Cognitive Overload and the Messy Closet

I've got some lofty plans and goals for the summer...One of those is to develop an online version of EDUC 165.  Another goal is organize my closets at home.  We have one closet in particular that is causing me considerable mental anguish-- a large storage space in our downstairs family room that contains a diverse assortment of items and has become a sort of "catch all" for things we don't want to put in our individual bedroom closets because those things are meant to remain accessible to the whole family. In case you're wondering, the closet pictured here is not actually a closet in our house, but one that illustrates the organizational efforts I will soon need to put forth in order to bring order and cohesion to my own family room closet and to my online course as well.

For that reason, I appreciated Smith's insights about chunking course content and the research to back them. The idea of presenting 7 +/- 2 concepts in each chunk provided a helpful guideline to prevent overload (or underload) of cognitive structures.  As I think about how I am going to build this course and even down the road, how I am going to add to and improve this course, I am reminded to be conscious of always considering what needs to be included in each chunk, guided by such questions as-- What is nice to know? vs. What do students need to know?  Obviously, if my online course is full of extraneous "stuff" with information and learning activities randomly pile on top of each other, understanding to be gained will be much less accessible to students.  As the slideshow posted in this module pointed out-- "Cognitive overload is not the path to better understanding."

O.K.  So with this timely reminder, I feel compelled to embark on a mission of sorting and sifting-- determining what to keep and what to toss and grouping items according to their kind.  The process is invigorating and in the end produces a much more cohesive and comprehensive whole for the benefit of those who wish and need to access deeper understanding or Ticket to Ride for family game night.