Cognitive load theory and aging: effects of worked examples on training efficiency

Cognitive load theory (CLT) is aimed at developing training material that efficiently makes use of the available cognitive processing capacity and stimulates the learner's ability to use acquired knowledge and skills in new situations. It is claimed that CLT-based training formats meet the cognitive abilities of elderly learners particularly well. That is, cognitive aging brings about several declines of working memory, which impede the acquisition of complex cognitive skills. By making an optimal use of the ‘remaining’ cognitive resources, learning can be enhanced. For that purpose, CLT provides a promising range of training formats that have proven their effectiveness relative to conventional formats in young adults. This article presents an experimental study (N=54) aimed at the efficiency of worked examples as a substitute for conventional practice problems in training both elderly and young adults. According to CLT, studying worked examples is a more efficient means of training complex skills than solving conventional problems. As predicted, the results show that — with respect to the elderly — the efficiency of studying worked examples is higher than the efficiency of solving conventional problems in that less training time and cognitive load leads to a comparable level of performance.     

Effect of worked examples and Cognitive Tutor training on constructing equations

Algebra students studied either static-table, static-graphics, or interactive-graphics instructional worked examples that alternated with Algebra Cognitive Tutor practice problems. A control group did not study worked examples but solved both the instructional and practice problems on the Cognitive Tutor (CT). Students in the control group requested fewer hints and made fewer errors on the CT practice problems but required more learning time on the instructional examples. There was no difference among the four groups in constructing equations on a paper-and-pencil posttest or on a delayed test that included training and transfer problems. However, students who studied worked examples with a table were best at identifying the meaning of the equation components. The concept of transfer-appropriate processing (the overlap between instructional task and assessment task) aided our interpretation of the findings. Although the CT had a short-term effect on reducing errors and hint requests on CT practice problems, the worked examples were as effective on delayed paper-and-pencil tests. The subsequent construction of a new module for the Animation Tutor (Reed and Hoffman, Animation Tutor: Mixtures. Instructional software, 2011) used both the interactive-graphics and static-table worked examples to take advantage of the complementary strengths of different representations (Ainsworth, Learn Instr 16:183–198, 2006).     

样例学习认知负荷理论的研究及其展望

文章回顾了样例学习研究的起源与发展,主要介绍了其理论依据——认知负荷理论,并分别围绕外在认知负荷、内在认知负荷以及相关认知负荷介绍了最新国内外样例学习的设计方法:材料的整合、子目标、不完整样例、错误样例、诱发自我解释问题、多种解题方法比较等,最后在现有研究成果上指出样例学习研究的发展趋势和有待进一步解决的问题。     

Cognitive Load Theory: Advances in Research on Worked Examples, Animations, and Cognitive Load Measurement

The contributions to this special issue document some recent advances of cognitive load theory, and are based on contributions to the Third International Cognitive Load Theory Conference (2009), Heerlen, The Netherlands. The contributions focus on developments in example-based learning, amongst others on the effects of integrating worked examples in cognitive tutoring systems; specify the effects of transience on cognitive load and why segmentation may help counteract these effects in terms of the role of time in working memory load; and discuss the possibilities offered by electroencephalography (EEG) to provide a continuous and objective measure of cognitive load. This article provides a short introduction to the contributions in this issue.     

英语动结构式形成的理据探究

近几十年来,英语动结构式一直是语言学家研究的重点。认知语言学家认为动结构式是一些表层形式,这其中必然有其形成的深刻动因。英语动结构式所以能以丰富多彩的表层形式呈现在人们的面前,是因为人的认知规律和语法化所造成的语言的外部理据和内部理据在起作用。     

Accounting for Beneficial Effects of Worked Examples in Tutored Problem Solving

Recent studies have tested the addition of worked examples to tutored problem solving, a more effective instructional approach than the untutored problem solving used in prior worked example research. These studies involved Cognitive Tutors, software designed to support problem solving while minimizing extraneous cognitive load by providing prompts for problem sub-goals, step-based immediate feedback, and context-sensitive hints. Results across eight studies in three different domains indicate that adding examples to Cognitive Tutors is beneficial, particularly for decreasing the instructional time needed and perhaps also for achieving more robust learning outcomes. These studies bolster the practical importance of examples in learning, but are also of theoretical interest. By using a stronger control condition than previous studies, these studies provide a basis for refining Cognitive Load Theory explanations of the benefits of examples. Perhaps, in addition to other reasons, examples may help simply because they more quickly provide novices with information needed to induce generalized knowledge.     

