Theoretical framework
The researchers used Richard E. Mayer’s cognitive theory of multimedia learning that is based on three main assumptions: there are two separate channels (auditory and visual) for processing information; there is limited channel capacity; and that learning is an active process of filtering, selecting, organizing, and integrating information. (Retrieved from: www.learning-theories.com/cognitive-theory-of-multimedia-learning-mayer.html)
Cognitive theory of multimedia learning contends that words and pictures presented to the learner via a multimedia presentation are processed along two separate, non-conflicting channels. They enter the sensory memory through the ears and eyes. Words and images are actively selected by the learner from the sensory memory and enter the working memory where they are organized into a verbal model and a pictorial model. Each channel can process only a few “chunks” of information at a given time in working memory. The two models are then integrated with prior knowledge retrieved from long-term memory. This integration occurs within the working memory following each segmented portion of instruction offered to the learner in the multimedia presentation. (Retrieved from: www.etec.ctlt.ubc.ca/510wiki/Cognitive_Theory_of_Multimedia_Learning)
The multimedia principle states that “people learn more deeply from words and pictures than from words alone” (Mayer; 1998). However, simply adding words to pictures is not an effective way to achieve multimedia learning. The goal is to instructional media in the light of how human mind works. This is the basis for Mayer’s cognitive theory of multimedia learning. (Mayer; 1998)
The researchers used Edward Thorndike’s Decay theory which proposes that memory fades due to the mere passage of time. Information is therefore less available for later retrieval as time passes and memory, as well as memory strength, wears away. When we learn something new, a neurochemical “memory trace” is created. However, over time this trace slowly disintegrates. Actively rehearsing information is believed to be a major factor counteracting this temporal decline. It is widely believed that neurons die off gradually as we age, yet some older memories can be stronger than most recent memories. Thus, decay theory mostly affects the short-term memory system, meaning that older memories (in long-term memory) are often more resistant to shocks or physical attacks on the brain. It is also thought that the passage of time alone cannot cause forgetting, and that Decay Theory must also take into account some processes that occur as more time passes. (Retrieved from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Decay_theory)