A Split-Attention Effect in Multimedia Learning: Evidence for Dual Processing Systems in Working Memory
01 Jun 1998-Journal of Educational Psychology (American Psychological Association)-Vol. 90, Iss: 2, pp 312-320
TL;DR: This article found that multimedia learners can integrate words and pictures more easily when the words are presented auditorily rather than visually, which is consistent with a dual-processing model of working memory consisting of separate visual and auditory channels.
Abstract: Students viewed a computer-generated animation depicting the process of lightning formation (Experiment 1) or the operation of a car's braking system (Experiment 2). In each experiment, students received either concurrent narration describing the major steps (Group AN) or concurrent on-screen text involving the same words and presentation timing (Group AT). Across both experiments, students in Group AN outperformed students in Group AT in recalling the steps in the process on a retention test, in finding named elements in an illustration on a matching test, and in generating correct solutions to problems on a transfer test. Multimedia learners can integrate words and pictures more easily when the words are presented auditorily rather than visually. This split-attention effect is consistent with a dual-processing model of working memory consisting of separate visual and auditory channels.
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TL;DR: The analysis shows that cognitive load is a central consideration in the design of multimedia instruction because it exceeds the learner's available cognitive capacity.
Abstract: First, we propose a theory of multimedia learning based on the assumptions that humans possess separate systems for processing pictorial and verbal material (dual-channel assumption), each channel is limited in the amount of material that can be processed at one time (limited-capacity assumption), and meaningful learning involves cognitive processing including building connections between pictorial and verbal representations (active-processing assumption). Second, based on the cognitive theory of multimedia learning, we examine the concept of cognitive overload in which the learner's intended cognitive processing exceeds the learner's available cognitive capacity. Third, we examine five overload scenarios. For each overload scenario, we offer one or two theory-based suggestions for reducing cognitive load, and we summarize our research results aimed at testing the effectiveness of each suggestion. Overall, our analysis shows that cognitive load is a central consideration in the design of multimedia instru...
3,341 citations
Cites background from "A Split-Attention Effect in Multime..."
...UCSB, students performed better on tests of problem-solving transfer when scientific explanations were presented as animation and narration rather than as animation and on-screen text ( Mayer & Moreno, 1998, Experiments 1 and 2; Moreno & Mayer, 1999, Experiments 1 and 2; Moreno, Mayer, Spires, & Lester, 2001, Experiments 4 and 5). The median effect size was 1.17....
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...…on tests of problem-solving transfer when scientific explanations were presented as animation and narration rather than as animation and on-screen text (Mayer & Moreno, 1998, Experiments 1 and 2; Moreno & Mayer, 1999, Experiments 1 and 2; Moreno, Mayer, Spires, & Lester, 2001, Experiments 4 and 5)....
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Book•
17 Apr 1998
TL;DR: It is argued that the primary challenge of improving reading performance in the early grades is now to incorporate research based knowledge systematically into teacher preparation and practice.
Abstract: : This draft report from the Rand Reading Study Group (RRSG)1 formulates an initial proposal concerning the research issues that the community of reading researchers most urgently needs to address over the next 10-15 years. We encourage readers of this draft version to respond with feedback about our summary of the issues, the coherence of our model of reading comprehension, and our sketch of the research enterprise. Ultimately, this document may become the basis for more formal agenda setting. At this point it is an invitation to join a conversation about an area of great practical importance: reading development and reading instruction. The proposed research agenda builds upon a number of recent efforts to summarize the knowledge base in the field of reading. These efforts include the National Research Council report on Preventing Reading Difficulties in Young Children, the Report of the National Reading Panel, and the recently published edition of the Handbook of Reading Research. Given the availability of these and other older sources,2 the RRSG did not see the need to replicate recent efforts to synthesize the knowledge base concerning initial reading and its implications for instruction and assessment of the general population. Thus we argue that the primary challenge of improving reading performance in the early grades is now to incorporate research based knowledge systematically into teacher preparation and practice. We still have much to learn, however, about how children become good comprehenders, how to design and deliver instruction, and how to prevent comprehension failure.
1,791 citations
Cites background from "A Split-Attention Effect in Multime..."
