Friday, December 4, 2015

Multimedia Learning Theories and Online Instruction.

Jones, Erik

ET

Tempelman-Kluit, N. (2006). Multimedia Learning Theories and Online Instruction. College & Research Libraries, 67(4), 364-369. Retrieved from: http://crl.acrl.org/

Summary
This article deals with some of the various learning theories and issues that arise when making an online lesson plan and presenting information to the students in the course. The key takeaways from the article are the Cognitive Load Theory and Cognitive Overload. Cognitive Load Theory deals with eliminating all redundant information that a student doesn't really need to hear during a lecture, repetitive information, or information that is too detailed and can potentially overwhelm the student. Cognitive Overload is the process from which students get overwhelmed with too much information presented to them at once, which is essential to keep in mind as an online instructor as the bulk of what students will be doing is reading multiple dry articles on a daily basis and overwhelming them is a good way to get them to fall behind or even drop a class.

Evaluation
I've been a student at two online universities now so I am fairly experienced with how lessons, group work and homework are done for each of the classes, but not everyone has the same level of experience. Some are just now realizing the viability of an online education for those with busy lives and no time to sit in a classroom for hours on end. Understanding the various learning theories that use different forms of multimedia applications to teach students is essential to understand both as an instructor and as a student, you can never underestimate knowing how something works and how it can best be used. 

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