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The book explores a cognitive load perspective on instructional guidance. Cognitive load theory is focused
on instructional design implications and prescriptions that flow from human cognitive architecture, and it
has become one of the leading theories of instructional design. According to this theoretical perspective,
the purpose of instructional guidance is to reduce learner potential cognitive overload by providing
appropriate information in the right time and in a suitable format. As the learner's level of prior knowledge
is considered as the main factor influencing this decision, the effect of learner prior knowledge on
effectiveness of instructional methods (the expertise reversal effect in cognitive load theory) provides the
basic framework for the book.
The fully-guided explicit instruction and minimally-guided inquiry (discovery or exploratory) learning are
often discussed in instructional psychology literature as examples of approaches with opposed degrees of
guidance provided to the learners. This book considers the whole range of the levels of guidance (including
intermediate levels) and approaches the problem of balancing learner guidance from a cognitive load
perspective. The significance of this approach is in applying our current knowledge of human cognitive
architecture to develop an integrated instructional approach bringing together the best features and advantages of explicit instruction and inquiry
learning.
Both explicit instruction and inquiry learning approaches have been around for long time, and their proponents can produce evidence of their
effectiveness. This evidence needs to be treated within the context of appropriate learning goals in specific instructional settings for specific types of
learners. This book provides an unbiased theoretical framework for managing learner instructional guidance and working principles for selecting
appropriate levels and methods of instructional guidance (e.g., sequences of exploratory problems and explicit instruction; forms and levels of
embedded guidance; and adapting methodologies) optimal for learners at different levels of prior knowledge.
