Value 30%

In pairs, students will present a ten minute overview of one of the multimedia principles. Your presentation should:

  • Explain and define the principle
  • Provide examples of how it can materialize and be applied in multimedia learning
  • Provide some details of any relevant research related to the principle. For this you should go beyond the textbook and look for recent articles if applicable. A library search of recent research for the title of the principle would be a good start.
  • Provide personal reflections on the principles worth and relevance to your own learning
  • Reflect on the principles validity in light of the modern multimedia landscape (GenAI, advanced creation tools, social media, etc.)

Each team will be given a couple additional minutes for peers to provide questions, feedback, and insights to each group.

Evaluation Criteria

  • A well-prepared 10-minute presentation that captures the details above
  • Thoughtful use of multimedia as needed when presenting
  • Both members of the group should be contributing equality to the presentation.

A peer evaluation form will follow each presentation for self and team evaluation.

The Fifteen Principles

The principles are drawn from The Cambridge Handbook of Multimedia Learning. Cambridge University Press by Mayer, R. E. (Ed.). (2005).

Split-attention principle: People learn better when words and pictures are physically and temporally integrated (Chapter 8, by Ayres and Sweller).

Modality principle: People learn better from graphics and narration than from graphics and printed text (Chapter 9, by Low and Sweller).

Redundancy principle: People learn better when the same information is not presented in more than one format (Chapter 10, by Kalyuga and Sweller).

Signaling principle: People learn better when cues are added that highlight the key information and its organization (Chapter 11, by van Gog).

Guided discovery principle: People learn better when guidance is incorporated into discovery-based multimedia environments (Chapter 15, by de Jong and Lazonder).

Worked examples principle: People learn better when they receive worked examples in initial skill learning (Chapter 16, by Renkl).

Self-explanation principle: People learn better when they are encouraged to generate self-explanations during learning (Chapter 17, by Wylie and Chi).

Generative Drawing principle: People learn better when they create drawings as they read explanative text (Chapter 18, by Leutner and Schmeck).

Feedback principle: People learn better from multimedia lessons when they receive explanative feedback on their performance (Chapter 19, by Johnson and Priest).

Multiple representation principle: There are circumstances under which people learn better from multiple representations (Chapter 20, by Ainsworth).

Learner control principle: People do not necessarily learn better when they have more control of the selection and organization of the material (Chapter 21, by Scheiter).

Animation principle: People do not necessarily learn better from animation than from static diagrams (Chapter 22, by Lowe and Schnotz).

Collaboration principle: People can learn better with collaborative online learning activities (Chapter 23, by Kirschner, Kirschner, and Janssen).

Expertise Reversal Principle: Instructional design principles that enhance multimedia learning for novices may hinder multimedia learning for more expert learners (Chapter 24, by Kalyuga).

Working memory principle: The effectiveness of instructional design principles depends on the learner’s working memory capacity (Chapter 25, by Wiley, Sanchez, and Jaeger).

Photo by Wilson Blanco on Unsplash