Guideline 3: Less is More

If you follow just one guideline, follow just this one: Less is More!

• Keep it simple
• Remove extraneous detail
• Pare the learning down to essential components
• Clearly explain how these components relate to one another
• Help learners focus on what’s important.

The capacity for the brain to hold new information is limited.

• By the capacity of working memory (sometimes called short-term memory)
• By the how complex the material is to the learner

So, when learning try to communicate new knowledge:

• no more then 2-4 elements at a given time (i.e. per slide)

Knitted Brain

Some background information and research in case you want to know:

• When introducing new knowledge, the constraints of working memory limit how much information can be processed in a given time frame. Miller, 1950’s discovered the rule of 7 — no more than 7 items could be kept active in short term memory.
• However, when you’re trying to understand something, relate components of an concept, compare and contrast, then you want no more than 2-4 elements in working memory. (Sweller’s cognitive load theory).
• Interference  can limit recall of information. Recall is worse the more facts you learn about a concept. Interference literally knocks the old information out of your brain when attaching new facts to a concept, if the facts have no intrinsic relationship to each other. It interferes when the memory one is trying to create. This is why extraneous information is often not advised. (Anderson, 2006).
• Fan effects – the more facts or links associated with a concept, the longer it will take to recall any one fact.
• Redundancy effects, as opposed to interference,  can help with recall. Especially when the pieces are linked appropriately.

• • Example of irrelevant facts that INTERFERE:
    • Locke was unhappy as a student at Westminster.
    • Locke felt fruits were unwholesome for children.
  • Example 2 of REDUNDANT facts that help in recall.
    • Mozart made a long journey from Munich to Paris.
    • Mozart was intrigued by musical developments coming out of Paris.
• People use redundant facts to infer the target concept.

For more information, read up on Sweller’s cognitive load theory, and Mayer’s theory of Multimedia Learning.