ABSTRACT
Marking-up texts and diagrams, making notes, answering questions neatly and working effectively with peers are important strategies for learning. The first important thing for teachers to know is that working memory is easily overloaded when dealing with novel information. The reason that some of students are better at solving problems than others is mainly due to long-term memory. Learners also influence their external environments. When a task gets tricky and working memory gets strained, effective learners use their external environment to reduce the load on their working memories. The first lesson from Cognitive Load Theory (CLT) is that students who know more, who have better developed schemata, are better at solving problems. CLT researchers have shown that an effective way to teach problem solving is by using worked examples. When a teacher models how to solve a problem, she is giving the guidance that novice physicists need.
