According to John Sweller, of the University of New South Wales School of Education, we are being taught the wrong way as teaching methods do not take into account the way in which we think and learn. The basis for John Sweller’s assertion is his Cognitive Load Theory which was the subject of a recent, March 2007, international conference in Sydney, Australia.

The central premise of the theory is the limitations of the brain’s temporary storage of information necessary to perform complex cognitive tasks such as language, mathematics, learning and reasoning.

Working memory, which utilizes our limited temporary storage, is limited when we are learning new information. Learning and solving problems require different cognitive process which compete for temporary storage. Similarly, visual and auditory processing require different cognitive processing. Splitting a students attention between verbalized and PowerPoint presentations of the same content overtaxes short term memory – hindering learning.

Mr Sweller believes that teachers are better off giving students solved problems so they have the learning to take home. Once information is in long-term memory, it can be brought back to working memory in very large amounts.

The take home message is that teaching content and style, including integration of PowerPoint presentations, should be tailored to take account of the brains processing limitations in order to make it much easier to understand.