Crealanta Magazine

Information Processing Theory and Approach

Oct 26, 2023

Do you understand the complicated neural-psychological mechanism that determines how your students (or anyone else) learns new ideas as well as information? This is what the theory of information processing aims to understand. It dives into the intricate mechanism of perceiving, recording and processing information within our brains. It also retrieves it whenever needed.

Read on to learn about the theory as well as ways to use it in the creation of online courses to help your students. We'll start by taking a short look at where it all began.

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A brief history of Information Processing Theory

Back in the 1950s, psychologists realized that computers held the crucial information to understand how our minds work. George Armitage Miller and Edward C. Tolman established the basics of how humans operate with short-term memory, and how they learn. Basing their work on this foundational design, two popular theories of the theory of information processing arose - The Atkinson and Shiffrin Model and the Baddeley and Hitch Model of Working Memory.

The Atkinson and Shiffrin Model discusses the three phases of information processing, comprising sensorimotor memory, short term memory (working memory), and long term memory. The focus is on the significance of paying attention to and intricate rehearsal patterns that contribute to information being stored in long-term memory. The Baddeley and Hitch Model of Working Memory is based on these concepts and explains how we process language and spatial patterns.

Are you overwhelmed by the jargon of psychology? Don't worry! We've combined the best of these theories to provide you with the information needed to understand the way we humans handle information. We can begin to understand this by examining how we are able to process information in daily situations, and examining each of these functions in depth.

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The fundamental concepts in Information Processing Theory

As an educator of creators, it's great to know the basics of information processing.

Let's try it with one example

Suppose, you're walking on a crowded street and you encounter a myriad of sights, sounds, and odors. People may also rub against your shoulders in case you're unfortunate enough to encounter the crowds that are agitated. To escape this rush and chaos, you decide to walk into a cafe that you know is calm and quiet. You also keep in mind that they have the best croissants and coffee in that section of town.

It's information processing theory in action, in real life. Let's see how:

  1. There are various sensations that you feel (people walking around, someone touching your shoulder, or a vehicle moving at a high speed, etc. - sensation. A stimulus is an external input or information)
  2. The place you see is perceived as crowded (perception is how we interpret what we perceive).
  3. Based on your previous experiences (long time episodic memory) You associate this particular situation with being unsafe and uncomfortable (being forced around by a the past associations)
  4. Thus, you can recall the place which had offered you comfort (another chain of association results in retrieving details about the cafe's quiet atmosphere and croissants, which is a form of the semantic memory).
  5. The memory is activated, and walk into the cafe (judging/analyzing and making a decision. Walking towards the cafe is the procedural memory).

    First, you sense your environment    

Human beings receive information, called "stimulus" through five senses: smell, touch, vision, auditory (hearing) as well as tasting. A sixth sense, which is related to body's posture in motion, balance, and position, called vestibular sense also exists.

Senses and the associated sense organs

  • Vision - Eyes
  • Audio - Ears
  • Touch skin
  • Taste - Tongue
  • Aroma - Nose
  • Vestibular sense, ear and various parts of the nervous system.

When your sense organs convert real-world information into electrical information and your brain process them and interprets them into information which you recognize at the level of consciousness. Interpretation of what is perceived occurs due to previous associations (similar information stored within your brain, that is able to recall and draw a connection).

Notice to creators: Unless you are using augmented reality or virtual reality for your content for lessons your primary focus will be inputs (stimuli) related to vision (reading texts and watching videos) as well as the audio (voice or background music).

    Sensing leads to perception.

The sense organs responds to various stimuli in the external environment and transforms the signals they receive into electrical signals, which can be detected by different parts within the brain. Sensory processing takes place inside the organs that sense and perception is carried out within the brain. For those with different perception and learning disorders may find it difficult to comprehend information quickly.

For writers: If you're planning to make the content of your class accessible to people with disabilities, it is advisable to look into accessible design methods. Examples of accessible design include to avoid uneven spacing between words and paragraphs that are long, breaking them into shorter paragraphs and making sure there is enough white space.

    If the information being perceived is processed (encoded) and stored in memory.    

Memory is a broad term for many different components of cognitive functioning. It is the process of storing and storing data for a brief period (sensory as well as working memory) before transferring it to long-term storage by consolidating (encoding).

