Visual representations in science education: The influence of prior knowledge and cognitive load theory on instructional design principles
Open accessAbstract
Visual representations are essential for communicating ideas in the science classroom; however, the design of such representations is not always beneficial for learners. This paper presents instructional design considerations providing empirical evidence and integrating theoretical concepts related to cognitive load. Learners have a limited working memory, and instructional representations should be designed with the goal of reducing unnecessary cognitive load. However, cognitive architecture alone is not the only factor to be considered; individual differences, especially prior knowledge, are critical in determining what impact a visual representation will have on learners' cognitive structures and processes. Prior knowledge can determine the ease with which learners can perceive and interpret visual representations in working memory. Although a long tradition of research has compared experts and novices, more research is necessary to fully explore the expert–novice continuum and maximize the potential of visual representations. © 2006 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Sci Ed 90:1073–1091, 2006
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Decorative images are one of the most prevalent functions of representations.
“Decorative images are one of the most prevalent functions of representations (Perales and Jimenez, 2002; Cook, 2006; Gibin et al., 2009; Nyachwaya and Gillaspie, 2016).”
From An analysis of the visual representation of redox reactions and related content in Brazilian secondary school chemistry textbooks (2020) · cites this paper as Cook, 2006
Cites
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Farooq, A., Laato, S., & Islam, A. K. M. N. (2020) · Journal of Medical Internet Research · doi:10.2196/19128 · Cited by 467 · see citing works
Institute of Chemistry, U. O. S. P., Goes, L. F., Chen, X., Department of Biology and Chemistry, I. F. S. E., Nogueira, K. S. C., Universidade Federal de Santa Catarina, C. B., Fernandez, C., Institute of Chemistry, U. O. S. P., Eilks, I., & Department of Biology and Chemistry, I. F. S. E. (2020) · Science Education International · doi:10.33828/sei.v31.i3.10 · Cited by 12 · see citing works
“There is already research dedicated to studying issues related to the different levels of representations used in the sciences and their teaching, related to visual representations in general (Cook, 2006; Eilks et al., 2012), and in textbooks in particular (Cheng and Gilbert, 2014; Kapici and Savasci-Açikalin, 2015).”
Background
- Authors
- Cook, M. P.
- Affiliations
- Clemson University (US)
- Corresponding author
- Cook, Michelle Patrick
- Venue
- Science Education
- Publisher
- Wiley
- Published
- 2006
- Volume
- 90
- Issue
- 6
- Pages
- 1073-1091
- ISSN
- 0036-8326 (ISSN-L)
- 1098-237X
- OpenAlex
- W1991964822
- Cited by
- 538
- References
- 12
- Citations by year
- 2026: 16 · 2025: 25 · 2024: 28 · 2023: 38 · 2022: 26 · 2021: 41 · 2020: 44 · 2019: 43 · 2018: 39 · 2017: 41 · 2016: 33 · 2015: 43 · 2014: 26 · 2013: 22 · 2012: 19
- FWCI
- 10.51
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- bronze
- doi.org
- Locations
- Science Education (publishedVersion)
- Topics
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Experimental and Cognitive Psychology › Visual and Cognitive Learning Processes
- Social Sciences › Education › Science Education and Pedagogy
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Developmental and Educational Psychology › Innovative Teaching and Learning Methods
- Keywords
- visual representation, prior knowledge, cognitive load theory, instructional design, working memory, expert-novice differences, individual differences, cognitive architecture
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