THE MODALITY PRINCIPLE IN MULTIMEDIA LEARNING

Hector Segarra

EDLT-520

March 4, 2010

Dr. Jesús H. Trespalacios

New Mexico State University

REVIEW FROM PREVIOUS CHAPTERS

According to Mayer’s model of meaningful learning, the learner processes a visual information processing system and a verbal information processing.

Hence narration goes into the verbal system where animation goes into the visual system.

COGNITIVE PROCESSES Selecting Organizing Integrating

SELECTING Is applied to incoming verbal

information to yield a text base and is applied to incoming visual information to yield an image base.

ORGANIZING Is applied to the image base to create a

verbally-based model of the to-be explained system and is applied to the image base to create a visually-based model of the to-be explained system.

INTEGRATING Occurs when the learner builds

connections between corresponding events (or states or parts) in the verbally-based model and the visually-based model.

MULTIPLE REPRESENTATION PRINCIPLE

Establish that its is better to present an explanation in words and pictures that solely in words.

CONTIGUITY PRINCIPLE

When giving a multimedia explanation, present corresponding words and picture contiguously rather than separately.

SPLIT ATTENTION PRINCIPLE

When giving a multimedia explanation, present words as auditory narration rather than as visual on screen text.

INDIVIDUAL DIFFERENCES PRINCIPLE

The foregoing principles are more important for low-knowledge than high-knowledge learners, and for high-spatial rather than low spatial learners.

COHERENCE PRINCIPLE When giving a multimedia explanation,

use few rather than any extraneous words and picture.

HOW INFORMATION IS PRESENTED

“There is evidence to indicate that the manner in wich information is presented will affect how well it is learned and remember”. (Richard E. Mayer, 2005; 147)

Presenting some information in visual mode and information in auditory mode can expand effective working memory capacity and so reduce the effects of an excessive cognotive load.

MODALITY PRINCIPLE Students learn better when the

associated statements are narrated rather than presented visually. Split- attention effects-the two sources

of information are still presented visually but in physically integrate form.

Modality effect-written statements are converted to spoken statements.

COGNITIVE LOAD THEORY AND THE MODALITY EFFECT According to cognitive load theory,

many instructional materials and techniques may be ineffective because they ignore the limitations of human working memory and impose a heavy cognitive load.

WAYS IN WHICH EXTRENEOUS COGNITIVE LOAD CAN BE

MANIPULATED Instructional procedures can alleviate

extraneous cognitive load by formatting instructional material in such a way that minimizes cognitive activities that are unnecessary to learning so that cognitive resources can be freed to concentrate on essential activities.

The consequences of extraneous cognitive load can also be alleviated by increasing effective working memory capacity.

SPLIT-ATTENTION EFFECT Occurs when two or more sources of

visual information must be processed simultaneously in order to derive meaning from material.

SPLIT-ATTENTTION EFFECT (CONT.)

To obtain the split-attention effect, the two visual separated sources of information are physically integrated to reduce the need for mental integration.

MODALITY EFFECT

To obtain the modality effect, verbal material is presented when such dual-mode presentation is superior to a visual-only, split-attention presentation.

THE MODALITY EFFECT (CONT.) The modality effect can be explained by

acribing memory load to each of the treatment condition, the diagram (or picture) with text presentation induces a higher both sources of information are processed in the systems.

CONCLUSIONS Effective working memory capacity may

be increased and this increase can be used to reduce cognitive load and facilitate learning.

Under split-attention conditions, learning may be facilitated by presenting a written source of information in auditory mode.

REFERENCES Richard E. Mayer (2005). Multimedia

Learning. Santa Barbara:Cambridge University Press.

http://www.unm.edu/~moreno/PDFS/chi.pdf

VIDEO

Multimedia Learning Video

Questions for Chapter 9:

1) What is the modality effect or modality principle?

2) Describe the two ways in which extraneous cognitive load can be manipulated.

3) Briefly summarize the findings of at least three studies looking at the effectiveness of the modality effect.

4) Define the split-attention effect.

5) What needs to happen in order for the split-attention effect to occur?

6) Summarize the main conclusions of this chapter?