Sensory memory can last from two and three seconds. If you ignore the sensation and do not feel it, you will never enter short-term memory. Researchers have found that short-term memory stores about seven pieces of information over the duration of 15 to 30 minutes. When you practice it, your brain will be able to retain the information after which it deteriorates or disappears.

During rehearsal, your brain performs a process called encoding, which leads the data to be transferred into long-term memory. Once transferred to long-term storage it is possible to retrieve the information at any time so long as you do not let it go through a process of decay or interference. Long-term memory ranges from remembering what you saw a few minutes ago up to the events that occurred many years ago. It can go to the time of your youth.

A note for the creators of your work: Rehearsal is usually performed to facilitate rote learning in educational circumstances. However, we are aware that the majority of learners find it difficult to master rote learning as well as not such a great strategy to master complex concepts and abstract information.

The various types of long-term memory include:

  1. The term "explicit memory" refers to that which is available consciously. If someone asks you what the capital city of Great Britain is, you are able to say it's London. Hence explicit memories can also be described as declarative memories. Declarative memory further is subdivided into:
  • Episodic memory memories of particular events which occurred in your life, such as visiting a friend's house during childhood
  • Semantic memory - Being able to recall things you've learned about the world. This includes when the declaration of World War 2 (September 1 September 1939).
  1. Implicit memory is kept in the long-term memory of your brain, but it is linked to your performance, movement. Examples include being able to swim, and recalling how to drive a car even after an extended gap and so on.

    Attention helps memory last longer, and improves the way you learn    

Although our sense organs receive lots of data however, they do not register inside our heads unless we are paying attention to the information. They are stored in "sensory memory" following perception. They will last for only a couple of seconds (between half a second to 3 seconds).

Focusing here means focusing your attention to a certain event in the face of other stimuli. An example is when you walk into the cafe that you like and decide to order the croissant you want even though there are many other things available.

Reinvoking the example of the busy street, your mind may have perceived the presence of different people. Yet, you may have not paid attention enough to recall their faces. This is why the information related to their faces deteriorated and eventually, it's lost forever.

How does this all occur in the brain?

Being a creator educator you may wonder how all information you provide to your students will be being processed by their brains. Baddeley as well as the Hitch Model of Working Memory gives a precise solution to this.

They've suggested that the frontal region (a component of our brain) functions as a processor that encodes information and then retrieved. The various kinds of memories are stored in different areas within the brain. According to Hitch:

  • Information about the auditory system (information that is in the form of the sound that is usually recognized as music, language or a variety of other sounds) is stored within the Phonological Loop.
  • Phonological loop consists of an phonological database, where information is held for a limited time and the articulatory practice process, where the brain rehearses auditory data to store for a long period of time.
  • The Visuospatial Sketch Pad is a part of the brain that stores spatial and visual information, like shapes, patterns pictures, and so on.
  • Episodic buffer is believed to enhance the ability of the brain to store, encode, and retrieve information by connecting different brain regions which aid in processing information.

Now let's apply what we've learned about information processing to learning online environments.

Make your students focus on the content of your online courses

In the context of lesson designing or making modules, you should think of the process this way. If you do not make your slides or videos attractive enough, the pupils will not be interested and go onto the next. The students look at the slide or video (sensation takes place) but do not perceive the content for long enough time to keep the information in the short-term memory of their brains. Let them practice the skill to be stored in long-term memory - it just disappears from sensorimotor memory. Hence, sustaining their attention is the most important thing.

You need to factor in the fact that your student could be distracted, daydreaming, or bored with your content. Each of these things can affect the process of paying attention to the information that needs to be learned and stored into long-term memory. So, ensuring that you write material that keeps your students' attention is very important.

  This is what you can do:  

  • Encourage them to take a break every between 10 and 15 minutes. Human attention wane in the first 15 minutes.
  • Also, make your lesson plans to be broken down into segments with a minimum of 15 minutes. It is not necessary to make video lessons or lectures lasting only ten minutes. Instead, you should give your students smaller activities, games or chillout sessions.
  • Develop more engaging online learning environments for learning. We will explain why further down the line.

Fundamental information processing techniques for helping your students learn better.

