Information Technology Reference
In-Depth Information
Early experiments suggested that it can hold about seven items of information
at a time (Miller, 1956), particularly when new information is being received,
and it can hold the information only briefly—about 10-20 s for adults. Selecting
and organizing information also use working memory space, so we “are prob-
ably only able to deal with two or three items of information simultaneously
when required to process rather than merely hold information” (Sweller et al.,
1998, p. 252). These limitations are important because working memory is where
we make conscious decisions about how to link new information from the envi-
ronment to our existing knowledge (Clark & Mayer, 2003). If you have ever
said, “I'm suffering from mental overload,” you were referring to your working
memory.
The limited capacity of working memory has important implications for learning
and teaching. Consider the following research results:
Students' writing often improves more rapidly if they are initially allowed to
ignore grammar, punctuation, and spelling (McCutchen, 2000).
Despite research about its ineffectiveness and staff-development efforts to pro-
mote more sophisticated forms of instruction, lecturing persists as the most
common teaching strategy (Cuban, 1993).
Students write better essays using word processors if their word processing skills
are well developed. If not, handwritten essays are superior (Roblyer, 2006).
The limitations of working memory relate to these findings through the concept
of cognitive load , which is the amount of mental activity imposed on the working
memory. The number of elements that you must attend to is one factor that con-
tributes to cognitive load (Paas et al., 2004). For instance, remembering sequences
of digits like 7, 9, 5, 3 and 3, 9, 2, 4, 6, 7 can be thought of as having cognitive loads
of 4 and 6, respectively.
A second factor influencing cognitive load is the extent to which the elements
interact with one another (Paas et al., 2004). For example, attempting to create a
well-organized essay, while at the same time using correct grammar, punctuation,
and spelling, imposes a heavy cognitive load on the writer, and using sophisti-
cated teaching strategies, such as guiding students with questioning, imposes a
heavy cognitive load on teachers. If students' computer skills are not well devel-
oped, executing the mechanics of the word processing program, combined with
attempts to construct a quality essay, imposes a cognitive load so heavy that devel-
oping writers compose better handwritten essays. The cognitive load on students
is also reduced if they are allowed to ignore grammar, punctuation, and spelling,
and teachers reduce it by lecturing, a less cognitively demanding instructional
strategy.
Reducing cognitive load in these ways is undesirable, however, because students
must ultimately use correct grammar, spelling, and punctuation in their writing, and
teachers are encouraged to interact with their students. We address these issues in
the next section.
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