Module+3+Discussion+2

Mayer's Priciple: Coherence

The coherence principle states that people learn better when extraneous material is excluded. This includes interesting but irrelevant words, pictures, sound, and music, as well as unneeded words and symbols (Mayer, 2009).

Reference: Mayer, R.E. (2009). //Multimedia learning// (2nd ed.). Cambridge, MA: Cambridge University Press.

Rashida'a Example: How to Do Long Division [] This video explains how to do long division, but it violates the coherence principle in two major ways. First, the discussion of the definitions of dividend, divisor, and quotient is unnecessary in this explanation of how to do long division. Second, at the end of the video, a fact is included about how Egyptians performed multiplication and division. This information is an interesting but irrelevant fact about division.

Valenta's Example:

According to Muller, Lee, and Sharmar (2008) "Adding approximately 50% extra interesting but irrelevant information to a multimedia treatment did not result in lower achievement on a post-test as would be predicted by the coherence principle." Their study indicates adding information that is interested could be a way to capture the learner attention in the "authentic learning setting employed in the experiment." (P. 220)

Muller, D., Lee, K., & Sharmar, M. (2008). Coherence or interest: Which is most important in online multimedia learning?. //Australasian Journal of Educational Technology//, //2//(24), 211-221. Retrieved from @http://citeseerx.ist.psu.edu/viewdoc/download?doi=10.1.1.127.2885&rep=rep1&type=pdf

Vida's example

This video reflects a poor multimedia presentation which breached the coherence principle. First, the narrator was neither clear nor audible. I found that I was using so much cognitive capacity processing what she was saying that I was distracted from the essential content in the presentation. In addition, the screen color was too distracting and the font sizes at times was so small that I could not understand the text. The video actually lists a number of errors at the end of the video.

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