Cognitive Load and Working Memory in Multimedia Learning: Conceptual and Measurement Issues

“Sweller (1988) hypothesized that if learners treat problem solving as the primary task, learning becomes a secondary task, and poorer learning could result from high-demand problem solving.”

“According to this model, working memory consists of four components: the central executive, the phonological loop, the visuo-spatial sketchpad, and the episodic buffer (Baddeley, 2000).”

“From the CLT perspective, it would be necessary to include other factors in the study design, such as measurements of working memory capacity (Anmarkrud et al., 2019).”

“For example, the recent systematic reviews focused mainly on the working memory (Anmarkrud et al., 2019), cognitive load (Mutlu-Bayraktar et al., 2019), eye tracking (Alemdag & Cagiltay, 2018), and trends and issues (Li et al., 2019).”

“Eye tracking allows collecting several features that are similarly used to investigate both visual fatigue (Park & Mun, 2015) and cognitive load (Anmarkrud et al., 2019).”

“For this purpose, CLT proposes design principles for instructional materials and procedures that aim at reducing unnecessary load on working memory and freeing up capacity for learning-related processing (Anmarkrud et al., 2019).”

“Self-reports are based on the assumption that individuals can evaluate and rate their own cognitive processes, including - for example - the level of mental workload during completion of a task (Anmarkrud et al., 2019, p. 5).”

“Because these indicators can mirror the combined effects of several ongoing cognitive processes (Anmarkrud et al., 2019; Kok & Jarodzka, 2017), deciphering the cognitive meaning of learners’ visual attention distribution based solely on eye tracking technology can be difficult.”

“As other review studies have shown, it is neglected in research on multimedia and CL [74].”

“As an alternative to those mentioned above, physiological methods have been suggested as more objective measures of cognitive load (Anmarkrud et al., 2019; Mayer, 2019; Mutlu-Bayraktar et al., 2019; Parasuraman & Rizzo, 2007; Sweller et al., 2019).”

“The cognitive load scale is based on the seven-point scale proposed by Hwang et al. (2013) and the research on the reliability and validity of cognitive load by Anmarkrud et al. (2019).”

“Cognitive load has typically been measured with subjective ratings, physiological measures and performance in the secondary task (e.g., Anmarkrud et al., 2019; Leppink et al., 2013; Paas et al., 2003).”

“In the present study, WMwas shown to be one of those factors, which is in accordance with the work of Anmarkrud et al. (2019). The findings suggest that WM predicted the participants’ learning and Working memory and vocabulary learning from multimedia 23”

“According to Anmarkrud et al. (2019), objective cognitive load measurement techniques include various meth-ods such as physiological and dual-task methodology.”

“Future studies aiming to explain why negative emotions pose a detrimental effect on learning are needed, including cognitive load and its relation to working memory (Seufert, 2018; Anmarkrud et al., 2019).”

“This self-report scale of mental effort enjoys widespread use and is deemed a reliable and valid estimator of cognitive load [68], [69].”

“Working memory as the initial information processor has duration and capacity limitations while long-term memory where the information is stored is unlimited (Anmarkrud et al., 2019; Canham & Hegarty, 2010; Sweller et al., 2019).”

“The first is that measurement and manipulation refinement are insufficient, making presence and ECL self-evident strengths and weaknesses of immersion, respectively, instead of being supported by sufficient evidence (Anmarkrud et al., 2019).”

“Subjective methods which are based on self-reporting have limitations for instantaneous or online assessment of cognitive load, and they are mainly being used for overall and average assessment of mental workload (Anmarkrud et al., 2019).”

“GCL is concerned with the connection of new information with long-term memory representations and describes actual learning [46].”

“…of the learning task, the way the learning material is presented or the type of instructional activities that the learner participates in, and the process in which the learner relates relevant information from their long-term memory to information from the present learning task [30,31].”

“(3) Simulation and visualization, with animation, simulation, and visualization technology, users will get more real and abstract information.”

“Multimedia learning thus involves acquiring new knowledge through the information presented in verbal and pictorial forms (Anmarkrud et al., 2019).”

“Children’s cognitive development refers to the growth and progression of a child’s thinking, their ability to solve problems, use their memory, pay attention, speak, and process information (Anmarkrud et al., 2019).”

“The cognitive effort required when working in multimedia learning environments (like a computer simulation) is usually high (Anmarkrud et al., 2019; Mutlu-Bayraktar, Cosgun, & Altan, 2019).”

“A good presentation mode and interaction will greatly reduce the cognitive load required for learning, improve the learning effect of students and the teaching effect of teachers (Anmarkrud et al., 2019; Wang et al., 2020).”

“Subjective measures, however, have some limitations, such as limited reliability and validity (Brunken et al., 2003; Anmarkrud et al., 2019).”

“…multimedia learning has mainly emphasized the role of WM capacity in the context of individual differences, while the possible contribution of sustained attention was not investigated (Anmarkrud et al., 2019; Doolittle & Mariano, 2008; Kozan et al., 2015; Sanchez & Wiley, 2006; Wiley et al., 2014).”

“Through subjective methods it is assumed that learners can make credible estimations about the cognitive load they experienced (Anmarkrud et al., 2019).”

“The purpose of applying CLT in the classroom is to reduce the cognitive load that hinders learning (Anmarkrud et al., 2019), and to promote the cognitive load that favors learning (Sweller et al., 1998).”

