The 4C/ID Model Applied to the Electrical Circuits Learning

The main objective of this chapter is to present the empirical results of an experimental study carried out with 9th grade students for teaching electrical circuits. The experimental research took place during April and May 2013. In the study, the authors compared two instructional approaches (4C/ID versus conventional). Thus, the results obtained by two groups (experimental and control) on the variables ‘performance', ‘perceived mental effort', and ‘instructional efficiency' were compared. The results revealed that, globally, the experimental group obtained better performances, with less perceived mental effort (i.e., better instructional efficiency). These results were discussed in 4C/ID-model theoretical framework.