, so students are required to develop learning paths by themselves. Yet, empirical evidence indicates that not all students can benefit from hypermedia learning. Research into individual differences suggests that prior knowledge has significant effects on student learning in hypermedia systems, with experts and novices showing different preferences to the use of hypermedia learning systems and requiring different levels of navigation support. It is therefore essential to develop a mechanism to help designers understand the needs of experts and novices. To address this issue, this paper presents a framework to illustrate the needs of students with different levels of prior knowledge by analyzing the findings of previous research. The overall aim of this framework is to integrate students' prior knowledge into the design of hypermedia, learning systems. Finally, implications for the design of hypermedia learning systems are discussed. (c) 2004 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.