Information Processing Theory and Approach

Do you know the intricate neural-psychological process that governs the way your students (or almost anyone) learn new ideas and knowledge? That's what Information Processing Theory aims to learn about. It explores the complicated mechanism of perceiving, recording, and processing information in our brains, and then retrieving information whenever it is required.

Find out more about the concept, and discover ways to integrate the concept into online classes for your students. We'll start by taking brief look at how the idea came from.

Skip ahead:

•       A summary of Information Processing Theory
•       Key concepts in Information Processing Theory
•       How does it happen? occur in the brain?
•       Students need to be aware of your online course content
•       Essential methods of information processing to help students improve their learning.
•       the Limits of Information Processing Theory in online learning
•       Strategies to help with the concept of information processing improve the effectiveness of online learning
•       Humanize information processing theory to make online courses which are applicable

     An overview of Information Processing Theory    

in the 50s, scientists realized that computers provided the most important clue in understanding how our brain works. George Armitage Miller and Edward C. Tolman established the fundamentals of how we make use of short-term memory, and how they learn things. In their research based on this fundamental model, two famous models of theory of information processing later emerged, including the Atkinson and Shiffrin Model and the Baddeley and Hitch Model of Working Memory.

The Atkinson and Shiffrin Model discusses the different phases involved in processing information. They comprise sensorimotor memory, short-term memory (working memory) as well as long-term memory. It stresses the significance of concentration and the complex rehearsal behavior that leads to information being stored in long-term memory. This model, known as the Baddeley and Hitch Model of Working Memory extends these ideas and describes the ways we think about the spatial and language patterns.

Are you getting overwhelmed with the terminology of psychology? Don't worry! We've merged aspects of these theories in order to help you understand exactly the way we manage information. The first step is to comprehend this through examining how we process information in everyday situations and analyzing the various functions in depth.

     The most important concepts of Information Processing Theory    

In my role as an educator for creators, it's vitally important to understand the different aspects of the processing of data.

Let's do that with this example

Imagine walking along streets that are crowded, and then you are immersed in a myriad of noises, sights and odors. Some people may rub your shoulders if you happen to bump into unruly crowds. To avoid this disturbance and chaos, it's suggested to stroll into the cafe you're certain is quiet and tranquil. It is also a good suggestion to be aware that they offer the most delicious coffee and breads available within the town.

Information processing theory that is working in actual life. It is possible to see:

1. It is possible to sense different stimuli (people who are moving about people, someone touching your shoulder, a car speeding across the road, a car speeding by or by, etc. - sensation. An external stimulus (an input or information)
2. The area you are looking at is perceived to be crowded (perception is how we interpret our perceptions).
3. Based on the previous experience (long time episodic memories) The situation you are in is perceived as unsafe and uncomfortable (being forced around, past association)
4. You can recall the place that once offered the comfort you need (another chain of associations leads to retrieving information about the peaceful cafe and also the croissants it serves, which is a form that is a form of memory semantic).
5. Your memory is what is acted upon each time you walk into the cafe (judging/analyzing as well as making a decision. Walking towards the cafe is your procedural memory).

First, you sense your environment

Humans are able to receive information, also known as "stimulus" by means of five senses: touch of smell, vision, auditory (hearing) and taste. Sixth sense is related to body's movement, balance during balance, movement, and posture, the vestibular sense is present.

senses and the related sense organs

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

The sense organs in your body convert real information into electrical signals the brain process these and interprets them as information that you can recognize on an unconscious level. Your perception is a result of to previous associations (similar data that's stored in your brain capable of recalling and make connections).

Notice to creators If you do not use augmented reality or virtual real-world technology in your content for lessons I suggest your primary focus is on inputs (stimuli) that are related to visual (reading text and watching videos) as well as the music (voice or background music).

     Perception is the result of being able to sense.

The sense organs reacts to any stimulus that comes from outside and converts these signals into electrical signals that can be recognized by various areas within the brain. Sensing processes take place within the organs which sense while perception occurs inside the brain. People with different perceptual and difficulties with learning may be difficult to process information effectively.

Attention to the writers: If you're planning to make your lesson content accessible for people who are disabled, it's recommended to research accessible design techniques. The most common examples of accessibility design are making sure that the words are placed evenly across paragraphs or words, breaking lengthy ones into shorter ones as well as ensuring adequate white space.

HTML0 In the event that information received is converted (encoded) the information is stored in memory.

