Cognitive Theory of Multimedia Learning

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Cognitive Theory of Multimedia Learning
MOHAMED ZAMRI BIN MOHD ZAIN INSTRUCTIONAL DESIGN
AND DELIVERY MASTER OF INSTRUCTIONAL MULTIMEDIA
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Richard E Mayer

• Professor of Psychology at the University of
  California, Santa Barbara (UCSB) since 1975.
• Ph.D. in Psychology from the University of
  Michigan in 1973
• Visiting Assistant Professor of Psychology at
  Indiana University from 1973 to 1975.
• Recipient of the E. L. Thorndike Award for career
  achievement in educational psychology in 2000
• Winner of Distinguished Contribution of
  Applications of Psychology to Education and
  Training Award from the American Psychological
  Association 2008.

INTRODUCTION
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Research Interest
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• Dr. Mayer's research concerns the intersection of
  cognition, instruction, and technology,
  including
• multimedia learning
• mathematical problem solving
• human-computer interaction

"How can we help people learn in ways that allow
them to use what they have learned to solve new
problems that they have never seen before?"
INTRODUCTION
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Publications
Author of more than 390 publications including 23
books, such as Multimedia Learning Second
Edition (2009), Learning and Instruction Second
Edition (2008), E-Learning and the Science of
Instruction Second Edition (with R. Clark,
2008), and the Cambridge Handbook of Multimedia
Learning (editor, 2005).
INTRODUCTION
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Cognitive Theory of Multimedia Learning

• Based on three main assumptions
• there are two separate channels (auditory and
  visual) for processing information
• there is limited channel capacity and
• that learning is an active process of filtering,
  selecting, organizing, and integrating
  information.

THEORY
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Basic Principles
Brain does not interpret a multimedia
presentation of words, pictures, and auditory
information in a mutually exclusive fashion
rather, these elements are selected and organized
dynamically to produce logical mental constructs.
multimedia principle states that people learn
more deeply from words and pictures than from
words alone
THEORY
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Assumption of Multimedia Learning

• There are two separate channels (auditory and
  visual) for processing information (sometimes
  referred to as Dual-Coding theory)
• Each channel has a limited (finite) capacity
  (similar to Swellers notion of Cognitive Load)
• Learning is an active process of filtering,
  selecting, organizing, and integrating
  information based upon prior knowledge.

THEORY
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Cognitive Process of Multimedia Learning
Selecting relevant material occurs when a learner
pays attention to appropriate words and images in
the presented material. This process involves
bringing material from the outside into the
working memory component of the cognitive
system. Organizing selected material involves
building structural relations among the elements.
This process takes place within the working
memory component of the cognitive system.
Integrating selected material with existing
knowledges involves building connections between
incoming material and relevant portions of prior
knowledge. This process involves activating
knowledge in long term memory and bringing it
into working memory.
Three processes that are essential for active
learning are selecting relevant material,
organizing selected material and integrating
selected material with existing knowledge (
Mayer, 1996, 2001 Wittrock, 1989).
THEORY
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Memory Stores in Multimedia Learning

1. sensory (which receives stimuli and stores it for
   a very short time),
2. working (where we actively process information to
   create mental constructs (or schema), and
3. long-term (the repository of all things
   learned). 

THEORY
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Sensory Memory
Pictures and words come in form the outside world
as a multimedia presentation and enter sensory
memory through eyes and ears. Sensory memory
allows for pictures and printed text to be held
as exact visual images for a very brief time
period in a visual sensory memory and for spoken
words and other sounds to be held as exact
auditory sensory memory.
THEORY
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Working Memory
The central work of multimedia learning takes
place in working memory. Working memory is used
for temporally holding and manipulating knowledge
in active consciousness
THEORY
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Long Term Memory
Long term memory correspond to the learners
storehouse of knowledge. Unlike working memory,
long term memory can hold large amount of
knowledge over long periods of time. To actively
think about material in long term memory, it must
be brough into working memory back.
THEORY
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PowerPoint Overload
Most PowerPoint presentations look a particular
way because the PowerPoint tool has features that
make particular tasks easy. Unfortunately, many
PowerPoint features and techniques contradict
current research in cognitive science. We can
no longer expect our audiences to adapt to our
PowerPoint features instead we have to change
our own thinking to conform to a more relevant
principle The design of PowerPoint
presentations should be compatible with how
people learn.
APPLICATION
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Question to Designer

