The six design principles
In their book e-Learning and the Science of Instruction, Ruth Clark and Richard Mayer explain in great detail six fundamental principles for designing multimedia learning.
Clark and Mayer’s six principles are based on cognitive theory, and more specifically on cognitive load theory and information processing theory.
Lauren Resnick explains cognitive load theory this way:
“Cognitive load theory suggests that effective instructional material facilitates learning by directing cognitive resources toward activities that are relevant to learning rather than toward preliminaries to learning. One example of ineffective instruction occurs if learners are unnecessarily required to mentally integrate disparate sources of mutually referring information such as separate text and diagrams. Such split-source information may generate a heavy cognitive load, because material must be mentally integrated before learning can commence.”
In other words, the more information in various formats (text, audio, video, animation) the learner has to process simultaneously, the more difficult it is to process and acquire the information. Overloading cognitive resources could therefore lead to inefficient processing and reducing knowledge acquisition and appropriation.
Memory and cognitive resource overloading could easily occur if, for example, a learner is trying to read text, while listening to the same text narrated, and viewing an animated sequence related to the content at hand. The learner must attend to information in all channels — visual, auditory, and verbal (text) — simultaneously.
Most importantly, numerous empirical research studies support Clark and Mayer’s principles. I am in full agreement with Richard Mayer as cited by Lisa Neil when he states:
“I do not have any brilliant predictions but I do have some high hopes for 2006: First, that the new year will bring an increase in high-quality research on e-Learning; and second, that the design of e-Learning environments will be based increasingly on scientific evidence and research-based theory of how people learn.”
Research leading to scientific evidence is key to providing sound guidelines and principles for designing instruction.
In this article, I am focusing on the smaller devices. Larger mobile devices do not pose any more design challenges than desktop computers. A tablet PC computer offers large screen sizes and resolutions of 1024 x 768 pixels, as do most desktop computers today. It is with the smaller devices that the following design principles may pose issues and solutions.
The multimedia principle
The multimedia principle is about building a mental connection between verbal (the written words) and pictorial representations (graphics, animations). Clark and Mayer found that words supported by pictures benefit learning more than words alone. In our mobile device world, there may be a problem in implementing this. The PDA, handheld, or smart phone devices with only 128 x 160 pixels resolution (using a two-inch-wide display) will most certainly not be the best medium. The instructional designer will have to create smaller text blocs and use illustrations with popup text if possible. Using popups may be an issue as they are not Section 508 compliant (accessibility).
Solution 1 — Multimedia principle applied to m-Learning
- Create content using smaller chunks of text;
- Use images with popups; and
- Limit scrolling to the very minimum. The modality principle (see below) does provide additional solutions when space is limited.
The modality principle
The modality principle is concerned with the type or mode of media presentation for various types of content. Clark and Mayer recommend using audio instead of written words in order to obtain significant gains in learning. Today audio may be delivered alone via mobile devices, for Podcasting, or may be integrated with other learning content. Using audio to deliver information will leave more display room for other types of content (text and graphics), which is a good thing for m-Learning designers.
Clark and Mayer also recommend having words in audio format instead of visual text on screen when presenting graphics and words simultaneously. They advise caution for situations where words are necessary either for memorization of steps in a procedure, or with complex functions such as mathematical formulas.
Because of space limitations, the m-Learning designer should use words as audio whenever possible. If the learner is located in an airplane or any public area, there will be a need for a headset to listen to the audio.
Solution 2 — Modality principle for m-Learning
- Use words as audio instead of text, whenever possible;
- Keep narration short to ease-up on download time; and
- Provide headsets to your users.
The contiguity principle
In general, Clark and Mayer recommend keeping text close to its corresponding graphic or part of a graphic. In certain cases, you can use popup text or caption labels to identify an action or a state depicted in an illustration. A mouse-over event would trigger this additional information. On the small displays found on PDAs or cell phones, one of the best methods to implement these popups may be Flash Lite or similar technologies (provided the devices your learners have support the technology).
Another finding by Clark and Mayer indicates that you will obtain better results when feedback appears on the same page as the exercise or question. Never open a new window for feedback, and keep practice opportunities with the corresponding exercise. These recommendations are based on cognitive load theory, which suggests that separating elements of learning may create cognitive overload and would therefore not be conducive to learning.
Solution 3 — Contiguity principle
- Use Flash Lite or similar technologies to implement popup text over images; and
- Keep feedback with the question. Do not separate naturally linked content.
The redundancy principle
The redundancy principle calls for eliminating redundant information in various formats simultaneously. It is good practice to avoid having text and narration together if the narration simply reads back the exact same text showing on screen. On the mobile device, there is often not enough space to have long texts without scrolling. Based on both the redundancy principle and the modality principle, it is preferable to have text narrated only, which helps us when designing for the mobile device. The drawback is that it may not be convenient or possible to download large audio files to a mobile device. In some situations, redundant text could be necessary. As a rule, the following decision algorithm will help:
If there are graphics, then
Include narration;
Exclude text;
Else
if there are limited graphics,
OR content is technical,
OR the language is
difficult, then
Consider redundant text.
End if.
(“Language is difficult” means when learning a second language, or when learning about mathematical formulas.)
Solution 4 — Redundancy Principle
- Do not duplicate information;
- Use duplicate narration for language learning; and
- See algorithm above (if... then...)
The coherence principle
In order to “spice up” presentations, some e-Learning products include background environmental sounds or music. In other cases, the authors added flashy illustrations to beautify the product. These added media elements have no positive effect on learning; in fact, they may overload working memory and distract the learner. Clark and Mayer recommend avoiding adding background music and environmental sounds. Again, that helps us greatly in the m-Learning world; any extra media elements are more information to download and to try to position on that small mobile phone display. Therefore, as with designs for large displays, remove any distractions (pictures, videos, words, music) that do not relate to the learning content and learning objectives.
