What is Cognitive Load Theory?

Total amount of mental energy required to process a given amount of information split between three elements

Intrinsic Load

Extraneous Load

Germane Load

Information processing requires a combination of access to long-term memory (unlimited) and working-memory (limited)

Cognitive overload then occurs when working memory capacity is exceeded by the combination of the three elements within a learning task

Intrinsic Cognitive Load

Mental effort exerted because of the way the task is organized, designed and presented

more complex the material, the greater effort dedicated to intrinsic cognitive load

Processes: selecting words, selecting images, organizing words, organizing images, and integrating.

Effort dedicated to intrinsic load also influenced by the learners expertise

Extraneous Cognitive Load

difficulty of the tobe-learned content Extraneous load is unnecessarily imposed by the design, and can be avoided with different design.

These efforts do not directly contribute to learning (schema construction)

Examples: Background music or animation unrelated to context such as Powerpoint transitions

Germane Cognitive Load

Mental effort exerted to process new information and integrate it into existing knowledge structures (schemas) Cognitive load theory sees the construction and subsequent automation of schemas as the main goal of learning

The construction of schemas involves: interpreting, exemplifying, classifying, inferring, differentiating, and organizing

The forms of cognition are additive

if intrinsic load is high, extraneous cognitive load must be lowered; if intrinsic load is low, a high extraneous load may be acceptable.

What is leftover is allocated to processing germane load

This delicate balance needs to be considered when planning tasks to avoid overload of working memory

CLT in Multimedia Learning

We have two working memory channels (visual & verbal)

Multimedia allows us to easily present information in visual and verbal formats, adding a dynamic to static visualizations

Growing demand for multimedia learning means learners have to deal with multiple representations, increasing the chances of cognitive load