基于粒子滤波的篮球旋转投射最优角度分析研究

为了提高篮球投篮的准确性,提出基于粒子滤波的篮球旋转投射最优角度分析计算方法。构建篮球旋转投射的动力学和运动学模型,结合动态差分模型进行篮球旋转投射的基元轨迹方程建模,采用最大似然估计方法进行篮球旋转投射最优角度的优化计算,并采用自适应的轨迹修正方法进行篮球旋转投射过程中的力学控制,实现篮球旋转投射最优角度分析。仿真结果表明,采用该方法进行篮球旋转投射最优角度计算的准确度较高,运动力学控制能力较好,具有较好的角度修正和轨迹跟踪能力,在篮球旋转投射运动学建模中具有很好的应用价值。     

Applying cognitive load theory to the redesign of a conventional database systems course

Cognitive load theory (CLT) was used to redesign a Database Systems course for Information Technology students. The redesign was intended to address poor student performance and low satisfaction, and to provide a more relevant foundation in database design and use for subsequent studies and industry. The original course followed the conventional structure for a database course, covering database design first, then database development. Analysis showed the conventional course content was appropriate but the instructional materials used were too complex, especially for novice students. The redesign of instructional materials applied CLT to remove split attention and redundancy effects, to provide suitable worked examples and sub-goals, and included an extensive re-sequencing of content. The approach was primarily directed towards mid- to lower performing students and results showed a significant improvement for this cohort with the exam failure rate reducing by 34% after the redesign on identical final exams. Student satisfaction also increased and feedback from subsequent study was very positive. The application of CLT to the design of instructional materials is discussed for delivery of technical courses.     

Three-dimensional computer animated graphics: A tool for spatial skill instruction

Spatial skills necessary to design and analyze orthographic drawings are sometimes lacking in students. This study investigated whether computer animated graphics which replicate mental images of rotation and dimensional transformation would be useful in the development of spatial skills. Subjects viewed films of three architectural types of graphic representations. In both color and wire frame form, rotating to top and side views, and changing from three to two dimensions. Results indicated that viewing the animated images did have a significant effect on increasing orthographic but not mental rotation test scores. The order in which subjects viewed the films significantly affected their orthographic scores. Furthermore, viewing wire frame images first had a significantly negative effect on subjects’ first mental rotation score.     

Process-Oriented Worked Examples: Improving Transfer Performance Through Enhanced Understanding

The research on worked examples has shown thatfor novices, studying worked examples is oftena more effective and efficient way of learningthan solving conventional problems. Thistheoretical paper argues that addingprocess-oriented information to worked examplescan further enhance transfer performance,especially for complex cognitive skills withmultiple possible solution paths.Process-oriented information refers to theprincipled (``why'') and strategic (``how'')information that experts use when solvingproblems. From a cognitive load perspective,studying the expert's ``why'' and ``how''information can be seen as constituting agermane cognitive load, which can fosterstudents' understanding of the principles of adomain and the rationale behind the selectedoperators, and their knowledge about howexperts select a strategy, respectively. Issueswith regard to the design, implementation, andassessment of effects of process-orientedworked examples are discussed, as well as thequestions they raise for future research.     

Coordinating principles and examples through analogy and self-explanation

Research on expertise suggests that a critical aspect of expert understanding is knowledge of the relations between domain principles and problem features. We investigated two instructional pathways hypothesized to facilitate students’ learning of these relations when studying worked examples. The first path is through self-explaining how worked examples instantiate domain principles and the second is through analogical comparison of worked examples. We compared both of these pathways to a third instructional path where students read worked examples and solved practice problems. Students in an introductory physics class were randomly assigned to one of three worked example conditions (reading, self-explanation, or analogy) when learning about rotational kinematics and then completed a set of problem solving and conceptual tests that measured near, intermediate, and far transfer. Students in the reading and self-explanation groups performed better than the analogy group on near transfer problems solved during the learning activities. However, this problem solving advantage was short lived as all three groups performed similarly on two intermediate transfer problems given at test. On the far transfer test, the self-explanation and analogy groups performed better than the reading group. These results are consistent with the idea that self-explanation and analogical comparison can facilitate conceptual learning without decrements to problem solving skills relative to a more traditional type of instruction in a classroom setting.     