Memory can be described as an umbrella term for many different aspects of cognitive functioning. It begins by storing data for a brief period (sensory and also working memory) and transferring it into more long-term storage by consolidating (encoding).

Sensory memory lasts between one and three minutes. If you do not pay attention to the experience, the perception does not make it into short-term memory. Research has found that short-term memory can hold about seven pieces of information over an interval of between 15 and 30 seconds. As you work on it the brain is able to retain this information, after which it begins to degrade or becomes lost.

In rehearsal, the brain performs a process called encode, which causes the data to be stored in long-term memory. When it's stored in a long-term memory, it's possible to retrieve your information anytime as long as you don't allow it to go through a process of decay or interference. The phrase "long-term memory" can refer to something you perceived just a moment in the past, or an event that happened a long time and dated back to your childhood.

For creators, rehearsal is usually performed in the form of rote learning, especially in the context of pedagogical teaching. However, we are aware that the majority of students find rote learning to be basic, which is why it's not considered the most effective method to master difficult concepts or abstract concepts.

The various types of long-term memory include:

1. Explicate memory is the memory that is accessible consciously. When you're asked by someone about the capital city of Great Britain is, you could easily respond with London. Thus, explicit memories are also known as declarative memories. Declarative memory is further classified into:

• The memory of an episodic nature memories of particular events that occurred during your life. For instance, going to the home of a family member in childhood.
• Memory that is semantic - the ability to recall things you've learnt in the course of your life. Like, for instance, if you declare World War 2 (September 1 September 1939).

1. Implicit memory: It's stored in your memory for the long term, however it also relates to performance and movement. For instance, being able to swim or to drive your car after a prolonged absence, or any other.

Attention helps memory last longer, and also helps students learn more effectively

Although our sense organs are able to absorb diverse kinds of data, they don't register in our brains unless we're focused on the details. They just get stored as "sensory memory" after a perception. They're only useful in a limited amount of time (between one and three seconds).

This is the act of focusing your focus on a specific moment in spite of different stimuli. For instance, you visit the cafe that you like and decide to order the type of croissant you like, despite the fact that there are many different items available in the menu.

Recalling the instance of the crowded street your mind may have sensed that there were many people. However, you may not have paid enough attention to keep their faces on your radar. This is why the information regarding their faces became deteriorated and eventually, it's lost forever.

     Where does it all occur in the mind?    

In your role as an educator, who designs your own curriculum, you might be wondering which of the educational materials you give your students will be stored within their brains. Baddeley and the Hitch Model of Working Memory gives a precise answer to this.

The frontal lobe (a portion of the brain) is the brain's processing unit which encodes data and is later retrieved. There are various types of memory stored in various parts in the brain. According to Baddeley and Hitch:

• Information on the auditory system (information which is presented in the form of sounds often known as music, language or other kinds of sound) is recorded within the Phonological Loop.
• Phonological loop is made up of the phonological storage, in which information is held for only a brief period as well as the articulatory rehearsal. This is where the brain practices auditory information to keep for a long period of duration.
• The Visuospatial Sketch Pad is the part of the brain which stores spatial and visual information, such as shapes, patterns as well as images.
• Episodic buffers are believed to increase the capacity for the brain's ability to encode, store and retrieve data through the linking of different brain regions that aid in information processing.

We'll now apply lessons we've learned from the area of processing information in the learning online learning environments.

     Your students must pay attention to your web-based course material    

While you're creating or re-designing module, you should think of it this way. If you fail to make your slides or videos attractive enough, they are likely to ignore them and go onto the next. The students will glance at the video slide (sensation happens) but they don't experience the content for long enough time to keep it in the temporary memory in their brains. If they do not practice it enough to create long-term storage, and the data will be erased from their brains' memories of their sensory. Therefore, keeping their attention is crucial.

Be aware that your student is disoriented, distracted by daydreams, or bored with the content you provide. All these factors interfere with the ability of learners to concentrate on the information that needs to be absorbed and retained in their long-term memory. Thus, ensuring that you create content that holds the attention of your students is vitally important.

This is what you can do:

• Make sure they take a break each 10 to 15 minutes. Human attention wane in the first fifteen minutes.
• So, plan your lessons to be broken down into parts of 15 minutes or shorter. There is no need to make videos or create lectures lasting only ten minutes. Instead, it is better to offer students small exercises, games, or even chillout sessions.
• Create more interactive online learning environments for learning. This will be discussed later on.

