Applying Cognitive Science to Online Learning

6 Online educational resources like videos and exercises are playing an 7 increasing role in the education of thousands of students, via both MOOCs 8 and blended education in classrooms. Taking advantage of the progress in 9 scientific research on learning, this paper considers some practical 10 implications that emerge from synthesizing research in cognitive science, 11 presenting actionable instructional tactics that any designer or instructor 12 can take advantage of to improve students’ learning. These target the 13 complementary goals of enhancing both motivation and cognitive 14 processing. Motivation can be increased by fostering students’ beliefs that 15 intellectual capacity is malleable and can be improved through effort and 16 use of effective learning strategies. Cognitive processing can be enhanced 17 by augmenting online videos and exercises with questions and prompts for 18 students to generate explanations: before, during, and after learning. These 19 instructional strategies provide students with direction while allowing them 20 to take charge of their learning, are technically easy to implement, and are 21 applicable to online resources across a wide range of topics. 22