The effect of color-coding on students' perception of learning in introductory mechanics

TL;DR

This study investigates how different color-coding schemes in physics instruction influence students' perceptions and learning, finding generally positive attitudes and specific benefits in understanding related and distinct information.

Contribution

The paper introduces three novel color-coding schemes for physics instruction and evaluates their impact on student perception and comprehension.

Findings

40% of students found color helpful for connecting related information

Students favored color use in mathematics and variable identification

Minor implementation issues can address negative feedback

Abstract

We designed three color-coding schemes to identify related information across representations and to differentiate distinct information within a representation in slide-based instruction for calculus-based introductory mechanics. We found that students had generally favorable opinions on the use of color and that the few negative criticisms are easily addressed through minor modifications to implementation. Without having the color-coding schemes pointed out to them, a modest but consistent minority of students who found color helpful also described the color-coding schemes implemented, and about a quarter described the use of color in physics contexts as helpful even if they did not describe color-coding. We found that students particularly favored using color in mathematics and color-coding used to identify related variables, verbal definitions, and diagram elements. We additionally found that on average 40% of students found color to be helpful in matching and connecting related information or in separating and distinguishing distinct information, which were the motivating reasons for employing the color-coding schemes.