Good and Bad Examples of Instructional Tools
The following example aligns with the following Virginia 4th Grade Science SOL:
Force, Motion, and Energy
4.2 The student will investigate and understand characteristics and interactions of
moving objects. Key concepts include:
d) moving objects have kinetic energy.
The following is a BAD example of presented content:
Force, Motion, and Energy
4.2 The student will investigate and understand characteristics and interactions of
moving objects. Key concepts include:
d) moving objects have kinetic energy.
The following is a BAD example of presented content:
The following is an example of a GOOD presentation of content:
,Reflection: Comparing the Good vs. Bad Examples:
As educators, we must keep in mind that the connections our students make between pictures and verbal cues are both meaningful and limited in capacity. We often put our students into “overload” mode when we throw excess information at them all day long. Instead, we must strive for “meaningful learning” as Mayer and Moreno characterize as “deep understanding of the material”, all while considering the cognitive load that can be handled by the brain (Mayer and Moreno, 2003).
When comparing the above example of “good” and “bad” to present the concept, the Nine Ways to Reduce Cognitive Load can be found. We first see an example of the scenario in which essential processing of extraneous material and incidental processing being larger that cognitive capacity. The slides in the bad example have excess wording and provide students no background knowledge. If slides were presented to students in this form, they would surely be “lost” before you even began. Just looking at the screen of “words” overloads the visual channel. Instead, the good example presents these key content ideas by weeding out extraneous use of wording and instead using few graphics to spark ideas and discussion by students. Providing more visuals vs. words also provides cues to signal new material and eliminate the processing of excess information.
Further, the “bad” example also exhibits the use of essential processing and representational holding being greater than the cognitive ability of students. The bulleted listed of phrases, words, definitions, etc. are overloaded in their working memory to process this information. Instead, using the visuals as an aide, the instructor can provide the students with a synchronization in which students can process visuals presented while being provided with a narration that correspond to what the students are seeing. This will allow for spatial learners to transfer the information instantaneously rather than sequentially.
As educators, we must keep in mind that the connections our students make between pictures and verbal cues are both meaningful and limited in capacity. We often put our students into “overload” mode when we throw excess information at them all day long. Instead, we must strive for “meaningful learning” as Mayer and Moreno characterize as “deep understanding of the material”, all while considering the cognitive load that can be handled by the brain (Mayer and Moreno, 2003).
When comparing the above example of “good” and “bad” to present the concept, the Nine Ways to Reduce Cognitive Load can be found. We first see an example of the scenario in which essential processing of extraneous material and incidental processing being larger that cognitive capacity. The slides in the bad example have excess wording and provide students no background knowledge. If slides were presented to students in this form, they would surely be “lost” before you even began. Just looking at the screen of “words” overloads the visual channel. Instead, the good example presents these key content ideas by weeding out extraneous use of wording and instead using few graphics to spark ideas and discussion by students. Providing more visuals vs. words also provides cues to signal new material and eliminate the processing of excess information.
Further, the “bad” example also exhibits the use of essential processing and representational holding being greater than the cognitive ability of students. The bulleted listed of phrases, words, definitions, etc. are overloaded in their working memory to process this information. Instead, using the visuals as an aide, the instructor can provide the students with a synchronization in which students can process visuals presented while being provided with a narration that correspond to what the students are seeing. This will allow for spatial learners to transfer the information instantaneously rather than sequentially.