A cognitive-load approach to collaborative learning: task and learner characteristics

Beschrijving project
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Beschrijving project

While all levels of education are making use of collaborative1 learning techniques in
both traditional and electronic learning environments, the effectiveness of these types
of education/learning has still not been proven. The results are mixed (at best) and
educators often have to implement extra measures to either ensure that the
participants work together (e.g., requiring a specific number of contributions in
electronic environments or requiring attendance in face-to-face environments) or
ensure that all learners engage in the learning process (e.g., implementing roles,
scripts, and assessment schemes). The basic assumption of this project is that if
individual learners are to work together effectively in groups, the architecture of their
cognitive system and the characteristics of the task must be understood,
accommodated, and aligned. Specifically, this means that the characteristics of the
(group) task must be such that the cognitive system of each of the individuals is not
capable of accommodating its solution AND the group communication and
coordination activities necessary for effectively functioning as a team (i.e., the
cognitive transaction costs) do not impede the collaboration process. This project
uses a cognitive load theory-based approach to develop a method to determine a
groups cognitive load and to investigate how task complexity (i.e., intrinsic cognitive
load) and the learner characteristics expertise and age can inform the design of
effective group-based environments for lifelong learning.

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Volledige projectbeschrijving (Engelstalig)

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Femke Kirschner