When information is saved in short-term memory, it can either be transferred to long-term memory or deleted. Repeating and practicing is the key to keeping information for a long time in long-term memory. This is why it's crucial to plan your lessons so that students have plenty of time to practise and re-experience what is stored inside their brains. The process should take place in a matter of the timeframe of a few minutes. So, at the conclusion of every lesson, which takes a short amount of time, encourage your students to repeat, practice and rehearse. The process of rotation helps to ensure that the information they've processed will be stored in their long-term memory.

After something has been stored in long-term memory and is retrieved at a later time, if you are prompted. But, the effectiveness of retrieving memories is contingent on the level of interest with which a pupil was able to absorb something (were they attentive enough or was the material you taught engaging enough, etc. ).

So it is clear from the previous explanation that learning mostly occurs due to the way we interpret information, as well as how we relate it to the things we know already and to which we need to keep an eye on it.

Is it actually so simple?

Limitations of Information Processing Theory in online learning

Human beings aren't machines. Although drawing analogies between the brain of a human and computers is appealing however, they're very different. Information Processing Theory doesn't discuss the role of motivation and emotions in our perception of information and remember things. Both are crucial to learning and recalling things we've learned.

The theory assumes that the brain processes information linearly -- that information is perceived, sensed, stored, processed (encoded), stored, and then retrieved. This is referred to as sequential processing, which is what computers perform.

But, the brain is able of processing parallel that means it can concurrently process various types of data. The ability to multitask of the human brain does do not correspond to what a computer can accomplish. Therefore, even though the theory of information processing accurately defines how we perceive and process and organize information, it does not consider emotions as well as the way of how our minds work.

The students you teach have thoughts that they are motivated by their desires, feelings, and needs you may or may not recognize while designing your course content. It is therefore crucial to realize that you are instructing human learners and not machines. The most effective way to address this problem is by creating online learning environments that are stimulating.

Now, let's look at how you can include motivation, emotion and social engagement to your mix, and make use of information processing theory even better for the perfect online class.

Strategies for making the theory of information processing work better for online learning

    Inspire your students focus on the task at hand.    

Why would someone learn something even if they aren't interested in? You must be able to sense an intrinsic determination or desire to enroll to take your class, and be motivated to finish.

Motivation drives students to focus on your course material which results in improved processing of information (encoding) as well as superior information retrieval abilities. Also, if your student doesn't have the motivation to be a learner, then even an outstanding course will be unable to register in their minds.

Motivation is a key factor in information processing as well. It is essential to be able by external stimuli.

  • Your responsibility as a Creator educator's job is to maintain this enthusiasm.
  • Always remember, motivation is not a vacuum. One needs to feel appreciated and receive feedback that is positive and have a sense of social acceptance for motivation to keep working on something. Do you remember your peers who encouraged you to do something whenever you felt down or wanted to become better at some thing? It's the same for learning as well.

The interpersonal and motivational aspects have a lot in common. Now, let's explore how this plays out in the social information processing theory.

    Encourage social interaction during learning    

Although one-on-one training is efficient, people benefit from learning when they are working in groups. This is the reason why traditional learning always takes place in classes or with groups, since the learning experience with other people is much more fun (and efficient).

Social Information Processing Theory is a part of the explanation for the way people interact with one other on computer mediated platforms for example, an online platform for learning.

Humans also learn through models or observation, which is, they mimic what others do. If you are, the creator educator, take on the role of role model and the students mimic your behaviour. Albert Bandura, a famous psychologist, emphasized that learning usually takes place within social contexts and that it is impossible to eliminate "social" aspects of learning.

With this thought in mind It is crucial for you to

  • Create online group activities
  • Encourage students to interact with one another on websites, and also share their knowledge.
  • Make collaboration and social media engagement essential parts of your course plan.
  • Make use of social tools to exchange ideas, which acts as a form of rehearsal
  • Give positive feedback to your classmates (other students) that act as positive reinforcement. In order to do this, you should ask your students to evaluate the work of their peers positively.

    Use particular cognitive strategies that are geared towards achieving your goals.    

Cognitive strategies are usually focused on a specific task. That means that you should encourage your students to work on the subject immediately. The cognitive strategies that can be used to online learning include not taking notes, repetition, contextual understanding, as well as mnemonics. (A Mnemonic is a technique that allows you to recall or access information stored in your memory)

For example: VIBGYOR can be an abbreviation that refers to the seven rainbow colors which are: violet, indigo blue green, yellow red and orange. Other than acronyms, other types of mnemonics, such as flashcards, classifying objects into categories and so on. All of them can help your pupils recall what they've learnt quickly.

