The Coherence Principle: Constraints and Criteria
According to researchers Ruth Colvin Clark and Richard E. Mayer (2008), one of the most important recommendations they could make to an instructor is to keep his or her educational lesson uncluttered (p. 151). Essentially, this recommendation is the basis of the coherence principle. In other words, the coherence principle states that an instructor should avoid any material in a lesson that does not support the overall instructional goal (Clark & Mayer, 2008, p. 151). Specifically, the coherence principle states that all unnecessary information in a multimedia lesson should be eliminated. In fact, this particular principle has three very important criteria or constraints that ensure instructional designers or instructors create effective and interesting lessons.
Basically, there are three principles that instructional designers should follow. First, instructors should avoid adding any extraneous sounds in a lesson (Clark & Mayer, 2008, p. 153). According to the cognitive theory of multimedia, the capacity of human memory is very limited. Thus, any extra data should be eliminated so that the intended message is received by the learner. Second, instructors should avoid extraneous pictures in e-lessons (Clark & Mayer, 2008, p. 159). In other words, this specific constraint is built around the idea that an individual likes to paint their own mental picture and, subsequently, learn about a particular subject in their own way. Finally, the third bit of criteria suggests that instructors should avoid extraneous words in e-lessons (Clark & Mayer, 2008, p. 166). In the end, this principle states that simple, basic and concise on-screen text helps learning. Ultimately, I believe it is obvious that, by using the coherence principle, instructors and instructional designers can make lessons more efficient.
Successful and Unsuccessful Attempts to Apply the Coherence Principle
Specifically, I have seen this particular principle used successfully and unsuccessfully many times. In fact, I have seen an instructor successfully and unsuccessfully use this principle while utilizing PowerPoint software in a classroom setting. In short, I witnessed a successful use of this principle during a lesson on minimalism in the area of art and design. Ironically, in an effort to translate the meaning of this particular artistic style, the instructor only focused on necessary or functional elements of the subject. In the end, by utilizing this strategy in his PowerPoint presentation, the instructor assisted the learners in understanding or grasping the subject, by consistently receiving 20%-30% higher test scores on the information just learned by students.
On the other hand, I have also seen many violations of the coherence principle from instructors in the same situation. In fact, I remember auditing an English class where a PowerPoint was built around the subject of Shakespeare. Unfortunately, in an effort to thoroughly explain Shakespeare’s meaning behind many of his most famous passages, the instructor filled each slide with an extreme amount of text. In the end, this particular approach diminished the motivation and interest of each student listening to and viewing the presentation. In other words, because each student felt overwhelmed, they quickly lost interest and quickly became distracted by other stimuli in the room (Clark & Mayer, 2008, p. 169). In the end, the students scored consistently less on this specific chapter of information compared to all other chapters during the school year.
The relationship of the Coherence Principle to other Multimedia Learning Principles
When reviewing the relationship of the coherence principle to other multimedia learning principles, my mind is immediately drawn to the contiguity principle and modality principles. In short, the contiguity principle focuses on the principle of placing printed words near the graphics they describe for more simplified processing. In other words, because of a student’s limited processing capacity a large amount of information is more easily digestible when it is organized logically (Moreno & Mayer, 1999, p. 2). Next, the modality principle states that the information learners receive has to be processed through separate processing channels, one for visual processing and one for auditory processing. Thus, that is why it is important for students to use their more simplified, limited processing capacity on information that is critical to the overall goal of the instruction (Moreno & Mayer, 1999, p. 2). In other words, if students are too busy processing irrelevant information then they don’t have the processing capacity for the primary objectives of the instruction.
The Relationship of the Coherence Principle to the Fundamental Theories of Psychology
Next, in examining the relationship between the coherence principle and the fundamental theories of psychology, I am immediately reminded of the cognitive theory of multimedia learning and its three steps. First, the cognitive theory of multimedia states that individuals have a visual and verbal processing system (Mayer, 2001, p. 35). Next, the processing system has a limit to the amount of data it can process at any given time. Lastly, because of this limited capacity, individuals must learn by selecting and organizing only the most relevant information. In other words, this particular theory shares a close relationship with the coherence principle.
In short, the coherence principle states that an instructor should avoid any material to a lesson that does not support the overall instructional goal (Clark & Mayer, 2008, p. 151). Essentially, if there is extraneous information in a lesson that does not support the intended objectives then it provides processing problems for the learners who have limited attention spans and processing capacity. Additionally, like the cognitive theory of multimedia, some of the critical information may be lost by learners trying to process the extraneous information (Mayer, 2001, p. 37). Thus, that is why both the coherence principle and the cognitive theory of multimedia both state that important information is easier to process for the learner if the information is simplified, relevant, and organized.
Opinions and Limitations
Reflecting on my personal opinion of the coherence principle, I thought about what I liked or disliked about this particular principle. In short, I believe the coherence principle is an extremely important principle in the field of education, especially for instructors. In short, I believe in today’s age of technology and gadgets it is easy for an instructor to get caught up in a lot of irrelevant information when teaching a lesson. In other words, I believe they can overwhelm a student so much with various technologies and aesthetics that the students have a hard time understanding what the primary goal or objective is of a specific lesson. Thus, I believe this principle serves an amazing purpose in today’ educational setting.
Lastly, I do not believe there are any limitations or caveats the authors of our text left out of this principle. In short, I believe it was very thorough and well-thought-out in terms of a foundational, educational principle. Additionally, I also think the principle is broad enough that it can assist many areas and needs of the educational community. Therefore, I applaud the coherence principle, and I look forward to incorporating it even more in my daily tasks.
Clark, R. C., & Mayer, R. E. (2008). E-Learning and the science of instruction: Proven guidelines for consumers and designers of multimedia learning. San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass/Pfeiffer.
Mayer, R. E. (2001). Multimedia learning. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
Moreno, R., & Mayer, R. E. (June 01, 1999). Cognitive principles of multimedia learning: The role of modality and contiguity. Journal of Educational Psychology, 91, 2.)