C H U N IK N G

2 . 0Center for Faculty Excellence

Mini-WorkshopKen Silvestri

LEARNING GOALS

After completing this workshop, participants will be able to:

(1.) Apply chunking strategies to content to minimize cognitive load and optimize conditions for learning

(2.) Build in interaction opportunities to facilitate active learning and engagement with content

(3.) Identify tools and ways to use chunking strategies in the Brightspace/D2L LMS

OVERVIEW

CHUNKING 2.0 CONTENT

CHUNKING SIZE (Slides 4-7)

UNCHUNKED

CHUNKING BY TIME (Slides 7, 8)

INTERACTION (Slide 9)

TEXT-BASED (Slides 10-12)

RECORDED LECTURES (Slide 13)

D2L EXAMPLE

CHUNKED

CHUNKING BY SIZE

Miller’s Law:

- Working Memory Capacity is 7 +/- 2 pieces of information

- No more than 5-9 items at any one time

George Miller Image Source: Wikipedia

CHUNKING BY SIZE

George Miller Working Memory Capacity

COM

PLEX

ITY

Image Source: Wikipedia

CHUNKING SIZE

LIST #1 LIST #2

RedOrangeYellowGreenBlue

IndigoViolet

CrimsonMagenta

LilacPuce

Maize CeriseCitrine

CHUNKING BY TIME

Attention Span = 15-20 Minutes

Information

15-20 Minutes

20+ Minutes

CHUNKING BY TIME

Module 2 – Chunking Strategies for Online

Courses

Unit 1 – What is Chunking Item 1 – Why Chunking

Item 2 – Chunking Defined

Item 3 – Rule of Seven

Each Chunk or Series of Smaller Chunks = 15-20 minutes Unit 2 – Chunking by

Time/For Interactivity

Unit 3 – Chunking Text-Based Materials

CHUNKING BY TIME - INTERACTIONSelf-Check Exercise #1: Use the following questions to check your understanding of chunking before moving on to chunking text-based content.

(1.) T/F: As the complexity of new content increases, the ability of working memory to process new content decreases.

(a.) True(b.) False

(2.) MC: Each chunk should take the student approximately:

(a.) 60 minutes to complete(b.) 45 minutes to complete(c.) 30 minutes to complete(d.) 20 minutes to complete

(3.) T/F: Research has shown that the average attention span of an adult learner is 90-120 minutes:

(a.) True(b.) False

(4.) MC: Based on Miller’s Law, what is the maximum amount of information or number of items that can be processed by working memory at one time:

(a.) 2 items (b.) 7 items(c.) 9 items(d.) 12 items

(5.) Long Answer: Describe the benefits of chunking content for online learners.

CHUNKING TEXT-BASED MATERIALSStrategies for chunking text-based content:

1- Avoid long paragraphs or walls of text

2- Use meaningful headings and subheadings

3- Use images and videos to break up text

4- Bullet Points (no more than 5-9 items, less for complex content)

5- Use tables for large amounts of data or to present comparisons side-by-side

TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXTTEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXTTEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXTTEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXTTEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXTTEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT TEXT

WALL OF

TEXT

TEXT-BASED EXAMPLE #1

Example 1 Example 2

TEXT-BASED EXAMPLE #2

Example 1 Example 2

CHUNKING FOR RECORDED LECTURES

Strategies for chunking recorded mini-lectures:

1- 5-10 minute recordings

2- Centered around 1 or 2 related concepts

3- Specific, Descriptive titles

4- Include time

Example #1: Expressing Risk Quotients (5:38)

Example #2: Probabilistic Risk Assessment - Part I (9:21)

Example #3: Probabilistic Risk Assessment – Part II (7:44)

VOLUNTARY APPLICATION ACTIVITY

CHUNKING CHALLENGEPut Your Chunking Skills to the Test

REFERNCES

Burns, Ralph A. (1985) Information impact and factors affecting recall. Paper presented at Annual Conference on Teaching Excellence and Conference of Administrators, Austin, TX (ERIC Document Reproduction Service No. ED 258 639)

Crowell, Liz and Stone, Andrea. Does This Course Make My Content Look Big: The Skinny on Chunking Content. Paper presented at E-Learn: World Conference on E-Learning in Corporate, Government, Healthcare, and Higher Education, Oct 09, 2012 in Montréal, Quebec. Publisher: Association for the Advancement of Computing in Education (AACE), Chesapeake, VA

Jensen, E. Teaching with the Brain in Mind, 2nd Edition. The Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development 2005.

Malamad, Connie. Chunking Information for Instructional Design. Posted on the eLearning Coach Blog on September 24, 2009. http://theelearningcoach.com/elearning_design/chunking-information/

Smith, Robin M. (2009) Conquering the Content: A Step-by-Step Guide to Online Course Design. John Wiley and Sons