    Encourage high-level information processing by using metacognitive strategies    

Certain researchers have also proposed that there is something called "metacognition," which means "thinking about being thinking." When you practice, when you rehearse, try to remember what you have forgotten, or use techniques that aid others to learn or remember (such as teaching to achieve a specific goal) You are participating in metacognition.

The year 1987 was the year that A.L. Brown began to discuss metacognition techniques for learning. In the course of time, it has developed quite a bit.

Within the context of online courses These are the most effective metacognitive strategies.

  • Advance organizers: Inspire your students to consider your lesson by distributing course calendars ahead of time. It helps them foresee what to expect and also connect it to information they have already learned.
  • Self-planning: Urge your students to plan their assignments, and how they'll structure their assignments. It gives them the opportunity to "think about the things they're doing" Metacognition.
  • Self-monitoring scales: Students self-rating their scores can be a great method of determining what areas your students may require help. Develop online forms to assist students monitor their progress at the end of every week or lesson, according to your convenience.
  • Self-evaluation can be done regularly scheduled or at the end of the program. As online courses are mostly taken up by self-motivated individuals so it's important they see positive results.

Alongside self-evaluation, you can use associations to assist students in learning and keep track of what they've learned. In order to make this method more efficient, you need to know what your students already have learned. So,

  • Before you enroll someone in an educational program, evaluate the level of their knowledge in order to ascertain if they are a good fit.
  • If they're not and you are launching a course for beginners, make sure that you design your course so that they can relate what you teach to something they are already familiar with. That means that you need aid them through the process of encoding.

There may be a need to implement methods such as image, chunking and the elaboration.

  • Divide your lessons into smaller chunks, and use engaging polls, Q&As, online debates as well as peer-support to keep your students entertained.
  • Encourage your students to form connections with the previous information by presenting content in a way that is simple to comprehend. This helps with using imagery to learn and remember.
  • In addition, your online class will require the students to participate in the content actively. This process, also known as elaboration is vital for keeping learners interested and create connections with previous knowledge to learn something new.

While these are all cognitive and metacognitive methods, it is impossible to ignore the importance of emotions, motivation and theories of social learning.

    Include social interactions and emotions in the mix    

The majority of students register for the course due to their inability to physically attend classes for different reasons. Online learning environments can be a viable alternative to face-to-face learning, and can increase engagement in many cases. It is important to ensure that your online learning environment lively and engaging. One of the most important factors is using techniques that are socially-affective, and involve interpersonal communication and emotions. Be aware that "affect" means feelings.

Here's how you can do that:

  • Make yourself relatable to your students and help them learn by modeling. Generate feelings of curiosity, excitement, satisfaction happiness, contentment, delight, and so on. It's pretty simple to provoke these emotions among your students.
  • Gaming can make your students be content and happy when they achieve certain levels of completion.
  • The giving of badges, certificates or any other form of positive reinforcement can help you install joy.
  • If you offer a surprise discount for a well-performing student It is a way to combine happiness with surprise, which makes learners more enthusiastic to continue learning.
  • Use polling to develop games and tests after every fifteen minutes in order to ensure that your students are engaged and encourage them to share their knowledge on forums.
  • Since children are becoming more comfortable with using social media so it is logical to incorporate social media in education as well.

Humanize the theory of information processing to make online courses that are relatable

Information processing theory can help us to comprehend how we keep and acquire new knowledge in our minds, using our sense organs as well as our brain. Although this model is accurate regarding how perception & perception, and memory operate, it fails to explain social learning and the role of motivation as well as emotions.

Additionally, the human mind is extremely complex and can't be boiled down to the way a computer works. In your role as creator educators, it is important to be aware of the students' natural needs and emotions in the forefront. In creating a fun online learning environment and considering human limits, you are able to develop a successful online course that leaves a lasting impression on the students.

provides you with a range of tools that allow you to design course content which is social and engaging. It helps you create educational content that is based on data processing techniques, yet acknowledges that your students are thinking and expressing human beings who enjoy interacting with each other while they learn. It offers powerful social engagement capabilities that make it easier to develop classes for groups and promote engaging discussions between your students.

Humanizing online learning lets you engage with your students intellectually in an engaging manner. If you want to know more about how can help you create courses that are based on psychological science, contact us now.

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