...In fact, some empirical research supports a dual coding hypothesis with multimedia information (Mayer, 1997; Mayer & Moreno, 1998; Plass, Chun, Mayer, & Leutner, 1998)....
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01 Jul 2014
TL;DR: This paper argues that multimedia instructional messages that are designed in light of how the human mind works are more likely to lead to meaningful learning than those that are not.
Abstract: Abstract A fundamental hypothesis underlying research on multimedia learning is that multimedia instructional messages that are designed in light of how the human mind works are more likely to lead to meaningful learning than those that are not. The cognitive theory of multimedia learning (CTML) is based on three cognitive science principles of learning: the human information processing system includes dual channels for visual/pictorial and auditory/verbal processing (i.e., dual-channels assumption); each channel has limited capacity for processing (i.e., limited capacity assumption); and active learning entails carrying out a coordinated set of cognitive processes during learning (i.e., active processing assumption). The cognitive theory of multimedia learning specifies five cognitive processes in multimedia learning: selecting relevant words from the presented text or narration, selecting relevant images from the presented illustrations, organizing the selected words into a coherent verbal representation, organizing selected images into a coherent pictorial representation, and integrating the pictorial and verbal representations and prior knowledge. Multimedia instructional messages should be designed to prime these processes. The Case for Multimedia Learning What is the rationale for a theory of multimedia learning? People learn more deeply from words and pictures than from words alone. This assertion – which can be called the multimedia principle – underlies much of the interest in multimedia learning. For thousands of years, words have been the major format for instruction – including spoken words, and within the last few hundred years, printed words.
1,705 citations
TL;DR: The expertise reversal effect was initially predicted by cognitive load theory as a form of the redundancy effect (see Chapter 11) that occurs when information beneficial to novice learners becomes redundant to those more knowledgeable as mentioned in this paper.
Abstract: The expertise reversal effect was initially predicted by cognitive load theory as a form of the redundancy effect (see Chapter 11) that occurs when information beneficial to novice learners becomes redundant to those more knowledgeable. It is one of several cognitive load effects that rely on an interaction between a basic cognitive load effect, in this case the redundancy effect, and other factors, in this case levels of expertise. As an example of the expertise reversal effect, detailed textual explanations, especially if they are embedded into diagrams thus reducing the possibility of ignoring them, may be essential for novices but redundant for experts.
1,619 citations
Cites background from "A Split-Attention Effect in Multime..."
...Many studies (Mayer, 1997; Mayer & Moreno, 1998; Mousavi, Low, & Sweller, 1995; Tindall-Ford, Chandler, & Sweller, 1997) have demonstrated that learners can integrate words and diagrams more easily when the words are presented in auditory form rather than visually, providing an example of the…...
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...Many studies (Mayer, 1997; Mayer & Moreno, 1998; Mousavi, Low, & Sweller, 1995; Tindall-Ford, Chandler, & Sweller, 1997) have demonstrated that learners can integrate words and diagrams more easily when the words are presented in auditory form rather than visually, providing an example of the instructional modality effect....
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References
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TL;DR: It is suggested that a major reason for the ineffectiveness of problem solving as a learning device, is that the cognitive processes required by the two activities overlap insufficiently, and that conventional problem solving in the form of means-ends analysis requires a relatively large amount of cognitive processing capacity which is consequently unavailable for schema acquisition.
5,807 citations
"A Split-Attention Effect in Multime..." refers background in this paper
...Similarly, in a series of studies on worked-out geometry problem examples, Sweller and his colleagues (Sweller et al., 1990; Tarmizi & Sweller, 1988; Ward & Sweller, 1990) have shown that students learn better when text explanations are presented on the sheet with geometry problems than when…...
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Book•
13 Mar 1986
TL;DR: This book discussesMeta-Theoretical Issues and Perspectives, a meta-theoreticalPrinciples of Representation, and its Applications, a Practical Guide to Bilingual Cognitive Representation.
