Information Processing Theory and Approach

Do you understand the complicated neural-psychological process that decides the way your students (or anybody else) learns new ideas in addition to information? This is the issue this theory on information processing attempts to clarify. The theory delved into the complex process of recording, observing and processing data in our brains, and then retrieving the information whenever it is needed.

Learn more about this concept and how you can use it in creating online courses which will help students. Let's start with a brief description of the place where this process started.

Skip ahead:

•       A brief history of Information Processing Theory
•       Key concepts in Information Processing Theory
•       What happens to it? happen in the brain?
•       Your students should aware of the online class content
•       The basics of information processing for helping your students to remember better.
•       A Limitation of Information Processing Theory in online learning
•       Strategies to make information processing theory work better to facilitate online learning
•       Transform the concept of information processing to create relatable online classes

     A brief overview of Information Processing Theory    

The 1950s were when psychologists realized that computers could be the answer to understanding how our brains work. George Armitage Miller and Edward C. Tolman established the basic principles of how human beings operate with short term memory and the way they learn. Based on this fundamental model, two theories on theory of processing information eventually emerged in the form of the Atkinson and Shiffrin Model and the Baddeley and Hitch Model of Working Memory.

The Atkinson and Shiffrin Model discusses the different phases of processing that comprise sensory memory as well as short-term memory (working memory) and long-term memory. It stresses the significance of concentration and the intricate rehearsal behavior that leads to information being stored within long-term memories. It is based on the Baddeley and Hitch Model of Working Memory expands on these concepts and explains the way we deal with the spatial and language patterns.

Do you have a lot of mental terms? Don't worry! We have combined aspects of these theories to offer you the data necessary to comprehend what human beings do to manage information. It is possible to begin understanding this by examining how we process information in daily situations in addition to analyzing each of these functions more deeply.

     The foundational principles are the basis of Information Processing Theory    

Being a creator educator it is very beneficial for you to understand aspects of information processing.

We'll try this by using the following examples

Imagine walking down a crowded road and noticing a myriad of scents, sounds and sights. People may rub you shoulders in case you're not careful enough and find yourself in the middle of the people who have become agitated. In order to avoid the noise and chaos, you opt to visit the cafe which is calm and peaceful. It's also a great idea to keep in mind that they have top quality cafes and delicious croissants in the area.

Information processing theory in action as well as in real life. We'll see:

1. It is possible to sense a variety of stimuli (people moving about, someone rubbing your shoulder, a vehicle racing across the road and on. - sensation. The word "stimulus" means any information input from the outside (or external)
2. The area you are looking at can be perceived as crowded (perception is the method we view the information that we were able to perceive).
3. In your own experiences from the past (long time episodic memory) The situation is viewed as uncomfortable and potentially dangerous (being forced around by a the past associations)
4. Thus, you can recall an area which previously provided your comfort (another sequence of memory will result in you recollecting information about the cafe's quiet atmosphere and pastries - a semantic memory).
5. Your memory is what you act upon, and you walk to the cafe (judging/analyzing and making a decision. The trip to the café can be a case in procedural memories).

First, you sense your environment

Humans can get information called "stimulus" by means of five senses: visual and smell, touch, auditory (hearing) as well as the sense of tasting. Sixth sense is related to body's position, movement, and balancing the vestibular sense, is also there.

The sense organs, as well as the sense organs that they are:

• Vision - Eyes
• Audio - Ears
• Touch - Skin
• Taste - Tongue
• The smell - nose
• The sense of Vestibular, the ear as well as various other components that comprise the nerve system.

Your sense organs within your body convert the real everyday information to electrical signals. Your brain process them and translate them into the information is recognized on a conscious level. Interpretation of what is perceived is influenced by past connections (similar information that is kept in the brain that can be recalled and make connections).

For the creators, unless you're using virtual or augmented real-world in your classes, you'll mostly utilize inputs (stimuli) that are connected to the sight (reading texts or watching videos) as well as audio (voice and background sound).

     Perception is a result of the sense of.

The organs of the senses respond to different stimulus from the outside and transforms their signals into electrical signals. These are recognized by different areas of the brain. The processes of sensing take place within the organs responsible for sensing and perception is carried out within the brain. Individuals with special perception or disordered learning, they may be unable to process the information in a timely manner.

Attention to the creators of your content Attention to creators: If you are planning to design your content in a way that is disabled-friendly, you may want to look into accessible design techniques. Examples of accessible design include avoiding the uneven spacing of words and paragraphs, dividing long ones into shorter ones and ensuring sufficient white space.

