I have the experience of breaking the redundancy principle most of the time. When I was a high school student, I often copied the teacher’s notes on the blackboard or the screen by handwriting without listening to the content of the lecture. The positive effect of copying notes varies. Sometimes I could understand the content by looking up my notes. However, other times I could hardly understand the content of this course.
(source: pixabay)
In addition, I used to follow the signalling principle intrinsically. I would highlight the essential information with colour pens when a course has assigned textbooks or printed materials, and this method has helped me understand the theme of this class efficiently. However, some instructors would not assign printed materials but rather presented PowerPoint slides or used verbal instruction, so I have to write as many notes as I can, then I was breaking the redundancy principle.
As I look back at what I have done using these principles, the current challenge I have to overcome is reducing extraneous load. When I was recalling the way I copied the notes from the blackboard, I felt ridiculous for myself. Now I’m trying to write down the main texts in every lecture. Even though I cannot take every essential text during the lecture, at least this method helps me learn more efficiently.
Hi there!
I enjoyed reading your post about your experiences with the multimedia learning principles!
I agree with your notion that it’s often challenging to understand notes copied directly from teachers or professors without thinking of your way of relating to the notes. Copying notes word for word often doesn’t work because sometimes I don’t understand precisely what it is word for word. When I reword notes in a way that I understand, it makes it much easier for me to look back to review a concept.
I thought an excellent principle to share with you that might help you in your educational experiences is the personalization principle. Essentially this principle says that humans learn best from a more informal, conversational voice than an overly formal voice. This is why it’s so encouraged that we join study groups because discussing class material with people who are learning as we often help us learn better than when we hear it from a professor. This helps us keep the language simple without sounding overly professional using complex words.
Amelia
Hello! In both my first year of college and my senior year of high school, I made mistakes that violated the redundancy principle. I would completely forget what the teacher was saying and would only copy the board and teacher’s notes as quickly as I could. I would exclude specific instances that could have improved my comprehension of the subject. Moreover, as I later reflected on them, my notes struck me as being jargon and incomprehensible. Since I can download the teacher’s slide show, take notes next to them, and listen to what they are saying, I have learned to utilize my laptop instead of a notebook these days.