     Fundamental methods of information processing that help students to remember better.    

When information is saved in the short-term memory of your brain and is not used, it may be transferred to your long-term memory or deleted. Training and repetition are key to keeping information for long periods in long-term memory. This is why it's crucial to organize your classes so that students have ample time to practice and revisit the information stored in their working memory. This needs to take place in just a few the duration of just a couple of minutes. So, after the conclusion of any lesson that is only a couple of minutes, and then encourage the students to work on their skills, then repeat the lesson through a rehearsal or during practice. This helps in ensuring that the information they've processed is stored for long-term memory.

When something is saved in long-term memory and is retrieved when needed in the event that you're asked. Success in memory retrieval depends on the level of attention a pupil was able to learn about the subject (were enough attentive, did you find the material seem interesting, etc. ).

It is evident from this that learning is in the main dependent on how we interpret information, in addition to the manner we link it with facts we already know as well as the need to be attentive.

But is it really so easy?

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

Humans aren't computer systems. While drawing parallels between the brains of human and computers is appealing but they're different. Information Processing Theory doesn't discuss the importance of motivation or emotions when we look at information, or in our ability to remember facts. Both are vital to understanding and remembering the knowledge we've absorbed.

The hypothesis is that the brain processes data in a sequential fashion -- information is perceived as a sensation, interpreted, stored, transformed (encoded) before being stored then, finally, recovered. It is known as sequential processing. This is the exact process computer systems do.

But, it is possible for the brain to function simultaneously, meaning you can simultaneously process different types of information. The ability to multitask of our brains is not as impressive as computers' capabilities. Thus, despite the fact that the theory of information processing is correct and explains how we detect and process and organize information, it does not consider emotions as well as the way in which the brain works.

The students you teach have thoughts, desires, and motivations that you could or might not have considered when creating the curriculum for your class. Therefore, it's important to realize the fact that you're teaching humans rather than computer-generated ones. One of the easiest ways to tackle this issue is by creating online learning environments that are engaging.

Let's take a examine ways to include motivation, emotion along with social interaction to your mix, and make use of the theories of information processing for the perfect online class.

     Strategies for making the theory of information processing work better for online learning    

Motivate your students to focus on the task at hand.

What's the purpose of learning something even if they aren't interested in? It's crucial that they possess the motivation or drive to register to take the course, and keep their commitment to finishing.

The motivation drives students to stay focused on the content that you teach, and this will result in improved information processing (encoding), and superior capabilities for information retrieval. If your student doesn't have the motivation to learn, a great class may not be absorbed into their brains.

Motivation is an important factor in the process of information. It is vital to be able by external stimuli.

• Your role as an teacher creator is to keep this drive.
• Remember that motivation is not absent. It is important to feel valued, receive positive feedback, and have a sense of social acceptance as a reason to continue doing some thing. Did you recall your buddies that encouraged you to try things when you were lacking motivation, or felt that you were required to be better at certain tasks? The same is true in the learning process as well.

Interpersonal and motivational relationships share a lot. We'll now look into the ways in which this is manifested in theories of social information processing.

Encourage social interaction during learning

Despite the fact that the one-to-one method of teaching works human beings learn best in groups. That's why learning in traditional situations is done in classes or with groups, since the learning experience in a group is much better (and efficient).

Social Information Processing The theory is a part of the explanation for how individuals are able to communicate with each other through computers for example an online platform to facilitate studying.

Humans also learn through the use of models and observations. They mimic what others do. If you are your role as an educator is to assume the role of being a teacher, and pupils mimic your actions. Albert Bandura, a famous psychologist, discovered that the majority of learning happens in interpersonal contexts, and we can't remove "social" aspects of our education.

In this way, it's essential to

• Create online group activities
• Students should be encouraged to communicate with one another via forums, and also discuss their experiences.
• Include collaboration as well as social media involvement essential elements of your curriculum structure.
• Use social media to exchange ideas, that could be utilized as a form of practice
• Receive constructive feedback from your fellow students (other students) that acts as reinforcement. To do this, make sure that your students review their work positive.

Use specific strategies for cognitive development to reach the goals

They tend to be subject-specific. Therefore, you need to assist your students to work on the subject right away. A few of the strategies for cognitive learning which you could employ when learning online include notes-taking, the repetition of information, understanding context, and the use of mnemonics. (A memory aid is one that helps you recall or recall details in your mind.)