Orthographic and semantic processing in young readers

This investigation examined orthographic and semantic processing during reading acquisition. Children in first to fourth grade were presented with a target word and two response alternatives, and were asked to identify the semantic match. Words were presented in four conditions: an exact match and unrelated foil (STONE–STONE–EARS), an exact match and an orthographic neighbour foil (STONE–STONE–STOVE), a ­synonym match and an unrelated foil (STONE–ROCK–EARS) and a synonym match and an orthographic neighbour foil (STONE–ROCK–STOVE). Accuracy and reaction time results suggest that orthographic and semantic processing follow a two‐step ­acquisition pattern. First, the orthographic component of reading develops quickly; however, forming strong conceptual links from orthographic to semantic representations follows a protracted trajectory, which matures between the third and fourth grades. These results are consistent with research that suggests younger children rely on more concrete, perceptual systems and then transition to more flexible, abstract cognition.     

Children Develop Initial Orthographic Knowledge During Storybook Reading

We examined whether young children acquire orthographic knowledge during structured adult-led storybook reading even though minimal viewing time is devoted to print. Sixty-two kindergarten children were read 12 storybook “chapters” while their eye movements were tracked. Results indicated that the children quickly acquired initial mental graphemic representations of target nonwords. This learning occurred even though they focused on the target nonwords approximately one fourth of the total time while viewing the pages. Their ability to acquire the initial orthographic representations of the target nonwords and their viewing time was affected by the linguistic statistical regularities of the words. The results provide evidence of orthographic learning during structured storybook reading and for the use of implicit linguistic statistical regularities for learning new orthographic word forms in the early stages of reading development.     

样例学习理论研究新进展

样例是知识获取的主要途径。根据样例学习的相似性理论,在样例学习过程中,至少要呈现两个或多个样例,而解释性理论认为只要样例合理,可以向学生呈现一个样例。Anderson等人在ACT-R理论的基础上,提出了四阶段重叠模型,Sweller从认知资源的角度提出了认知负荷理论。四种样例学习理论从不同角度指导着样例学习实证研究与教学实践。     

Providing ability to probability: Reducing cognitive load through worked‐out examples

Undergraduate students tend to struggle with probability in their introductory statistics course. Probability problem solving requires several steps. First, students must make sense of the probability scenario, then determine the appropriate probability rules, and finally, execute the procedures to solve the problem. With no previous exposure to probability, this presents too great a cognitive load for many students. Using worked‐out problems then transitioning to partially worked‐out problems in an introductory statistics course at a large university helped students succeed at solving probability problems. The worked‐out problems included writing prompts to encourage self‐explanation of students' thinking through studying the worked‐out examples. This paper explains the use of these instructional principles and their implementation in an introductory statistics course for non‐STEM majors, resulting in higher student achievement and understanding.     

How Effective are Instructional Explanations in Example-Based Learning? A Meta-Analytic Review

The worked example effect within cognitive load theory is a very well-established finding. The concrete effectiveness of worked examples in a learning situation, however, heavily depends on further moderating factors. For example, if learners improve their processing of worked examples by actively explaining the worked examples to themselves, they are usually better able to solve transfer problems. Another way to enhance example processing is to present learners with instructional explanations instead of prompting them to produce these explanations on their own. In this article, we review 21 experimental studies to address the issue whether instructional explanations support example-based learning. Meta-analytic results lead to three important conclusions: First, the benefits of instructional explanations for example-based learning per se are minimal. Second, instructional explanations are more helpful for acquiring conceptual knowledge than for acquiring procedural knowledge. Third, instructional explanations are not necessarily more effective than other methods supporting example processing such as self-explaining.     

