Cognitive load in the classroom, what? As a middle school science teacher, you are given the task, on a daily basis, to take some content, sometimes difficult to understand, and to break it down into understandable forms for your students.
The ability to do this is called pedagogical content knowledge (PCK). PCK has been described as “the blending of content and pedagogy into an understanding of how particular topics, problems, or issues are organized, represented, and adapted to the diverse interests and abilities of learners and presented for instruction” (Shulman, 1987, p. 8).
Say what now? PCK is the skill of teachers knowing how to the the content!
You can know the content all day, but if you don’t know the best practices and strategies to teach it, the students will not learn it.
One aspect of your pedagogical content knowledge is the ability for you to decrease your students cognitive load in the classroom. When you do this, students are able to grasp the content and build upon it.
If you don’t, students get overwhelmed and may not learn anything at all.
What is the Cognitive Load Theory?
Cognitive load theory is an instructional theory that was developed by John Sweller in 1988 and explores human cognition.
Cognitive load refers to the amount of information that our working memory can hold at a time.
There are three types. So, what are the three types of cognitive load?
- Intrinsic Cognitive Load: This is the complexity of certain material or tasks. This is something that teachers cannot control but must be aware of.
- Extraneous Cognitive Load: This is concerning how material is presented. This is what teachers need to reduce and can be accomplished by teaching effectively and simple.
- Germane Cognitive Load: This is the work that is put into creating new schema (like muscle memory for the brain).
In 2003, Richard Mayer and Roxana Moreno published at article that outlined nine different ways to reduce cognitive load in multimedia learning. These steps are great in helping out in your lesson preparation and will help reduce student cognitive load and aid in retaining information in long term memory!
I’ve adapted these ideas into 7 steps to help your students retain information like a rockstar, and I outline an easy step below! To see more, be sure to check this out!
An Example of Reducing Cognitive Load in the Classroom
There are many examples of cognitive load theory in the classroom and steps that you can take to reduce it. Reducing cognitive load in the classroom does not have to be difficult.
One easy way to do this is just to start your lesson SIMPLE and then the lesson can progress in difficulty! I know that sounds simple, but it’s easy to forget.
So, what does mean? This just means to make sure your content and questions are given to students in some kind of sequential order, starting with simple materials, and then by increasing in difficulty.
Reducing Cognitive Load in the Classroom: Content
Example #1:
For example, when teaching about motion, you want to be sure to discuss what motion is and examples of motion before moving on to examples of speed, velocity, and acceleration.
Then, once you do begin discussing speed, velocity, and acceleration, it is best to start with SIMPLE examples, then more your way up to more difficult examples.
Example #2:
Another example would be for teaching Pedigree Charts. It is best to start with teaching symbols before looking at the whole picture. If students are overwhelmed to begin with, their cognitive load will be too great; therefore, they may not learn anything at all.
You can start with teaching what the circle and square are, then focus on the lines, then focus on generations. Once students are aware of what all of the symbols are, then you can focus on the actual trait that is being passed down through the generations.
Reducing Cognitive Load in the Classroom: Questions
Ok, so you’ve reduced cognitive load in your lessons by starting simple and then increased difficulty.
But, what about after the lesson is over? What do you need to do next to make sure that students understand the material? What about questioning? For most students, if you start off with a higher Bloom’s taxonomy level, students will just tap out.
It’s important to build their confidence up before diving into something deeper. Students that have already built the proper foundation and schema may not have as many issues starting with a higher-level question, but the majority of students will need to start simple in both the lesson and the questions.
Example #1:
For example, when reviewing the water cycle, it is best to have students identify the steps of the water cycle first and be able to identify what each step is before comparing and contrasting the steps.
Example #2:
Another example would be when you are reviewing heat transfer, you want to make sure that students can identify examples of radiation, conduction, and convection before describing how they are related or writing a story including the different types of heat transfer.
Your students will remember SO much if you start simple and use scaffolding to teach content!
For more examples of how to reduce cognitive load and helping your students to retain information, check out the 7 Steps to Help Your Students Retain Information Like a Rockstar!
You may also like:
Chunking Memory Strategy in Middle School
Reduce Cognitive Load in the Classroom By Taking Out Unnecessary Information
Cognitive Load, Element Interactivity, and the Reversal Effect
This blog post, as with some in the links above, explore effective instructional design strategies based on cognitive load theory by John Sweller. By starting with simple content and using scaffolding techniques, such as having students identify and understand basic components before moving to more complex ideas, teachers can help reduce cognitive load and help students retain information!
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