Buzzword Decoder: Cognitive Load

Cognitive load, and its counterpart, cognitive overload,addresses the way a learner’s brain handles and quickly processes small amountsof information. A popular meme is that we can “remember” seven, plus or minustwo, pieces of information—a phone number, perhaps, but not a 15-digit serialnumber. Not easily, anyhow. “Remembering” in this context refers to holdingsomething in our working memory.

Working memory teams up with long-term memory to hold on to greaterquantity or complexity of information. Learning is a process that putsinformation into long-term memory in a way that allows us to recall and applyit when needed. But without the cooperation of working memory, nothing getslearned.

For instructional designers and anyone using, creating, orasking employees to use eLearning, cognitive load is an essential concept. IfeLearning overloads learners’ working memory, their learning will suffer. Anumber of factors contribute to the cognitive load of eLearning. These aredescribed below.

Intrinsic cognitive load

According to cognitive load theorists, “information varieson a continuum from low to high in element interactivity” (see Paas, et al, inReferences). A concept or piece of information with low-element interactivitystands on its own; a learner can understand it without reference to otherelements of the eLearning. For example, an employee can learn the names of menuitems or products she will be selling, one by one. Information withhigh-element interactivity might be learned in individual chunks, but can onlybe understood when all of the elements—and how they interact—are put together.An example would be preparing an eight-course tasting menu. The learner wouldneed to master each course—and each element of each course—before being able toattempt the entire meal, with appropriate timing, serving, and other associateddetails.

Instructional designers have little control over theintrinsic cognitive load of most learning tasks but can sometimes break complextasks into smaller units.

Germane cognitive load

Germane cognitive load refers to elements of learning thatcontribute to processing information. It includes details like the wayeLearning is presented to learners and what activities they are asked tocomplete. Instructional designers have a lot of influence on germane cognitiveload. Germane cognitive load enhances learning.

Extraneous cognitive load

Like germane cognitive load, extraneous cognitive load hasmuch to do with how eLearning is presented to learners; instructional designerscontrol or strongly influence it. But extraneous cognitive load can interferewith learning.

Some extraneous elements are a function of poor design. Forexample, deciding to build a complex learning game—motivated by a desire tocreate fun, engaging eLearning—might result in eLearning that requires learnersto spend 45 minutes studying the rules of play and figuring out how to set upthe game space and characters before beginning to learn anything that isactually relevant to their jobs. These elements dramatically raise thecognitive load without contributing to learning goals. They are also completelyunder the control of the instructional designer and developers. Other eLearningelements might be germane to some learners and extraneous to others.

Levels of expertise

Whether an eLearning element or activity is germane orextraneous to a particular learner might depend on that learner’s level ofexpertise. For example, loading an eLearning module with sidebars andexplanations and tangential details might, to an expert learner, make otherwisebasic and dull eLearning more interesting. Thus it becomes germane. But to thebeginner, the extraneous detail complicates learning. She does not know whichpieces are critical to her learning and which are unneeded details. Expendingcognitive effort on deciding which parts to read—or doing extraneouswork—contributes to cognitive overload.

As learners complete eLearning and associated activities andapply the learning, their level of expertise changes. Different learners willmaster material at different rates.

While instructional designers don’t always know or controlthe level of expertise of learners who will use an eLearning module, they candesign eLearning that presents the essential information in a clear way—andoffers extra detail for expert users, clearly identifying it as ancillary. Thusthe information does not overload beginners and is available to learners astheir level of expertise grows.

It all adds up

The bottom line is that the different types of cognitiveload add up. If an eLearning course is filled with extraneous elements, it willoverload some learners, even if the actual material has a relatively lowintrinsic cognitive load. Instructional designers who are aware of theintrinsic, germane, and extraneous cognitive loads of the eLearning they designcan choose formats and presentation approaches that suit the material—and thetarget learners—to avoid cognitive overload.

References

Malamed, Connie. “What is cognitive load?”