(photo by by Anniebee)

The article is entitled, "Analysis: How multimedia can improve learning - New research sheds light on students' ability to process multiple modes of learning" and provides a nice, easy summary of the research in this area.

Highlights include a quick summary of the learning theory:

Student preconceptions of a curriculum must be engaged in learning process. Only when the student has the opportunity to correct misconceptions, build on prior knowledge, and create schemas of understanding a topic will learning be optimized.

Learning is optimized when students develop "metacognitive" strategies. To be metacognitive is to be constantly "thinking about one's own thinking." Students who are metacognitive are students who approach problems by automatically trying to predict outcomes, explaining ideas to themselves, noting and learning from failures, and activating prior knowledge.

This is good information to keep in mind when you are creating learning activities. LAMS is especially good for guiding students through these "metacognitive" strategies. Here are some tips:

1. When you create a LAMS sequence think consciously about having the first steps in the sequence activate prior knowledge by asking questions that help the student become consciously aware of and remember what they already know about the subject.
2. The "Voting Tool" can be used to encourage students to predict outcomes.
3. After you present new information you can help students explain ideas by asking them to explain to each other in group chats or forums.