Abstract: This work presents a systematic analysis of the psychological phenomena associated with the concept of mental representations--also referred to as cognitive or internal representations. A major restatement of a theory the author developed in his 1971 book, Imagery and Verbal Processes, it covers phenomena from the earlier period that remain relevant today but emphasizes cognitive problems and paradigms that have since emerged more fully. The author proposes that performance in memory and other cognitive tasks is mediated not only by linguistic processes but also by a distinct nonverbal imagery model of thought as well. He discusses the philosophy of science associated with the dual coding approach, emphasizing the advantages of empiricism in the study of cognitive phenomena and showing that the fundamentals of the theory have stood up well to the empirical challenges over the years. An important contribution to the understanding of form and function of human knowledge, this book will be of interest to students and researchers in cognitive psychology, cognitive science, linguistics, and philosophy.
3,987 citations
TL;DR: Dual coding theory (DCT) as mentioned in this paper explains human behavior and experience in terms of dynamic associative processes that operate on a rich network of modality-specific verbal and nonverbal representations.
Abstract: Dual coding theory (DCT) explains human behavior and experience in terms of dynamic associative processes that operate on a rich network of modality-specific verbal and nonverbal (or imagery) representations. We first describe the underlying premises of the theory and then show how the basic DCT mechanisms can be used to model diverse educational phenomena. The research demonstrates that concreteness, imagery, and verbal associative processes play major roles in various educational domains: the representation and comprehension of knowledge, learning and memory of school material, effective instruction, individual differences, achievement motivation and test anxiety, and the learning of motor skills. DCT also has important implications for the science and practice of educational psychology — specifically, for educational research and teacher education. We show not only that DCT provides a unified explanation for diverse topics in education, but also that its mechanistic framework accommodates theories cast in terms of strategies and other high-level psychological processes. Although much additional research needs to be done, the concrete models that DCT offers for the behavior and experience of students, teachers, and educational psychologists further our understanding of educational phenomena and strengthen related pedagogical practices.
1,659 citations
TL;DR: This article found that students who received coordinated presentation of explanations in verbal and visual format (multiple representation group) generated a median of over 75% more creative solutions on problem-solving transfer tests than did those who received verbal explanations alone (single representation group).
Abstract: How can we help students to understand scientific explanations of cause-and-effect systems, such as how a pump works, how the human respiratory system works, or how lightning storms develop? One promising approach involves multimedia presentation of explanations in visual and verbal formats, such as presenting computer-generated animations synchronized with computer-generated narration or presenting illustrations next to corresponding text. In a review of eight studies concerning whether multimedia instruction is effective, there was consistent evidence for a multimedia effect: Students who received coordinated presentation of explanations in verbal and visual format (multiple representation group) generated a median of over 75% more creative solutions on problem-solving transfer tests than did students who received verbal explanations alone (single representation group). In a review of 10 studies; concerning when multimedia instruction is effective, there was consistent evidence for a contiguity effect: ...
1,431 citations
TL;DR: In this paper, high and low-spatial ability students viewed a computer-generated animation and listened simultaneously (concurrent group) or successively (successive group) to a narration that explained the workings either of a bicycle tire pump or of the human respiratory system.
Abstract: In 2 experiments, high- and low-spatial ability students viewed a computer-gener ated animation and listened simultaneously (concurrent group) or successively (successive group) to a narration that explained the workings either of a bicycle tire pump (Experiment 1) or of the human respiratory system (Experiment 2). The concurrent group generated more creative solutions to subsequent transfer problems than did the successive group; this contiguity effect was strong for high- but not for low-spatial ability students. Consistent with a dual-coding theory, spatial ability allows high-spatial learners to devote more cognitive resources to building referential connections between visual and verbal representations of the presented material, whereas low-spatial ability learners must devote more cognitive resources to building representation connections between visually presented material and its visual representation.
1,171 citations
"A Split-Attention Effect in Multime..." refers result in this paper
...Because previous studies have demonstrated that some instructional effects were stronger for low-experience learners than for high-experience learners (Mayer & Gallini, 1990; Mayer & Sims, 1994), we included only low-experience students in our study....
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...These results also extend previous research on contiguity effects in which students learned better when an animation depicting the workings of a scientific system and the corresponding narration were presented concurrently rather than successively (Mayer & Anderson, 1991, 1992; Mayer & Sims, 1994)....
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