“Processing coding structures with multiple hierarchical levels is expected to generate substantial cognitive load, which refers to the cognitive demands imposed on learners’ working memory system (Anmarkrud et al., 2019; Paas & Van Merriënboer, 1994).”

“The actual results may be influenced by factors such as lag, leading to biased outcomes and affecting the credibility of the obtained information [14].”

“Consequently, eye-tracking data should be used in conjunction with other cognitive load measurements (Anmarkrud et al., 2019; van Gog & Jarodzka, 2013).”

“As WM has a limited capacity, the cognitive load theory pinpoints the importance of reducing unnecessary WM loads, allowing students’ to direct their WM capacity to merely learning-related processes (Anmarkrud et al., 2019).”

“While there has been reasonably wide discussion of the applications of CLT to traditional learning environments (Anmarkrud et al., 2019), most of this research has focused on ways of improving instructional and material design, giving rise to a collection of well-discussed effects, such as the…”

“The experienced mental load and invested mental effort are most often measured with subjective rating scales (e.g., Naismith et al., 2015; Anmarkrud et al., 2019).”

“Different video-based environments may yield varying instructional performance and cognitive load (Anmarkrud et al., 2019; Wang et al., 2020).”

“Concurrently, self-reports are the most prevalent approach to cognitive load measurement in the field of education (Anmarkrud et al., 2019).”

“Moreover, Anmarkrud, and Andresen [15] indicate the importance of cognitive load theory to examine the potential benefits of using multimedia in learning.”

“Numerous studies on multimedia learning or DPS use the cognitive load theory (Sweller, 2011) to show that these processes can generate extraneous cognitive overload and challenge working memory capacity (Anmarkrud et al., 2019; DeStefano & LeFevre, 2007; Kalyuga, 2007).”

“The two main identified resources impacting working memory load are intrinsic cognitive load and extraneous cognitive load (Anmarkrud et al., 2019).”

“Moreover, recent critical review studies (Anmarkrud et al., 2019; Rey et al., 2019) on multimedia-based learning in light of CLT have shown that many previous studies have not measured STM capacity for the same respondents who are part of experiments that investigate LOs from multimedia.”

“There are several challenges studying cognitive load (Anmarkrud et al., 2019; Kirschner et al., 2011; Moreno, 2010).”

“Cognitive load theory (CLT), states that selectively attendant and processing incoming sensory data are limited in working memory capacity (Anmarkrud et al., 2019).”

“However, subjective methods have limitations in providing real-time assessments and may introduce bias [31], [32].”

“Despite offering a viable approach in diverse situations, such questionnaires may nevertheless suffer from subjective bias and low data resolution [4,9,102,15].”

“According to researchers, there are currently no generally accepted or widely used means of measuring cognitive load, but researchers propose the development of such tools (Anmarkrud et al., 2019; Leppink et al., 2013; Thor-vald & Lindblom, 2014; Vainshtein et al., 2019).”

“The goal is for motivating students to learn more, involving in the discovery of implicit mathematical ideas, supporting in reducing cognitive load, and improving higher-order thinking processes (Anmarkrud et al., 2019; von Thienen et al., 2021). The description's points confirm the importance of developing mathematic…”

“In referring to tasks that have authenticity, some authors have highlighted the need for greater use of contextualised learning and assessment tasks (Anmarkrud et al., 2019; De Jong, 2010; Martin, 2014).”

“Based on the research conducted by [13], the condition occurs when media is presented to students with low prior knowledge or aptitude in the domain being studied.”

“There are several proposed measures but among them, the subjective measures (e.g., self-rating scale) are the most used references (Anmarkrud et al., 2019).”

“That is, a task modulates the cognitive load can introduce con fl ict between the stimulus location and the response e ff ect direction (Sankaranarayanan et al., in press); the speed of processing messages can re fl ect cognitive load immediately (Anmarkrud et al., 2019).”

“The executive function and cognitive load theory supports working memory and attentional control are a central component of executive functions vital for problem solving and handling huge informations without difficulty [19].”

“Additionally, cognitive load theory suggests that learners’ working memory capacity is limited, and excessive cognitive load hinders effective learning (Anmarkrud et al., 2019).”

“However, some institutions are deterred because of robust findings that online learning is associated with high cognitive load and feelings of disorientation (Anmarkrud, Andresen, and Bråten 2019; Grangeia et al. 2016).”

“Objective measures of cognitive load involve an analysis of performance outcome, behavioral patterns, and physiological conditions related to the learning process [21, 22].”

“These have been used extensively in educational research to examine how instructional design, task complexity, and learner characteristics influence cognitive processing (Anmarkrud, Andresen, and Bråten 2019).”

“…pedagógicas multimedia ayudan a percibir y asimilar la información a través de la mediación intensa de los sistemas visual y auditivo con la participación de distintas partes de córtex cerebral y la activación de un gran número de conexiones neurales (Anmarkrud et al., 2019; Soemer, 2016).”

“Whereas CLT explains the effectiveness of learnings that makes valuable connections, CMLT shows the value of balancing the auditory and visual channel in learning, such as in podcasts.”

“The brain has two key memory systems: working memory, crucial for processing and temporarily storing information (Alloway, 2009; Anmarkrud et al., 2019), and long-term memory, which organises and retrieves information (comprehending, storing, and retrieving new knowledge), are pivotal in learning…”