• Does the presentation take advantage of the
  dual-channel structure of the human information
  processing system, by presenting complementary
  material in words and pictures?
• Does the presentation take into consideration the
  limited capacity of the information processing
  channels, by minimizing the chances of
  overloading the cognitive system?
• Does the presentation promote active cognitive
  processing by guiding the processes of selecting,
  organizing, and integrating information?

APPLICATION
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Solutions

• Our understanding of the way the mind works has
  three implications for PowerPoint
• PowerPoint presentations should use both visual
  and verbal forms of presentation
• Filling the slides with information will easily
  overload people's cognitive systems and
• Presentations should help learners to select,
  organize, and integrate presented information.
• A set of research-based principles to reduce
  cognitive load in PowerPoint
• The Signaling Principle
• The Segmenting Principle
• The Modality Principle
• The Multimedia Principle
• The Coherence Principle

APPLICATION
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Signaling Principle
Research finding people learn better when the
material is organized with clear outlines and
headings (the Signaling Principle). Instead of
writing a Title, write a Headline that explains
the main idea of every slide. Summarize the
single overriding idea of the slide in clear and
conversational language.
APPLICATION
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Segmenting Principle
Research finding People learn better when
information is presented in bite-size segments
(the Segmentation Principle). Break up
information through your PowerPoint by referring
back frequently to the Slide Sorter view. Your
story should have an even pace from one slide to
the next, without long pauses on any single
slide. Where your pauses are long, or you have
much to say, those are signs that you need to
break up that slide into more slides. If you
have too many slides for the time you have to
speak, return to Slide Sorter view and think
about ways you can distill your story down to its
essence.
APPLICATION
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Modality Principle
Research finding People understand a multimedia
explanation better when the words are presented
as narration rather than on-screen text (the
Modality Principle). Reduce visual overload by
moving text off-screen, and shift processing to
the auditory channel by narrating the content
instead. The elegant way to accomplish this in
PowerPoint is to use the Notes Page view. Instead
of just including Notes below, write out your
story there in narrative form.
APPLICATION
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Multimedia Principle

• Research finding people learn better from words
  and pictures than from words alone (the
  Multimedia Principle).
• Its not easy to turn your words into pictures,
  but the first three techniques in this paper can
  help set the stage
• writing headlines helps you clarify what you want
  to illustrate,
• breaking up your story into digestible bites
  reduces the amount of information to visualize
• moving text off screen opens up more space in the
  area above for images.

APPLICATION
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Coherence Principle

• Research finding people learn better when
  extraneous material is excluded rather than
  included (the Coherence Principle).
• Cut everything out of your PowerPoint slides that
  does not support your main idea. Keep things
  simple.
• Cut all text on screen you are not going to
  narrate.
• Remove corporate logos unless you think people
  will forget who you are.
• Delete complex, patterned backgrounds in your
  PowerPoint template that have nothing to do with
  the content of your slide.

APPLICATION
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Way of Human Mind in Multimedia
Regardless technology and software development,
the way human mind and learning will remain. The
theory of multimedia learning offers us as
Instructional Designer, humanistic ways to design
our instructional multimedia to success
CONCLUSION
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References

1. Mayer, R. E. (2009). Multimedia learning (2nd
   ed). New York Cambridge University Press.
2. Clark, R. Mayer, R. E. (2008). E-learning and
   the science of instruction (2nd ed). San
   Francisco Jossey-Bass.
3. Mayer, R. E. (2008). Learning and Instruction
   (2nd ed). Upper Saddle River, NJ Merrill
   Prentice-Hall.
4. Mayer, R. E. (Ed). (2005). Cambridge Handbook of
   Multimedia Learning. New York Cambridge
   University Press.
5. Mayer and Moreno, (2003) A Cognitive Theory of
   Multimedia Learning Implications for Design
   Principles at http//www.unm.edu/moreno/PDFS/chi.
   pdf

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