Recent studies demonstrate that colours could attract attention, improve concentration and readability, as well as enhance information recall. Although colour design is essential in education, more scientific research is needed to examine the optical colours for instructional materials. This project encompasses a focus group, pre-experiments, and main experiments to understand the effects of colours on human comprehension in digital learning environments. Forty participants completed a comprehension ability test with 16 questions displayed on eight different background colours: red, orange, yellow, green, blue, purple, grey, and black. Note that to ensure consistent contrast between foreground and background colour, grey fonts were used for the black background and black fonts for the other seven colours. It also assessed the different colour materials' preferences, readability, and legibility. The study found that native English speakers performed better in the tests with grey and red background colours, with higher correction rates and shorter response times for the two colour conditions. There were significant differences in the evaluation scores between grey and black backgrounds, which have black and grey foreground colours, respectively. On the other hand, the colours did not significantly affect non-native English speakers' comprehension ability. However, the two groups had no significant differences in the subjective preference assessment, legibility, and readability. This study suggests that people's cognitive performance may improve under light background and dark foreground colour combinations. Also, learners’ preferred colours may not lead to a better understanding of text-based information. Educators, instructional designers, and developers of digital educational materials can benefit from these insights to enhance digital learning experiences by optimising the integration of colour and addressing the impact of language proficiency.
CORE (COnnecting REpositories)
CORE (COnnecting REpositories)