The modality effect is a term from experimental psychology, used mainly in research on memory and learning, that describes how a learner's performance depends on the mode in which studied material is presented. Within multimedia learning it is closely tied to Richard Mayer's modality principle, which holds that people learn better when visual material is explained through spoken narration rather than accompanying on-screen text. Presenting some information visually and other information as speech is thought to increase effective working memory capacity by using separate processing channels, the phonological loop for narration and the visuospatial sketchpad for images, reducing the risk of cognitive overload, though the effect appears strongest for less experienced learners and for material presented simultaneously.
Facts
Core ClaimThe modality effect describes how a learner's memory performance depends on the presentation mode of studied material, typically showing improved recall of the final items of a list when the list is presented verbally (auditorily) rather than visually. 1 Sources
1. Modality effect (Wikipedia)
WikipediaOpening paragraph, first sentenceQuote, Opening paragraph, first sentence
The modality effect is a term used in experimental psychology, most often in the fields dealing with memory and learning, to refer to how learner performance depends on the presentation mode of studied items.
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