We all live in the information age and are overwhelmed daily with countless pieces of information, especially in the work environment. And then there is the annual training to consider. To ensure your learners are not overwhelmed by too many impressions, you should pay attention to a few things.

Who doesn’t know it: In the stressful workday, there often isn’t enough time for important tasks, and then there’s also a training session coming up. If this is mandated by the employer, it can lead to dissatisfaction among some employees and add extra stress. A good way to integrate training into everyday life is through digital offerings like e-learning. It is particularly important to keep the burden and cognitive load during training as low as possible.

What digital learning methods are there? You can find a free overview of the most popular methods here:

First things first: What does cognitive load actually mean?

Cognitive load is a term from psychology that refers to the learning process and the processing of learning content. More specifically, the Cognitive Load Theory describes the amount of mental resources needed for a learning process. But don’t worry, it won’t get too scientific here!

We all have limited capacities, no matter the topic. When our resources are exhausted, we can no longer work and think productively – this holds true for the learning process as well. Three types of load interact together that can influence learning success: intrinsic load, extraneous load, and germane load.

Intrinsic Load

As the term intrinsic suggests, intrinsic load refers to the burden that arises from within. This type of load pertains to the learning material and the individual elements of your training course. The degree of intrinsic load depends on the preferred learning style and prior knowledge of the learners. Generally, the more subject-specific prior knowledge there is, the lower the intrinsic load. This form of load can hinder learning for the learners.

Example: Your learning content is already very complex because it deals with data protection. Your participants must engage with the topic but have had little prior interaction. Their prior knowledge is therefore rather low, and the amount of information is large. There is a danger of information overload. To keep the intrinsic load as low as possible, you should first explain all relevant terms. Subsequently, your learners will be able to recognize larger connections and further delve into the topic.

Extraneous Load

Extraneous load, or irrelevant cognitive load, primarily refers to the presentation and display of learning content – in other words: How is your e-learning or your training structured? This form of load focuses mainly on external conditions rather than the content itself. Depending on the mode of presentation, a learning content can be easier or harder to understand. This is particularly true if certain prior knowledge is already present. Or conversely, if certain elements in a course cause confusion or distraction. This type of load can also hinder learning.

Example: To allow your learners to focus on the topic of data protection, the external conditions must also be right. Minimize unnecessary distractions that serve only to beautify your course and focus solely on the content. Design your content to be as clear as possible and avoid unnecessary elements and repetitions.

Germane Load

The final type of load pertains to the learners themselves and describes the actual understanding of the learning content. Germane load is conducive to learning and should therefore be reinforced. The greater the germane load, the better the actual learning performance. This learner-related load describes, among other things, the effort the learner must exert to understand learning content, connections, and processes. Learners actively engage with your content, independently establish connections, and solve problems they encounter during the learning process.

Example: In the context of data protection, this could be a hypothetical scenario where learners must decide what to do. This way, they apply the theoretical content and must implement it in a complex situation.

So what do we learn from this? Package learning content in such a way that as little distraction occurs as possible and cognitive load is lowered. Supportive elements like graphics or videos should fit the learning content to increase the relevant cognitive load so that learners can actively apply your learning content.

Cognitive Load in E-Learning: What HR Professionals Should Keep in Mind

To enable your learners to fully concentrate on your training, you can consider the following to keep cognitive load low.

1. Pay attention to the processing capacity of the learners

To keep intrinsic load as low as possible, you should rely on small learning units in the style of microlearning:

• Create a learning content for each topic, prefer to divide it up more than too little.

• Add a summary or review at the end of each learning unit.

• Ideally, you place these in the overall context so that learners can establish connections between information themselves.

• Ensure that your learners can easily access your learning content to minimize possible hurdles.

2. Consider the prior knowledge of your participants

To foster the germane load of the learners, you should incorporate their experience level and prior knowledge into your planning:

• Ask about the prior knowledge of the participants before starting your training and adjust the learning content accordingly.

• If you are sure that the participants have the prior knowledge, you should omit repetitions of the basics.

3. Design your learning content to match your target audience

Learners should be at the center of planning training, which applies to more than just the choice of topics:

• Ensure a consistent structure in your training so that your learners can find their way around your course.

• To enable participants to recognize links between complex content more quickly, learning contents that build on each other should be as closely positioned together as possible.

• To keep motivation and attention high, you should choose varied methods and alternate between image, text, and video.

4. Reduce learning content without apparent added value

When designing training sessions, extraneous load is often neglected, as those responsible want to make their courses as appealing as possible – but that can be distracting:

• Get to the point with your learning content and use clear language with short sentences.

• Avoid unnecessary duplications and skip optical embellishments that serve solely for the presentation of your course.

You see, there are various ways to minimize the cognitive load of learners. In conclusion, it can be stated: Consider the absorbency of learners, tailor your learning content to their needs, take their prior knowledge into account, and eliminate all content without added value.

Additionally, support your learners by choosing an appropriate e-learning method. We have summarized the most popular e-learning methods for you in the free overview "The Best E-Learning Methods for Companies".

Free Overview

The Best E-Learning Methods for Companies

Do you know which e-learning method is suitable for your company? In the free overview, you will find a detailed definition with examples, tips, and much more for the currently best methods for companies!

To the overview of e-learning methods

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