If the information being viewed is treated (encoded) the data is stored in memory.

It is a broad concept which covers many aspects of cognition. The process begins by storing information for a brief period (sensory and working memory) before transferring the data into long-term storage by the process of consolidating (encoding).

Sensory memory can last from one and three seconds. If you do not pay attention to the feeling and don't be aware of it, you'll never make them into short-term memory. Studies have shown that short-term memory stores about seven items of data over between 15 and 30 minutes. With practice the brain can be trained to store this information beyond which it decays or is deleted.

In rehearsal, the brain is engaged in a process referred to as encode. This results in the transfer of information to long-term memory. After being stored for a long time, it is possible to retrieve the information at any time in the event that you do not let it be subject to decay or interruption. Memory that is long-term can be a result of an event that you experienced only a few minutes ago or something that happened in the past- dating all the way back to the time of childhood.

A note for the creators of your work: Rehearsal is usually performed to aid in rote learning within the context of education. Most students find rote learning basic as well as not the best way for understanding complex concepts or abstract information.

The many kinds of memory that are long-term include:

1. Explicit memory - that which is available to you consciously. If you are asked by someone what the capital city of Great Britain is, you will easily be able to declare it is London. Therefore, explicit memories are known as declarative memories. Declarative memory is further broken into

• The episodic memory recalls specific events which occurred in your life. For instance, going to a friend's home during your youth
• The ability of semantic memory is to recall things that you have learnt regarding the universe. This includes the day of officially declaring World War 2 (September 1 1939).

1. Implicit memory is stored as part of the long-term memory of your brain. It can be linked to both performance and movement. For instance, it is feasible to swim while also remembering how to drive after a lengthy gap etc.

Attention helps memory to last longer and learn better

Our sensors are able to gather a lot of information, they don't get registered in our minds unless you take note of the information. They're stored in "sensory memory" after perception, and are only used for a brief period of time (between two and three seconds).

Focusing your attention on a particular stimulus when you are surrounded by other stimulus. A good example is when you go to the restaurant you love and pick the croissant that you prefer even though you know that there are a variety of alternatives available.

Reinvoking the example of a crowded road, your brain might have noticed the different faces. But, perhaps you've not paid attention enough to keep their faces in mind. Then, in the end all the data that was related to their faces degraded and then, eventually, the data is lost forever.

     How does this all occur within the mind?    

As an educator of creators, you could be wondering what information you provide to your students is kept in their brains. Baddeley and the Hitch Model of Working Memory provides a straightforward answer to this.

The frontal brain (a part of the brain) is the brain's processing area in which information is encoded and retrieved. There are a variety of memory stored in various regions within the brain. According to Baddeley and Hitch:

• Audio information (information that takes the form of sounds typically referred to as music, language, or other types of sounds) is recorded by the Phonological Loop.
• Phonological loop is made up of the phonological storage, in which information is stored for a limited time and the articulatory practice process that allows the brain to practice auditory signals to be stored over more time.
• Visuospatial sketch pad is the brain's area that stores visual and spatial data, including patterns, pictures of designs, and so on.
• Episodic buffers are believed to increase the capacity for the brain store, encode, and retrieve information by connecting multiple brain areas that aid in information processing.

Let's review lessons we've gathered in the realm of processing information for online learning.

     Your students should know about the material of your online courses    

If you're in the process of developing or creating modules, you should think of it this way. If you don't make your slides or videos attractive enough, students will ignore them and proceed onto the next. They glance at the slide or video (sensation takes place) but they don't have enough time to store the information in the short-term memory of their brains. They are left to work on it till they move into longer-term memory - when the information is erased from their memories of sensory. So, keeping their focus is essential.

It is important to consider the fact that your child could be distracted by daydreaming or the information you offer. These issues can affect students' ability to pay attention to things that need to be retained and stored in long term memory. So, making sure that you create content that will keep the attention of your students is vitally important.

What you are able to do:

• Take a break between 10 and 15 minutes. Studies show human attention diminishes after fifteen minutes.
• Thus, you must design your lessons to be broken down into segments of 15 minutes or shorter. It is not necessary to develop tutorials or videos that last for just 10 minutes. Instead, it is better to give your students little game, exercises or even chillouts.
• Make online learning more interactive spaces. We will discuss it later on.

     Essential Information Processing Techniques to help your students learn better.    

