12 - Segmenting Principle

Brief Definition

Authors Clark and Mayer (2011) support the theory that material of a complex nature should be broken down into the logical sections. Specifically, they suggest that e-learning be broken into “parts that convey just one or two or three steps in the process or procedure or describe just one or two or three major relations among the elements” (p.209). In addition to the lesson content, the authors define the introduction of new terms or concepts needed to digest the content as the Pretraining Principle.

An Artifact

In this series of middle school-directed lessons on Story Elements by Victoria Costley, the author breaks down an eight-part lesson into smaller parts. The one featured here includes three concepts (Exposition, Conflict, and Rising Action), exactly what Clark and Mayer (2011) suggest is appropriate for the Segmenting Principle. However, prior to diving into the first 3 topics listed on the first image below, the author suggests that it would be helpful to first explain story maps (see the second image), a concept used throughout the lesson. In doing so, she has also applied the Pretraining Principle.

References

Clark, R. C., & Mayer, R. E. (2011). E-learning and the science of instruction: Proven guidelines for consumers and designers of multimedia learning. San Francisco, CA: Pfeiffer.