How Knowledge Segmentation Helps Reduce Cognitive Overload

Have you ever wondered why ScootPad breaks down each learning standard into concepts?

The reason is based on cognitive research, which shows that if students are presented with information in manageable, bite-sized segments and are allowed processing time between successive segments, the approach helps reduce cognitive load. 

This method enables students to absorb each piece of information before proceeding to the next and gives students the chance to effectively organize and assimilate the information, leading to deeper understanding and long-term retention.1

What is Cognitive Overload?

Working memory is the aspect of our brain that processes information in the moment. It engages in almost every aspect of learning. This creates a challenge because working memory can only store small amounts of information at a time. In fact, information in working memory lasts only around ten seconds. These conditions set up the phenomenon known as cognitive load—a concept that was first introduced in the late 1970s.2

Overload is a state of mental exhaustion that occurs when the demands placed on working memory exceed its capacity. When the amount of information exceeds the capacity of working memory, it can result in decreased performance, difficulty concentrating, and other negative outcomes.3

In the context of online instruction, meaningful learning requires substantial cognitive processing, but the learner’s capacity for cognitive processing is limited. A simple example of this situation is when a student is presented with an entire standard to be mastered in a short window of time. Absorbing all the information associated with the full standard can present challenges for many students, resulting in learning gaps.

Evidence of Impact

Numerous research studies over the last forty years show that knowledge segmentation reduces cognitive overload and improves knowledge retention. These studies include observations of online, multimedia, and non-digital learning experiences.

The 2024 study by researcher Dongyang Liu examined how segmenting multimedia instructional content reduced students’ cognitive load and improved vocabulary learning, retention, and reading comprehension. The study showed that segmentation supports learning efficiency and facilitates more profound understanding.4

Another 2024 study by Cybeline Harilal and her colleagues showed how instructional design strategies that “chunk” or section information decrease the strain on working memory and produce a better experience for students. The study also showed how simple, clear diagrams, infographics, and videos aid retention.5 

Implementation in ScootPad

ScootPad’s pedagogical design embraces the knowledge segmentation approach, further explored in the white paper “The Science Behind the ScootPad Mastery Learning Program.”

In ScootPad, each learning standard is segmented into multiple, smaller concepts that are interconnected and sequenced in the ScootPad Knowledge Map. Students practice these fine-grained concepts in a logical progression with processing time inserted between successive concepts, leading to more effective mastery of the full standard.

Concepts are scaffolded automatically for each student and presented sequentially according to the student’s individual learning needs and knowledge gaps.

Example: Kindergarten Math

Following is an example of Kindergarten Math learning standards segmented into concepts.

In the image below, Kindergarten standards (K.CC.A.1, K.MD. A.1, etc.) are sectioned or “chunked” into several composite concepts, which are interconnected and sequenced in the ScootPad Knowledge Map. These concepts are then strategically organized and sequenced using a Learning Path made of multiple units, each consisting of a collection of concepts.As the student progresses and demonstrates proficiency in each concept, ScootPad automatically presents the subsequent concept to learn. In this example, all concepts labeled “1” are available in the first set of practice sessions. As the “1s” are mastered, the next concepts, labeled “2” within the same strand, are presented, and so on. The colors below denote concepts associated with a specific strand, e.g., Counting and Cardinality or Measurement and Data.

A student who demonstrates proficiency in these concepts within a unit will move on to successive units and be presented with more concepts that build from the previous unit. As shown below, once students start in this new unit, the learning continues with more challenging concepts.

Conclusion

ScootPad is unique in its ability to section each standard into digestible segments and present “just-right” concepts as students are ready for them. This approach reduces cognitive overload, enables students to focus, and allows for processing time between successive concepts. As researcher Dongyang Liu would describe it, with segmentation, students are better able to “hold the information without simultaneous exposure to new input.”6

Further, the student has the time and capacity to organize and integrate the knowledge, resulting in more effective mastery of the full standard. In this way, ScootPad transforms how knowledge is processed, retained, and recalled, promoting deep, long-lasting learning.

  1. Mayer, R. E., & Moreno, R. (2003). ​ Nine ways to reduce cognitive load in multimedia learning. Educational Psychologist, 38(1), 43-52. https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1207/S15326985EP3801_6 ↩︎
  2. Malamed, C. What is cognitive load? The eLearning Coach Monthly Newsletter, https://theelearningcoach.com/learning/what-is-cognitive-load/ ↩︎
  3. Marousis, A. (2023, April 7). What is cognitive overload? Causes, effects, and solutions. Talentcards. https://www.talentcards.com/blog/what-is-cognitive-overload/ ↩︎
  4. Liu, D. (2024) The effects of segmentation on cognitive load, vocabulary learning and retention, and reading comprehension in a multimedia learning environment. BMC Psychology 12, 4. https://doi.org/10.1186/s40359-023-01489-5 ↩︎
  5. Harilal, C., Sokhela, C., & van der Walt, M. (2024). Optimising instructional design strategies to mitigate cognitive overload. International Conference on Education Research. 1. 75-83. ↩︎
  6. Liu, D. (2024) The effects of segmentation on cognitive load, vocabulary learning and retention, and reading comprehension in a multimedia learning environment. BMC Psychology 12, 4. https://doi.org/10.1186/s40359-023-01489-5 ↩︎

Comments are closed.

Up ↑