The Effect of Visual Cueing in 3D Animations for Learning Procedural-manipulative Tasks: From the Perspective of Cognitive Load Theory

Applying 3D virtual environment to educational field has great possibilities. Especially, 3D instructions could be very helpful when learning procedural-manipulative tasks with high-risk of accidents (e.g., brain surgery). To find the most effective way to present information in 3D virtual environment, this study examined the effect of visual cueing in 3D instructional animation, from the perspective of cognitive load theory. In this study, a between subjects experiment was conducted. The results showed that the two different types of visual cueing (both anticipatory and trajectory) have marginally significant effect on learning performance (accuracy score). Finally, this study suggested some design strategies to improve the effectiveness of 3D instructional animations.