For example: VIBGYOR is a shorthand for seven of the colors in the rainbow which includes violet, indigo blue, green, yellow, orange, and red. In addition to acronyms, there are other types of mnemonics such as flashcards, putting things into categories, and so on. Each of these can assist your students to recall what they've learned in a short time.

 Support with high-level data processing using methods of metacognitive analysis

Certain researchers have proposed that there is something called "metacognition," which means "thinking about thinking." If you are practicing in rehearsal and then try to remember the mistakes you made, or participate in methods that assist people learn or remember (such when you teach with a purpose), you are engaging in a metacognitive style.

A.L. Brown, in 1987 A.L. Brown began to discuss metacognition strategies for learning. Over time, it has developed slightly.

when it comes to online courses, here are some of the best metacognitive strategies:

• Advance organizers: Encourage your students to consider your lessons by sharing the schedules for the class ahead of time. Your students will be aware of what to expect and also connect it to information they already have.
• Self-planning: Urge your students to arrange their assignments and how they'll organize them. This gives them space to "think about what they are doing", also known as metacognition.
• Self-monitoring scales: Students ' self-rating their score is a fantastic method of determining where your students need help. Create online forms that help students track their progress towards the end of every lesson or week, as per your convenience.
• Self-evaluation: This could be periodically or after the class. Because online classes are usually taken up by self-motivated individuals and therefore, it's crucial that students are aware of the results.

Alongside self-evaluation and associations, they can be utilized for helping students learn and remembering what they've learned. To make this process more efficient the first step is to find out what your students already are conscious of. So,

• Before enlisting someone in any educational course, assess their current level of understanding to determine if they're an appropriate participant for the program.
• If not, when you're creating the course to assist learners, be sure to design the content in a way that students can relate your course to things they're familiar with. This means that you must help them through the encoding process.

There could be a requirement to use methods like images, chunking, or the elaboration.

• Break your lessons down in smaller chunks with interesting questions, quizzes and online debates as well as support from peers for your students to stay engaged.
• Encourage your students to form connections with their previous knowledge by presenting the facts in a way that's easily understood. Students can make use of images in their learning and recall.
• In addition, your online course should encourage students to participate with the material. This process, also known as elaboration is vital in order to keep students engaged and make relationships with prior information in order in order to increase their knowledge.

While these are all metacognitive and cognitive techniques, they cannot be overlooked the importance of motivation, emotions, as well as social learning theories.

 Incorporate social interactions and emotions into the mix

The majority of students enroll in your course because they cannot physically attend classes for different reasons. Online learning environments offer a alternative to traditional classrooms and a higher degree of participation in many instances. It is essential to make sure that your online learning experience is fun and exciting. It is vital to utilize techniques that requires interpersonal communication as well as emotions. Be aware that "affect" refers to feelings.

How to do that:

• Create a rapport with your students to gain knowledge by modeling. Create feelings of wonder joy, enthusiasm and joy. surprise, etc. It's easy to trigger this type of feeling in your students.
• Gaming can make your students smile and be happy once they have reached certain standards of success.
• Giving certificates, badges or other positive reinforcement can assist in bringing joy into your daily life.
• If you give the opportunity to reduce the performance of a student who is performing well. This is an opportunity to bring happiness and an element of surprise. This can make students more motivated to learn.
• The use of polling is to create games and test each 15 minutes, in order to ensure that your students are engaged and to encourage them to contribute their knowledge on forums.
• Since children are becoming more comfortable to social media so it is logical to integrate social media into the classroom too.

     Humanize theory of data processing and create relatable online courses    

Information processing theory helps us understand how we store and process the information is absorbed by our brains, using our sense organs and the brain. Although this model is accurate about how perception and perception operate however, it is not able to describe social learning, as well as the roles of motivation and emotions.

Moreover, the human mind is very complex and cannot be reduced to the way a computer functions. As instructors is crucial to stay cognizant of the students' individual desires and feelings at the front. In creating a motivating online learning space and recognizing the limits of humans it is possible to create an online course that will leave an impression that will last on your learners.

It provides you with a variety of tools to design course content which can be social and enjoyable. It assists you in creating educational material that is designed around data processing models however, it recognizes that students are emotional beings that want to connect with each other as they study. It provides powerful social engagement features which make it easy for you to create classes that are grouped and encourage active discussions with your students.

By humanizing online learning, helps you connect to your students' minds in an a way that is engaging. To learn more about how we can help you develop educational programs which draw upon the fundamentals of of psychology, please contact us right now.

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