Redirecting learners' attention during training: effects on cognitive load,transfer test performance and training efficiency

Cognitive load theory provides guidelines for improving the training of complex cognitive skills and their transfer to new situations. One guideline states that extraneous cognitive load that is irrelevant to the construction of cognitive schemata should be minimised. Experiment 1 (N=26) compares completion problems, conventional problems, and a learner-controlled condition in which learners may choose between problem formats. Completion problems decrease cognitive load during training and have a zero or positive effect on transfer performance. A second guideline states that germane cognitive load that is directly relevant to schema construction should be optimised. In Experiment 2 (N=69) practice schedules of either high or low contextual interference are compared (HCI and LCI). HCI increases cognitive load during training and shows a trend towards higher transfer performance. Experiment 3 (N=87) combines both guidelines in a factorial experiment with the factors problem format (completion vs. conventional) and contextual interference (HCI vs. LCI). It is hypothesised that redirecting attention from extraneous to germane processes will improve training efficiency, i.e. positively affect the balance between cognitive load during training and transfer test performance. In support of this hypothesis, it is found that the completion-HCI group shows highest training efficiency. But transfer test performance for this group is disappointing. The results are discussed in relation to the operationalisation of HCI in combination with completion problems.     

Students' mental load,stress, and performance when working with symbolic or symbolic–textual molecular representations

In science education, representations are necessary inter alia for the understanding of relationships between structures and systems. However, several studies have identified difficulties of students when working with representations. In the present study, we investigated students' responses (regarding their preference, test performance, mental load (ML), and stress) toward two kinds of representations: symbolic representations, which only use abstract symbols, versus combined symbolic–textual representations, which additionally comprise textual elements. Therefore, students were randomly assigned to one of two treatment groups: one group worked on test tasks accompanied by symbolic representations, and the others worked on the same tasks, but with symbolic–textual representations. Thereafter, the students' test performance and ML were assessed. The level of perceived stress and the salivary cortisol concentration were measured before and after the test and again a few minutes later. Additionally, heart rate variability parameters were assessed continuously. We found a strong preference of the test version with symbolic representations. Additionally, the students showed better test performance and lower ML when they worked with symbolic representations. However, the level of perceived stress was comparable between both groups and there was no strong physiological stress response: The cortisol concentration decreased in both groups and the heart rate was relatively similar. However, during the second half of the test, we observed a significantly higher ratio between low and high heartbeat frequencies in the group with symbolic–textual representations and we found an indirect influence of the kind of representation on test performance through its effect on ML. The poorer test performance and higher ML in connection with symbolic–textual representations confirm previous studies, which found that symbolic–textual representations pose major problems for students. Thus, teachers should enable students to understand symbolic–textual representations and consider carefully whether they can use symbolic representations instead, especially when they teach complex content.     

Early event‐related potentials differences in orthographic processing of native and non‐native Chinese readers

Efficient Chinese character reading requires rapid access to orthographic representations of radical form and position. This study identified the temporal sequence of radical form, radical position and lexicality processing in adult first language (L1) and intermediate second language (L2) Chinese readers. Event‐related potential responses in a one‐back repetition detection task were submitted to linear mixed‐effects models. Violation of radical position produced P100 effects that were left‐lateralized for L1 readers and right‐lateralized for L2 readers. When controlling for P100 activation, radical position produced a left‐lateralized effect at the N170 for L2 readers but no additional activities for L1 readers. Radical form effects were found at the N270 for L1 readers, where radical form violation produced larger N270. Results suggested that radical representations are position‐specific in initial orthographic processing for both groups. However, different temporal dynamics and topographic distributions suggested divergent radical processing for native versus non‐native readers from the beginning.     

Children’s Orthographic Knowledge and Their Word Reading Skill: Testing Bidirectional Relations

Prominent models of word reading concur that the development of efficient word reading depends on the establishment of lexical orthographic representations in memory. In turn, word reading skills are conceptualised as supporting the development of these orthographic representations. As such, models of word reading development make clear predictions of bidirectional relations between lexical orthographic knowledge and word reading skill. We test these predictions in a longitudinal study of 112 English-speaking children in Grades 2 and 3. At two time points, we assessed lexical orthographic knowledge and three aspects of word reading skill: word reading accuracy, word reading efficiency, and phonological decoding. Consistent with theoretical predictions, we found that earlier word reading accuracy, word reading efficiency, and phonological decoding predicted gains in lexical orthographic knowledge. Contrary to theoretical predictions, lexical orthographic knowledge did not predict gains in any of our measured word reading skills.