Educational multimedia

“Tell me and I forget. Show me and I remember. Involve me and I understand.” This ancient proverb epitomises the concept on which multimedia education is founded i.e. learning is enhanced by stimulating multiple senses simultaneously. Research has revealed that humans have widely varying learning styles which are not catered for by conventional instruction [1]. As well as providing an effective form of training, using multimedia technology in education has many other benefits; learning is self-paced, information is easier to access, independent discovery-oriented learning is encouraged and learning becomes more engaging. In this paper we discuss the prototype eLearning system we developed based on several key principles of modern learning theory. The interactive music education programme we created was designed for 9-12 year olds and its content conformed to the Irish primary school music curriculum.