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Why e‐Learning can actually be effective for learning – an understanding from psycho‐cognitive science. eLearning Forum Asia 2011, NTU Singapore 1

Why e‐Learning can actually be effective for learning – an understanding from psycho‐ cognitive science. Why e‐Learning can actually be effective for learning – an understanding from psycho‐ cognitive science.

Intended Outcomes

• At the end of this presentation,

participants should be able to:

– Identify with at least 3 common types of reason often quoted for use of e‐learning with today’s students. – Describe the hard sciences behind these often quoted reasons. – Verify/Debunk these often quoted reasons with scientific research. – Suggest some approaches to effective e‐learning pedagogies.

Haven’t we all seen this?

Why e‐Learning can actually be effective for learning – an understanding from psycho‐cognitive science. eLearning Forum Asia 2011, NTU Singapore 2

Have you asked yourself the followings?

• Is being Digital Natives make a

difference in their learning?

• Are they true multitaskers?

How is this affects their learning?

• Collaboration (e.g. peer

engagements) helps memory retention? How can we help

• ur students to learn more

effectively?

Common reason 1: Digital Natives vs Digital Immigrants Is there a neurological basis for this?

How do human learn?

• Human brain retains

information by association of neurons in the brain – memory.

• Often we learn

something new best by associating this with what we already knew.

Why e‐Learning can actually be effective for learning – an understanding from psycho‐cognitive science. eLearning Forum Asia 2011, NTU Singapore 3 What is technology?

“Technology are things that are invented after we were born.” – source Unknown Why e‐Learning make sense for Digital Native?

• Technology and their use

are part and parcel of the daily lives for our students.

• Engaging them in learning

therein can help in their memory association. Common reason 2: Generation Y are multitasking learners

Why e‐Learning can actually be effective for learning – an understanding from psycho‐cognitive science. eLearning Forum Asia 2011, NTU Singapore 4

– Learning requires attention and focus.

Requirement for learning

– Learning requires attention and focus.

Quality vs Quantity

• Human brain cannot multitask well (i.e. not giving

each task at hand their required attention span – doubling the error rate and time required to switch between tasks).

Don’t text/dial and drive!

Why e‐Learning can actually be effective for learning – an understanding from psycho‐cognitive science. eLearning Forum Asia 2011, NTU Singapore 5 What is the fact?

• Human are better at

serial tasking than true multitasking.

• Help our students to

focus on doing one task at a time, and to do that well, i.e. reduce other distractions. Suggestion for e‐Learning environment

• Create focused environment for learning – less

distractions, better learning.

Common reason 3: Collaborations improve learning

Why e‐Learning can actually be effective for learning – an understanding from psycho‐cognitive science. eLearning Forum Asia 2011, NTU Singapore 6

Human are social beings.

How this helps learning?

• Collaboration tap into the

multisensory parts of the human brain.

• Help our students to

build associations between different sensory engaged in learning – better memory retention.

Suggestion for e‐Learning

• Use e‐tools for

collaborative learning.

• Dedicated immersive e‐

learning platforms, such as BlackBoard etc., offer

• pportunities for

students collaboration within focused context of learning.

Why e‐Learning can actually be effective for learning – an understanding from psycho‐cognitive science. eLearning Forum Asia 2011, NTU Singapore 7 Summary of our discussion

3 often quoted reasons for adopting e‐Learning Like? Neuroscience findings Suggestions Digital Natives Human brain retains information by association of neurons in the brain – memory. Human brain learns best by association. Engaging students’ learning both in digital and physical space can help with their memory association. Generation Y are multitaskers Human brain cannot multitask well. Learning requires attention and focus. Create focused environment for learning – less distractions, better learning. Collaborations improve learning Collaboration tap into the multisensory parts of the human

• brain. Helps with memory

retention and associative learning. Use e‐tools for collaborative learning.

Tying these together

More effective e‐Learning

Engage students in their relevant environment. Help students focus on learning by creating an environment for learning. Engage student with multisensory inputs via collaborative learning.

Reference sources

• Medina, J. (2008). Brain Rules:: 12 principles for

surviving and thriving at work, home, and school. Pear

• Press. ISBN: 0‐97977‐770‐4.
• Miller, G.A. (1956). The magical number seven, plus or

minus two: Some limits on our capacity for processing

• information. Psychological Review, 63,81‐97.
• Peterson, L. & Peterson, M. (1959). Short‐term

retention of individual verbal items. Journal of Experimental Psychology, 58, 193‐198.

• Sweller, J. (1999). Instructional Design in Technical
• Areas. Acer Press. ISBN: 0‐86431‐312‐8.

Why e‐Learning can actually be effective for learning – an understanding from psycho‐cognitive science. eLearning Forum Asia 2011, NTU Singapore 8 Reference sources

• Sweller, J. (1988). Cognitive Load During Problem

Solving: Effects on Learning. Cognitive Science, 12, 257‐285.

• Ophir, E., Nass, C. & Wagner, A.D. (in press).

Cognitive control in media multitaskers. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

• Ivanoff, J., Branning, P., Marois, R. (2008). fMRI

Evidence for a Dual Process Account of the Speed‐Accuracy Tradeoff in Decision‐Making. PLoS ONE 3(7): e2635. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0002635

Reference sources

• Newman, S. D., Keller, T. A. & Just, M. A. (2007).

Volitional Control of Attention and Brain Activation in Dual Task Performance. Human Brain Mapping, 28, 109‐117.

• Virginia Tech Transportation Institute. (2009).

New Data from VTTI Provides Insight into Cell Phone Use and Driving Distraction. http://www.vtti.vt.edu/PDF/7‐22‐09‐VTTI‐ Press_Release_Cell_phones_and_Driver_Distracti

• n.pdf

Thank You!