This video explains the three types of loads in Cognitive Load Theory – Intrinsic, Extraneous, and Germane. This week, we will focus on the intrinsic cognitive load.
Intrinsic Cognitive Load
Some tasks are more challenging to master than others, which may result in an intrinsic cognitive load. Working memory ability in students is put under stress by intrinsic cognitive load (Mayer, 2009). There are a lot of examples in our day-to-day studies. For instance, as a student majoring in economics, Econ 313 (Intermediate Microeconomics II) is much more difficult than Econ 103 (Principles of Microeconomics). This kind of cognitive load cannot be reduced without also reducing learning because it depends on the material to be learned. According to John Sweller (Sweller et al., 2011), the intrinsic cognitive load “can only be altered by changing the nature of what is learned or by the act of learning itself”.
There are three principles related to the Intrinsic Cognitive Load. By understanding and applying these principles of multimedia teaching and learning, new knowledge can be absorbed more effectively and less easily forgotten over time.
Segmenting Principle
When a multimedia message is delivered in user-paced segments as opposed to one continuous piece, people learn more effectively. The example that comes to my mind the clearest is how to write a research paper. Students usually find it challenging to meet the word requirements while maintaining a high standard of writing when writing an academic paper. The process can be divided into different steps, each of which makes the process easier.
- Choosing the subject
- Collecting information
- Evaluating materials
- Organizing ideas
- Writing the paper
Pretraining Principle
When the foundational ideas for a multimedia message have been established, people learn more deeply from it. In the Econ 313 course I mentioned before, it is much simpler for students to put concepts together and learn more complex topics, once they have a foundational understanding of microeconomics from an earlier course.
Modality Principle
Compared to pictures and printed words, people learn more deeply from images and spoken words. I use the photo below to explain.
References
Mayer, R. E. (2009). Multimedia learning (2nd ed.). Cambridge, England: Cambridge University Press.
Sweller, J., Ayres, P., & Kalyuga, S. (2011). Cognitive Load Theory. Springer New York. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4419-8126-4
Bruce Song
2022-09-25 — 3:51 pm
Hi shone, first of all, great video explaining the intrisic load. I really like how you gave exmaples to separte how intrisic load is different and can not be reduced without reducing learning. Apart of that, it was really great that you gave three principles in how to help to reduced the learning workload, and shown in details how to encourage these principles in learning. These details are clear and concise, and in the modality principle you have included and image to help the readers to understand it better, it really seems like you have incorporated what we learned in class and put in the blog.
chuhesong
2022-09-25 — 3:54 pm
Hi shone, first of all, great video explaining the intrinsic load. I really like how you gave examples to separate how intrinsic load is different and can not be reduced without reducing learning. Apart of that, it was really great that you gave three principles in how to help to reduced the learning workload, and shown in details how to encourage these principles in learning. These details are clear and concise, and in the modality principle you have included and image to help the readers to understand it better, it really seems like you have incorporated what we learned in class and put in the blog.