In an online course, with instant access to
vast resources of data and information, students are no longer totally
dependent on faculty for knowledge. As faculty are beginning to teach
online, learning is becoming more collaborative, contextual and
active.
Learning
requires a change in the schematic structures of long term memory and is demonstrated
by performance that progresses from clumsy, error-prone, slow and difficult
to smooth and effortless. The change in performance occurs because as the
learner becomes increasingly familiar with the material, the cognitive characteristics
associated with the material are altered so that it can be handled more efficiently
by working memory
information contained in instructional material must first be
processed by working memory
Specific recommendations relative to the
design of instructional material include:
Change problem solving methods to avoid means-ends approaches that impose
a heavy working memory load, by using goal-free problems or worked examples.
Eliminate the working memory load associated with having to mentally integrate
several sources of information by physically integrating those sources of
information.
Eliminate the working memory load associated with unnecessarily processing
repetitive information by reducing redundancy.
Increase working memory capacity by using auditory as well as visual information
under conditions where both sources of information are essential (i.e. non-redundant)
to understanding.
Jerome Bruner's theoretical framework that learning is an active process in which learners construct new ideas or concepts based upon their current/past knowledge.