ERIC Number: EJ884074
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2010-Apr
Pages: 16
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-0950-0693
EISSN: N/A
Instructional Efficiency of Changing Cognitive Load in an Out-of-School Laboratory
Scharfenberg, Franz-Josef; Bogner, Franz X.
International Journal of Science Education, v32 n6 p829-844 Apr 2010
Our research objective focused on monitoring students' mental effort and cognitive achievement to unveil potential effects of an instructional change in an out-of-school laboratory offering gene technology modules. Altogether, 231 students (12th graders) attended our day-long hands-on module. Within a quasi-experimental design, a treatment group followed the newly developed two-step approach derived from cognitive load theory while a control group applied experimentation in a conventional one-step mode. The difference consisted of additional focused discussions combined with noting students' ideas (Step 1) prior to starting any experimental procedure (Step 2). We monitored mental effort (nine times during the teaching unit) and cognitive achievement (in a pre-post-design with follow-up test). The treatment demonstrated a change in instructional efficiency (by combining mental effort and cognitive achievement data), especially for intrinsically high-loaded students. Conclusions for optimizing individual cognitive load in science teaching were drawn. (Contains 5 tables and 1 figure.)
Descriptors: Instructional Effectiveness, Efficiency, Difficulty Level, Cognitive Processes, Hands on Science, Science Experiments, Laboratory Experiments, Genetics, Science Instruction, Grade 12, Secondary School Students, Foreign Countries, Nonschool Educational Programs, Teaching Methods
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Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Research
Education Level: Secondary Education
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Identifiers - Location: Germany
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A