Principle for E-Learning. From e-Learning and the Science of Instruction; Proven Guidelines for Consumers and Designers of Multimedia Learning, 2nd edition by Ruth Colvin Clark and Richard E. Mayer. 2008 John Wiley and Sons, published by Pfeiffer also includes CD to download examples.
Multimedia principle – use words and graphics rather than words alone
p. 65 greatest human invention is language, and printed language which expands time and miles. Not only to deliver the information but also guide the learner’s cognitive processing during learning, thereby enabling an dencouraging learners to actively process the information. E.g. how a bicycle pump works. Words and graphics.
Contiguity principle – align words to corresponding graphics; printed words near corresponding graphics; synchronize spoken words with corresponding graphics
p. 89 violations occur when a link to audio is indicated by one icon and a link to video is indicated by a separate icon or a segment provides a narrated introduction followed by animation or video. People are sens-makers who try to see the meaningful relations between words and pictures. When words and pictures are separated people must use their scarce cognitive resources just to match them all up creating extraneous processing.
Modality principle – present words as audio narration rather than on-screen text p. 105 People have separate information processing channels for visual/pictorial processing and for auditory/verbal processing. When learners are given concurrent graphics and on-screen text, both must be initially processed in the visual/pictorial channel. Attention to these is limited, so the mind competes for the same limited visual attention. People can look at text or graphics and absorb only so much of either. Presenting verbal material as speech, enables the information to be processed in the auditory verbal channel. Both words and pictures can be processed. It has to do with use of memory systems: sensory memory via ears and eyes and working memory via phonetic processing and visual processing.
Redundancy principle – explain visuals with words in audio or text: not both p.121. We should not assume people learn by adding information to memory. Actually, all people have separate channels for processing verbal and pictorial material, and each channel is limited in the amount of processing that can take place at one time, and learners actively attempt to build pictorial and verbal models from the presented material and build connections between them.
Coherence principle – adding interesting material can hurt learning; avoid extraneous graphics; avoid lessons with extraneous words p. 137 avoid arousal theory – idea entertaining and interesting embedded effects cause learners to become more aroused and thus work harder to learn the material. Actually, background sounds can overload and disrupt the cognitive system. , p. 142 pictures, including color photos and video clips, problem is the learner is actively seeking to make sense of the representation of the presented material. Adding extraneous pictures can interfere with the process of sense-making due to limited cognitive capacity for processing incoming material creating three ways to interfere with learning via distraction, disruption and seduction. and p. 148 At times I’ve used side comments to presentations. However additional words may be related to the topic but not relevant to the primary instructional goal. Extra words may be added to expand on the key ideas of the lesson or add technical details which go beyond the key ideas. Suggestion is to avoid all extraneous words.
p. 58 Select graphics that support learning
decorative – decorate the page without enhancing the message e.g. bicycle rider
representational- portray a single element – bike pump
relational – portray a quantitive relation among two or more variables – age and bike accidents
organizational- depict the relations among elements – lable each part of a bike pump
transformational= changes an object over time – before/after picture of a bike tire with pump
interpretive = illustrate invisible relationships – showing small dots to represent the flow of air in/out of a bike pump
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