DEVELOPMENT OF BAR CODE INSTRUCTIONAL MATERIALS USING SCANNER LINKED COMPUTER-ASSISTED INSTRUCTION (AUTOMATIC IDENTIFICATION)
Abstract
Bar coding has emerged as a leader in the field of automated data entry. Due to the newness and general wide acceptance of bar coding within industry, instructional materials needed to be developed and tested to meet educational needs. This study was conducted in order to design, develop, and test a computer-assisted instruction (CAI) bar code tutorial linked with a bar code scanner. In order to test the tutorial a programmed instruction (PI) booklet was developed for comparison in an instructional setting. The research was designed to study learning outcomes, time-on-task, retention, and attitudes toward computers and bar code technology based on treatment of subjects. This research used a posttest-only true experiment in which students in a Purdue University Industrial Technology course were randomly assigned to a CAI or PI treatment. An achievement test was administered after instruction to measure initial learning levels. Time was measured by a proctor for the PI group and by the computer for the CAI group. Attitudes were measured using an opinionniare test. Two weeks after the treatment retention was measured with another achievement examination. One way analysis of variance (ANOVA) with an associated F ratio was the statistical method used for analyzing differences between groups with respect to time, initial learning, and retention. F ratios showed no significant difference (alpha = .05) between the treatment groups with respect to time, retention, and initial learning. With respect to attitude measurement of students toward bar code technology and computer use a chi square statistic for ordinal data was computed using a median test. There was a significantly more positive attitude in the CAI group (p < .05**) toward bar code technology than in the PI group. There was no significant difference between groups with respect to attitude toward computer use. It is recommended that educational institutions and industrial organizations use the bar code tutorial as a foundation for training and learning. It is further recommended that additional development of bar code instructional materials be conducted to meet each specific industry bar code technology knowledge needs.
Degree
Ph.D.
Subject Area
Industrial engineering
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