The goal of this qualitative study was to answer the question: How do educators make sense of learning in virtual reality? This study utilized multimedia learning theory and cognitive load theory to explore how educators understand virtual reality in education. Pre- and post-interviews as well as a VR experience were conducted with 13 educators…

There are numerous reasons why students with disabilities struggle in school. A key reason is professionals in the field may not pay enough attention to students' overwhelmed cognitive capacity. Cognitive load theory explains that all humans have limited capacity at any given time to use their auditory, visual, and tactile inputs (independently or…

This paper explains the design and implementation of a novel didactic strategy based on learning styles for teaching automatic control theory in engineering. Traditional research on engineering education has worked to develop teaching methodologies, educational resources, and assessment tasks without considering the learning styles of the…

Faculty members in higher education are involved in many instructional design activities without formal training in learning theories and the science of instruction. Learning theories provide the foundation for the selection of instructional strategies and allow for reliable prediction of their effectiveness. To achieve effective learning…

Struggling learners and students with Learning Disabilities often exhibit unique cognitive processing and working memory characteristics that may not align with instructional design principles developed with typically developing learners. This paper explains the Cognitive Theory of Multimedia Learning and underlying Cognitive Load Theory, and…

Using the cognitive theory of multimedia learning, this study aimed to evaluate the design of one multimedia courseware used for teaching English as a foreign language (EFL) in China and to compare the attitudinal differences in the teachers' and students' evaluation of the courseware. A questionnaire was developed and validated. Results indicated…

Since the emergence of eLearning in the 1990s, the craft of designing and developing online courseware has evolved alongside theoretical advances in the field. A variety of media combinations have been applied to course pages by eLearning practitioners, making it possible to examine learning concepts emerging from the research in the light of…

For over 50 years, "seven plus or minus two" has been a commonly used guideline for gauging how many chunks of new information should be presented at one time in learning and performance situations. Often cited as the limit of working memory, this guideline was created as a result of misinterpreting an article by Miller (1956). More recent studies…

This paper argues that pedagogic efficacy of multimedia packages (interactive multimedia presentations) cannot be achieved by experimental research in the absence of a detailed pedagogical screenwriting framework. Following a summary of relevant literature, such a framework is offered, consisting of micro-level design guidelines. The guidelines…

Two experiments using the science topics of Magnetism and Light were conducted with younger learners (Year 5) who had no prior knowledge of the topics, and older learners (Year 6) who had studied the topics previously. Half of the learners were presented the information in auditory form only while the other half were presented the auditory…

Cognitive load is a theoretical notion with an increasingly central role in the educational research literature. The basic idea of cognitive load theory is that cognitive capacity in working memory is limited, so that if a learning task requires too much capacity, learning will be hampered. The recommended remedy is to design instructional systems…

This is a design study meant to demonstrate the feasibility of integrating three rather different theoretical perspectives for future efforts in multimedia instructional design. A multimedia instructional grammar program contextualized within the teaching of English as a Second Language (ESL) was developed and evaluated. The program design was…

The study investigates the use of different multimedia instructional design formats on learning. Undergraduate students from the College of Education at a public university in the United Arab Emirates were randomly assigned to groups corresponding to six instructional design formats, namely; Listen Only, Read Only, Read+ Listen, Listen + Graphics,…

Computer-assisted learning, in the form of simulation-based training, is heavily focused upon by the military. Because computer-based learning offers highly portable, reusable, and cost-efficient training options, the military has dedicated significant resources to the investigation of instructional strategies that improve learning efficiency…

Informed by the cognitive theory of multimedia learning, this study examined the effects of three multimedia design principles on undergraduate students' learning outcomes and perceived learning difficulty in the context of learning entomology from an educational video. These principles included segmenting the video into smaller units, signalling…