Where it is used
Each entry identifies the volume, edition, chapter or appendix in which the work appears.
The evidence behind the series
Browse the scientific research and professional literature used across all seven volumes of The Science of Learning for Educators.
Search the collection
Choose an author range, search a title or concept, or narrow the collection by source type. Open any result to see where it appears in the books, read its evidence summary and follow available source links.
1 reference
Mayer and Moreno apply the cognitive theory of multimedia learning to situations in which required processing exceeds working-memory capacity. The theory assumes verbal and pictorial channels with limited capacity and meaningful learning that actively selects, organises, and integrates information.
The authors identify five overload scenarios and connect them to nine tested remedies. These include removing extraneous material, signalling essential structure, aligning words and pictures in space and time, offloading some visual information into spoken narration, segmenting learner-paced presentations, pretraining names and characteristics of key components, and presenting concise rather than redundant verbal material. Other techniques help learners hold representations in memory long enough to integrate them or encourage coordination between channels. The article grounds each recommendation in experimental comparisons rather than a general injunction to make materials simpler.
Its educational value lies in diagnosis: designers should identify the source of overload, preserve essential intellectual work, and select a remedy matched to that specific processing problem.
A transparent research trail
Each entry identifies the volume, edition, chapter or appendix in which the work appears.
Evidence summaries explain the central idea and why the source matters to educators.
Entries link to lawful full text where available, or to a publisher, library or purchase page.
References are checked against publisher records, scholarly indexes, DOI or ISBN metadata, repositories and author records where available. An entry marked [Citation not verified] preserves the wording found in the relevant volume without attributing findings to an unconfirmed work.
From sources to a coherent pathway