The Cognitive Load of Standardized Testing
Working Extraneous Load into Germaine Load
When taking PATs, students must complete various tasks that are extraneous to the actual assessment of their knowledge.
Creating a Digital Escape Room helps students understand the importance of the extra steps they have to take in order to be successful. Students can have all of the correct answers, but fail if they do not complete the extraneous tasks necessary.
It is important to note, henceforth, that I will not be addressing my own opinion on standardized testing but instead addressing how to prepare my students for the task mandated to them.
I would also like to note that I am not an educational psychologist, and am only reflecting on things that I have learned in my Educational Psychology classes, as well as research I have done on my own.
Important definitions:
Cognitive Load Theory: the theory that "asserts that learning is hampered when working memory capacity is exceeded in a learning task" (de Jong, 2009, p. 106).
Intrinsic load: inherent demand of content (difficulty of task)
Extraneous load: the presentation and learning material used to communicate content (additional information not intrinsic to specific knowledge learned)
Germane Load: load inflicted by the processes of acquiring schemata (learning process; what is actually learned)
Long Term Memory: where large amounts of memory are stored; unconscious process (106).
Schemata: "[a]ccording to schema theory, knowledge is stored in LTM in schemata... [s]chemata can integrate information elements and production rules and become automated" (Kirschner, 2002, p. 3).
Working Memory: the component of memory responsible for the processing of information (de Jong, 2009, p. 105)
Working-Memory Capacity: "the range of information that individuals can process at the same time to preform complex tasks" (Smith et al., 2016, p. 275).
"Students are frequently expected to complete multistep tasks within a range of academic or classroom routines and to do so independently. Students' ability to complete these tasks successfully may vary as a consequence of both their working-memory capacity and the conditions under which they are expected to learn" (280).
An English Major's Take on Cognitive Load
Working-Memory into Longterm-Memory
The basic idea of taking students' cognitive load into consideration when designing instruction and learning materials is to ensure that students are able to turn working-memory into long-term memory. This means that the germane load is the essential focus of the lesson; students should be able to learn the intended objectives without the overloading of extraneous load: "distracting information will disrupt thinking by allowing nonrelevant information to be processed (275). Therefore, students are able to learn best when the tasks they must complete explicitly relate to their intended learning outcomes. Smith et. al conclude that effective instruction "scaffolds instructional support to facilitate associations that students may miss when processing is overloaded" and "allows sufficient time to rehearse and process new information to minimize processing efficiency demands" (276) in order to successful develop working-memory into usable schemata.
PATs and Extraneous Load
In order to be successful in completing their PATs, students must be able to complete several extraneous tasks: switching in between reading booklet, questions booklet, and bubble sheet; they must put their names in the right place; and fill the bubble-sheet correctly by using the right type of pencil, erase any mistakes completely, and ensuring they have the correct number of answers correlating to the numbers of questions, to name a few.. While filling out bubble-sheets and counting answers to match questions are not key literacy strands of the English Language Arts Program of Study, it is an essential skill that students must master in order to be successful in grade nine. If students cannot complete these extraneous steps, they will not achieve the mark that their actual knowledge suggests.
Digital Escape Rooms: Moving the Extraneous into the Germane: English Major Science
When students complete a Digital Escape Room, they must follow a series of extraneous steps unrelated to the actual content being assessed in order to be successful. While seems counterproductive, it builds student capacity to complete complex and extraneous steps in order to demonstrate their knowledge. My reasoning behind this is to take what is typically extraneous, and turn it into something that students are used to; essentially, this means taking extraneous information from their cognitive, working memory into longterm memory. However, I do recognize that this does not occur simply in the time-frame of two three-hour classes. The digital escape room acts as "practice" for students to complete extraneous steps necessary to their success in an assessment. This way, these tasks are familiar and students understand the significance of the extraneous tasks they must complete, and the severity of its impact on their success. Having students complete a Digital Escape Room gives students time to "rehearse and process new information to minimize efficiency demands" (276).