Solution 5 — Coherence principle
- Do not use any type of information that is not related to content and context.
- Do not add illustrations, music, or environmental noises.
The personalization principle
The personalization principle calls for a more conversational style, rather than a formal style in texts and audio narrations. Research found that learners learn better when the content is conversational, without being overly friendly, rather than
when it is delivered with a formal approach. Personalization “...induces learners to engage with the computer as a social conversational partner... ,” according to Clark and Mayer. They recommend using first and second person in both text and audio.
Other personalization approaches could use a coach, or pedagogical agent, to support learning. An agent is a character (animation or video) that will tag along with the learner during the course. On the mobile device, a visible agent may take too much space. For m-Learning, the agent does not have to be visual — an audio agent could do the trick. Another option is to place a small icon on the screen identifying an agent. When needed, or based on user interactions, the agent could pop up and then hide when done.
Solution 6 — Personalization principle
- Use an audio coach or place a small icon on screen to gain access to the coach;
- Create a conversation with the user; and
- Use the first or second person in your narration or text.
Mobile learning authoring tools
In my quick review of market offerings for m-Learning authoring tools, I have found very few software applications that would help the instructional designer to directly design for the mobile device.
That said, I did find two tools that helped me create mobile learning quickly.
Learning Mobile Author
I first tried a tool called Learning Mobile Author, produced by Hot Lava Software (www.hotlavasoftware.com). (See Figure 3)
Figure 3 Learning Mobile Author software. Courtesy of Hot Lava Software
The current version of Learning Mobile Author enables you to create a learning application using graphics, text, and multiple-choice questions, including Web links. The next release of the application adds the capability to integrate audio, music, and Flash content. Creating a 20-question exam for Emergency Preparedness took me about 20 minutes. I already had on hand the questions and illustrations. It took five more minutes to publish the exam for three different platforms: Palm OS, Pocket PC, and WAP 2.0.
Figure 4 shows a sample screen capture for an English as a Second Language (ESL) course published by Hot Lava Software.
Figure 4 An ESL course on a Palm device
I found Learning Mobile Author an effective and simple way to publish for mobile devices, and recommend that designers and developers consider this application for their projects.
Flash Lite 2
I also looked into Adobe Flash (www.adobe.com). Flash provides an update to Flash 8 for publishing Flash Lite 2-compliant applications for the mobile phone. Many mobile devices can use the Flash Lite 2 player to play full m-Learning courses developed using Flash. As mentioned earlier, one can integrate Flash Lite 2 inside Hot Lava Software pages, or use it on its own.
The growing m-Learning industry and how to be prepared for it
The m-Learning industry needs to catch up with the mobile industry at large. Opportunities for m-Learning are here today. Mobile learning will not live on its own; it needs integration as part of a complete learning environment including a Learning Management System, collaboration tools, informal learning management tools, and both push and pull technologies. It is time now, I believe, to get ready for mobile learning initiatives, starting with trying various approaches for designing m-Learning “courselets” and testing them on various types of devices using different operating systems.
I recommend grabbing a copy of Clark and Mayer’s book to acquire a better understanding of the six principles, and to test your ideas about how to implement those principles. Their research supporting the six principles is, from my point of view, of great value to any instructional designer.
Here are a few pointers to get you started with m-Learning.
- Discuss m-Learning opportunities with colleagues. You will soon find out that m-Learning can be useful in some areas of your business. Whether for training your sales staff, educating clients on your business offerings, allowing your mechanics to access information at the site of repair, reviewing procedures, or supporting learning for medical students, m-Learning can be helpful.
- Get your instructional development group to acquire a mobile device and start designing your first m-Learning course.
- Test your course with a selected group and acquire feedback.
- Design the same content and make it fit any device, including the desktop. You will experience the challenges of designing for different screen sizes and various audio, video, and text capabilities. Note your findings, and go back to your discussion group to map the way ahead.
- Start drawing new corporate standards for designing and developing learning, including m-Learning.
References
Clark, Ruth. C., Mayer, Richard. E. (2003). E-Learning and the science of instruction: proven guidelines for consumers and designers of multimedia learning. Jossey-Bass/Pfeiffer Edition. ISBN: 0-7879-6051-0
Neal, Lisa.(2006). Predictions for 2006 — E-Learning experts map the road ahead, Elearn Magazine http://www.elearnmag.org/subpage.cfm?section=articles&article=31-1
eLearningGuild (2006). Future Directions in e-Learning Research Report 2006, www.eLearningGuild.com.
Resnick, Lauren B. (1991). Cognition and Instruction, 1991, Vol. 8, No. 4, Pages 291-292 (http://www.leaonline.com)
Steinberger, Claudia. (2002). Wireless meets Wireline e-Learning. 14th World Conference on Educational Multimedia, Hypermedia and Telecommunications, 2002. Denver, CO, USA
Telecom Trends International, Inc. (2005). Mobile networks revenue to reach over $100 billion in 2011, Telecom Trends International, Inc., Market Research and Strategic Consulting, Falls Church, VA. http://www.telecomtrends.net/Press release 0-MNIS.htm (Editor's Note: As of December 29, 2009, this article appears to have been removed from the Web.)
Trifonova Anna., Ronchetti M. (2003). Where is Mobile Learning Going? Proceedings of the World Conference on E-Learning in Corporate, Government, Healthcare, & Higher Education (E-Learn 2003), Phoenix, Arizona, USA, November 7-11, 2003. pp. 1794-1801
Trifonova, Anna. (2003). Mobile Learning — Review of Literature. Technical report # DIT-03-009. Department of information and communication technology, University of Trento, Italy.
