Shapiro, A., & Niederhauser, D. (2004). Learning from hypertext: Research issues and findings. In D. H. Jonassen (Ed), Handbook of Research for Educational Communications and Technology (pp. 605-620). New York: Macmillan.
Shapiro et al. (2004) provide an overview of research issues in hypertext assisted learning (HAL). The overview of research includes the theoretical underpinnings, the practical matters of reading and learning from hypertext, including metacognitive processes and the role of conceptual structure of hypertexts in relationship to human memory construction. A lot of space is devoted to providing an overview of the effect of system structures on learning. Learning structures are discussed in terms of information structures that function in a hierarchy -lets the reader go back and forth between the original text and more information – versus the unstructured hypertext structures that rely on user choice to help in creating meaning. Well-defined structures are best for learners when they have little or no prior knowledge on a subject. Ill-defined structures are better for learners who have more prior knowledge on a subject; however, just because a student is advanced does not mean they will automatically apply themselves to learning in an unstructured hypertext learning task. Learner variables are also discussed as related to the effectiveness of HAL; students who have more prior knowledge can engage at a higher level with HAL. The reading patterns of the learner also impact success with HAL; the purpose of reading influences how students interact with the text. For example, if students have a very specific goal for reading, they will make better connections with and between the material than those reading without scope. The HAL research is also problematic because there is not a unifying theoretical underpinning to this field of study, no coherence in methodological approach, lack of a precise language for discussing HAL. The lack of published research on the topic makes it hard to see HAL as a powerful learning tool and more research needs to be done.
Shapiro et al. present a very cohesive and well catalogued literature review of HAL research. The headers and sub headers make it very clear and easy to follow the connections from the research to their own assertions about the state of the field of HAL research. Additionally, each heading has its own conclusion which neatly and succinctly ties the literature reviewed together. This makes it very easy to see the way the conclusions were drawn from the literature. The critiques made of the lack of cohesiveness are shown to the readers of this article and all ideas expressed are very concrete and connected to specific studies that had been conducted up until that point. I would also argue that this piece brings some of the cohesiveness to the field of study of HAL that Shapiro et al. say the field is lacking. By drawing these specific pieces of literature under the umbrella of this literature review, they are pulling together the early studies that are the seeds of the field of research into HAL.
As a doctoral student, I find this article compelling on two fronts. First, I see this as a model/exemplar of how to construct a literature review that supports making claims and assertions on a topic. It is also a very great example of how to pull from the literature to locate and discuss gaps to pinpoint where a valuable research question may be lying in wait for a researcher to expand on the topic. I also find this notion of trying to pull a field together interesting. Shapiro et al. see that there is an emerging field on HAL based on hypertexts and the uses in practice that emerge from the literature – but pulling it all together so the field has value is a significant task. Someone has to be the one to ask these questions. I’ve read a lot of educational scholarship, and it’s the first time I have come across a call like this from the field. And having done research on this topic in the last 5 years, I see there is more scholarship on the topic, but I’m not sure if it’s any more cohesive than what was described in this article as it hadn’t occurred to me to pay attention to that kind of organization across a field before this article.
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