Cognitive Load Theory and its Application in the Classroom

Impact: Journal of the Chartered College of Teaching
The theory identifies three different forms of cognitive load: 

• Intrinsic cognitive load: the inherent difficulty of the material itself, which can be influenced by prior knowledge of the topic 
• Extraneous cognitive load: the load generated by the way the material is presented and which does not aid learning  
• Germane cognitive load: the elements that aid information processing and contribute to the development of ‘schemas’.

Motivation in Second and Foreign Language Learning

'Motivation is the process whereby goal-directed activity is instigated and sustained'

Pintrick and Schunk 1996:4

Motivational psychologists - focus in the motors of human behaviour in the individual rather than in the social being. (drive, arousal, cognitive self-appraisal).

Social psychologists - see the action as the function of the social context and the interpersonal/intergroup relation patterns, as measured by the social attitudes.

The gap between the perspectives is gradually narrowing.

Social cognition - cognitive concepts integrated into traditional social psychological models.

Reasoned Action theory

The chief determinant of action is a person's intention to perform the particular behaviour.

- attitude towards the behaviour

- subjective norm' i.e. the person's perception of the social pressures put on him/her to perform the behaviour in question.

Planned behaviour theory

'perceived behavioural control' i.e. the perceived ease or difficulty of performing the behaviour.

Approaches: expectancy-value theories, goal theories and self-determination theory.

Expectancy-value theories:

According to the main principles, motivation to perform various tasks is the product of two key factors: the individual's expectancy of success in a given task and the value the individual attaches to success in the task.

Underlying expectancy-value theories - similarly to most cognitive theories - is the belief that humans are innately active learners with an inborn curiosity and an urge to get to know their environment and meet challenges, and therefore the main issue in expectancy value theories is not what motivates learners but rather what directs and shapes their inherent motivation.

Researchers emphasise various different factors that form the individual's cognitive process; from an educational point of view, the most important aspects include processing past experiences (attribution theory), judging one's own abilities and competence (self-efficacy theory), and attempting to maintain one's self-esteem (self-worth theory).

• The guiding principle in attribution theory is the assumption that the way humans explain their own past success and failures will significantly affect their future achievement behaviour.

• Self-efficacy theory refers to people's judgement of their capabilities to carry out certain specific tasks, and, accordingly, their sense of efficacy will determine their choice of the activities attempted, as well as the level of their aspirations, the amount of effort exerted, and the persistence displayed.

• In self-worth theory of achievement motivation, the highest human priority is the need for self-acceptance and therefore 'in reality, the dynamics of school achievement largely reflect attempts to aggrandise and protect self-perceptions of ability' (Covington & Roberts 1994).

Value:
A model of task values by Eccles and Wigfield consists of four components: attainment value (or importance), intrinsic values (or interest), extrinsic utility value, and cost.

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References:

Dornyei, Z. (1998) Motivation in second and foreign language learning. Thames Valley University, London.

Pintrick and Schunk (1996) Motivation in education: theory, research, and applications. Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice Hall.

Jerome Bruner

Born: 1 October, 1915
Died: 5 June, 2016

For Bruner, the process of education is as important as its product.  The development of conceptual understanding and of cognitive skills and strategies is a central aim of education, rather than the acquisition of factual information.  He saw that learning must have a purpose that learners must experience success and that learning should take place in contexts that have familiar formats and routines, such as, e.g. bedtime story telling.  His research emphasised the role of the teacher: children need someone to lead them on to higher levels (scaffolding learning). In principle, anything can be taught to children of any age, provided it is presented in a 

Here is a summary of constructivist principles from Brooks and Brooks (1993):

Student autonomy and initiative are accepted and encouraged.
Students who frame questions and issues and then go about analysing and answering them take responsibility for their own learning and become problem solvers.

The teacher asks open-ended questions and allows wait time for responses.
Reflective thought built on others' ideas and comments.

Higher-level thinking is encouraged.
The teacher encourages students to connect and summarize concepts by analysing, predicting, justifying, and defending their ideas.

Students are engaged in dialogue with the teacher and with each other.
Social discourse helps students change or reinforce their ideas.  If they have the chance to present what they think and hear others' ideas, students can build a personal knowledge base that they understand.

Students are engaged in experiences that challenge hypotheses and encourage discussion.
The constructivist teacher provides opportunities for students to test their hypotheses, especially through group discussion of concrete experiences.

The class uses raw data, primary sources, physical, ans interactive materials.
The constructivist approach involves students in real-world possibilities.