How to Help Students Make Informed Assessments of Cognitive Load: Examining the Role of Training Interventions

Measuring cognitive load and its different types is a significant challenge that is closely related to the development of cognitive load theory (CLT). Previous research has shown that students have difficulty assessing cognitive load after learning or problem-solving. Accordingly, they may not reliably differentiate between the different types of cognitive load. Moreover, students may not consider the entire problem-solving process in their overall cognitive load assessment. The purpose of this work was to examine two training interventions designed to assist students in making informed cognitive load assessments. Study 1 (N = 99) included pre-training with a theoretical introduction to CLT to improve differentiation between cognitive load types. Study 2 (N = 80) implemented post-training by instructing students to consider all impressions during problem-solving for the overall load assessment. As both interventions were unsuccessful, further research is needed to assist students in assessing cognitive load in an informed manner.