When information has been saved in short-term memory and is not being used, it may be shifted to long-term memory or erased. Repetition and practice are essential in order to preserve data over long periods in the long-term memory. Hence, it is crucial to develop lesson plans in order that students have enough time to study and repeat things that are stored in their memories. The process should be completed within the timeframe of only a few minutes. Therefore, at the end of each short lesson that takes a short amount of time you should encourage pupils to review, practice, or rehearse. This helps in ensuring that the knowledge they've acquired is stored for long-term memory.

The moment something is recorded in a long-term memory bank, it is then retrieved when asked. The success of memory retrieval depends on the level of excitement by the person who learned the subject (were sufficiently attentive or was the material you taught engaging enough, and so on. ).

In this description that learning takes place due to how we perceive information in addition to how we associate it with our prior knowledge and we should keep an eye on it.

But is it really so straightforward?

     Limits that are lower than average for Information Processing Theory in online learning    

Human beings aren't just machines. While drawing a comparison between the human brain and computer systems is tempting, they're different. Information Processing Theory doesn't discuss the importance of motivation or emotions in the way we handle information, or how we remember details. Both are crucial for learning and keeping things that we've learned.

The theory assumes brains process data in a linear manner -- information is interpreted, sensed, stored, processed (encoded) then stored and finally, returned. This is known as serial processing. It is exactly what computers do.

But, the brain is capable of processing information in parallel, which implies that it can to process multiple types of information. The brain's multitasking abilities is not as impressive as what computers is able to accomplish. Thus, although the theory of information processing is correct and describes how we sense, perceive, process, and save data, it doesn't think about the emotional aspects along with the method in which our mind works.

Students you instruct will have their own thoughts and motivations and desires that you might consider or not when writing the material for your class. Hence, it is essential to recognize that you're teaching students rather than computers. One of the easiest ways to deal with the issue is to create educational environments on the internet that can be enjoyable.

Now, let's explore ways to bring enthusiasm emotion, engagement with others and connection with your peers to the mix as well as make use of the science of information processing to help you create the perfect online course.

     Strategies for making theoretical information processing more effectively to aid online learning    

Encourage your students to remain focused

Who can be in a class if they don't want to? It's essential to have the drive or motivation to register for the class and to be driven to succeed.

Motivation drives them to be focused on the content that you teach, and this results improved information processing (encoding) and better capabilities for retrieving information. If your child doesn't have the desire to be an active learner, the best course might be unable to register for them in their mind.

Motivation plays a vital role in processing information. It is essential be aware of the external environment.

• Your job as a educator of the creator is to sustain your passion.
• Be aware that motivation is an ongoing supply of energy that cannot be a state of mind. You need to feel valued and receive positive feedback and feel socially accepted in order to feel inspired to do something. Did you recall your buddies who pushed you to complete something whenever you felt down or needed to improve at certain things? This is the same for learning as well.

Motivation and interpersonal relationships are connected. We will now look into the way this plays out within the social Information Processing Theory.

Encourage social interaction during learning

Though one-on-one tuition is efficient, students benefit from learning when they are working with others. This is why traditional learning is always conducted in groups or classrooms because studying with others can be much more fun (and productive).

Social Information Processing theorem partially describes how humans are able to communicate via computer-mediated platforms. For example, an online learning platform.

Humans learn through modeling and observation, that is that they emulate what people are doing. In this way, you as the educator who created it, takes on the role of role model and let your pupils imitate your actions. Albert Bandura, a famous psychologist, observed that learning occurs in social settings which is why we cannot eliminate "social" as a part of method of learning.

In this context, it is essential to

• Create online group activities
• Encourage students to interact in forums, and even discuss their experiences.
• Consider collaboration as well as engagement with social media in the structure of your course.
• Utilize social media tools to exchange ideas, that can be used as a form of practice
• Offer positive feedback to your fellow classmates (other students) which will act as positive reinforcement. In this regard, you could ask your students to evaluate their work positive.

Utilize specific cognitive strategies for achieving goals

The cognitive strategies you employ usually are specific to the task at hand. That means that you need to encourage students to use the subject in a clear method. Strategies for cognitive learning that you can employ for online learning include not taking notes, repetition, contextual understanding, as well as Mnemonics. (A Mnemonic is a technique which allows you to remember or access the information you have stored in your brain.)

In this case, VIBGYOR refers to the seven rainbow colors: violet, indigo, blue and yellow. orange, and red. In addition to acronyms, there's other kinds of mnemonics, like flashcards and putting things into various types or categories, and so on. They can all help students remember the information they've acquired in a short time.

