Abstract:

Objectivised phenomenon in science education and their elements, revealed for students in the homogenised visual form, stimulate development of the Subject consciousness within the context of learning. Visualization also fosters learning motivation. It can give the sense of satisfaction due to the aesthetically transferred visible object. The motivation focuses the intentionality of consciousness of subjects due to internal or external motives for some appropriate activity, which can be productively applied within the process of development.

Research problem:
There is a lack of educational research based information about the effect of computer based visualization to students’ motivation of learning in Baltic Countries having in mind that EU funds supported lots of ICT integration projects and mostly all schools are modernized.
Research aim is to enclose the effect of computer based visualization on students’ motivation of learning in Biology, Chemistry, Physics, Geography and Mathematics.

Methodology:
The random independent sample was formed under the serial principle. Three inquires were organized according to the object analysis in various disciplines. 2708 students from 9-10 forms in Lithuania were interviewed, 728 from them expressed their attitude towards psycho-educational factors of applying visualization in Geography, 774 students expressed their attitude towards the same object in Mathematics and 1152 students – in science education subjects. The majority of respondents –15-16 years old students, dwelling in cities. More males if compared to females participated in the survey; however, with the high number of respondents it is believed that samples on aspects of gender and form are representative.

Data collection methods:
Questionnaire. Analysis methods for the survey data are two
1) descriptive statistics: Index of popularity, was applied to calculate ratings of variables;
2) analytical statistics: Mann‘o Whitney U-test was applied for the comparison of variables from two independent samples; the test is applied on two independent samples with abnormal distributions of variables (p < 0.05).

The results:
The highest popularity among Lithuanian students was observed in statement that visualization fosters to learn when many abstract things that are rendered both visually and verbally. Also, visible information restores images, observed in the past, activates the mental models and therefore students try to link the present with the past. Three quarters of students indicate that effect of the visual information –education becomes more interesting and respondents wish to get deeper into some particular topic and into the verbal information, also, motivates to concentrate. Over the half of respondents stress that visualisation encourages the wish to learn more about the disciplines, to participate in lessons actively and to learn new topics. It is also observed that students from Lithuanian comprehensive schools would find it more interesting to review topics and to look for information for new topics.

Under the effect of visual representations, females statistically significantly more than males think that topics of disciplines are more interesting, the greater wish to get deeper into topics and into the verbal information, as well to prepare the homework and to concentrate; they also cause the greater wish to learn something additionally about the science education.

Keywords:

Visualization, motivation, science education.