Cognitive Load Theory

About

Why this site exists

Cognitive Load Theory exists to make one well-studied idea from learning science genuinely useful. Cognitive load theory explains a lot about why people do — and don't — understand what we teach. The aim here is to turn that into practical tools, not academic summaries.

Who writes it

This is the work of a practitioner, not a researcher — someone who teaches, speaks, and designs material for a living, and who reads the learning-science literature closely without claiming to produce it. Nothing here is an original finding. The contribution is translation: taking work that already exists and making it usable.

That framing matters more than a byline, so the site leads with it. Read the guides on their own terms — the sources are cited, and you can check them.

How claims are handled

Learning-science claims on this site use careful language (“can help,” “is often used to”) and cite sources where appropriate. Cognitive load theory is a useful, well-studied model — not a guarantee of learning outcomes.

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