 Enhance the processing of high-level information employing metacognitive strategies

Researchers have proposed that there is a phenomenon known by the name of "metacognition," which means "thinking about the thought process." In practice, when you practice or attempt to recall things you've lost or employ strategies that help other people to recall or understand (such when you teach with a purpose) this is engaged in metacognition.

The year 1987 was the year in which A.L. Brown began to discuss methods of metacognition to learn. Through the years, the subject has changed considerably.

When taking online classes there are a few of the most effective metacognitive strategies:

• Advance organizers: Aid your students consider the lesson plans you've made by handing out the calendars of classes ahead of time. The calendars help your students anticipate what they can expect and also to relate the information with what they already have.
• Self-planning: ask your students to arrange their projects and plan how they'll arrange the work. They will have the chance to "think about the subject they're doing" Metacognition.
• Self-monitoring scales for students provide a fantastic means of determining where your students need help. Forms online that let students to monitor their learning after each session or week, at your preferences.
• Self-evaluation: This could happen at regular intervals or even at the conclusion of a class. Since online classes are typically attended by students who are motivated to learn. It is essential that the students see the outcomes.

As well as self-evaluation and assessment, you may utilize associations for your students to learn and keep track of the things they've learned. In order to make this process efficient you must know what information your students know. So,

• Before enrolling a person in an educational program, evaluate the level of their knowledge so that you can determine whether they're a suitable partner.
• If they're not yet and the course you're offering is an introduction to the subject, be sure you create the material in a way that students will be able to connect the concepts the course offers to topics they are already familiar with. It means you'll need aid them during the process of decoding.

There may be a need to employ methods such as chunking, imagery, and intricate.

• Separate your courses in smaller sections with interesting online discussions and questions. You can also make use of Q&As as well as support by classmates to keep them interested.
• Instruct your students to make connections with previous content through presenting the content in a manner that's easy to visualize. It can aid them in using imagery to help students learn and retain knowledge.
• In addition, your online class must encourage students to take part in the content with a manner that's engaging. This process, also known as elaboration, is essential in order to create connections with previous skills in order to gain new information.

While these are all cognitive, metacognitive methods, it is impossible to avoid the significance of emotion, motivation and social learning theories.

 Incorporate emotional and social interactions into the mixture

Most students enroll for your class because they are unable to be physically present in your class for a variety of motives. Online learning spaces can prove to be a viable alternative to face-to-face learning and can provide greater involvement with a variety of situations. It is important to ensure that your online learning environment vibrant and enjoyable. One of the key aspects is to employ socio-affective techniques that involve emotional communications in addition to interpersonal communications. Take note that "affect" is a reference to emotions.

Here's how you can do it:

• Make yourself a friend to your students, and assist them in learning through modeling. Generate feelings of curiosity joy, enthusiasm, and happiness. surprise, etc. It's pretty simple to trigger this kind of reaction in your students.
• Games can allow your students to be content and happy as they complete some different levels of success.
• Giving them badges, certificates or some other type of positive reinforcement can help in adding joy to your life.
• If you allow the possibility to discount students who are performing well, you combine joy and surprise. The result is that learners are more eager to keep learning.
• Polling can be used to create tests and games after each 15 minute period, in order to keep students interested and to encourage them to discuss what they've learned on forum discussions.
• As youngsters are more familiar with social media platforms, it makes sense to integrate social media in the classroom as well.

     Transform the concept of information processing to make accessible online courses    

The theory of information processing can assist us understand how we keep and acquire new knowledge through our sense organs and the brain. Although this theory may be valid in terms of how sensation and perception work however, it is not able to explain social learning, nor the functions of motivation or emotions.

Moreover, the human mind is incredibly complex and cannot be reduced to the ways in which a computer works. In your role as instructors, it's vital to keep your students their innate desires and feelings at the forefront. Through creating a stimulating online learning space and recognizing the limitations of human beings, you are able to create a course online which is successful and leaves lasting impressions for your students.

It provides you with a variety of instruments that let the creation of course material that is interactive and social. It assists you in creating courses that are based on information processing theories, yet acknowledges that students are thinking and emotional beings that like to socialize with other students as they learn. It offers powerful social engagement tools that make it simple to create groups of learning and to encourage lively discussions among your students.

Humanizing online learning lets you connect with your students in a fun and engaging way. If you'd like to know more about the ways we can help you with the creation of course materials with a psychological foundation contact us now.

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