Workbook impact on cognitive load: Reflections on the production and use of written resources in the physics classroom

Nicola Percy, Director of STEM, Haberdashers’ Aske’s School for Girls, UK There is much debate in education discussing the use of cognitive science to inform teaching practice. From cognitive load theory to embodied cognition, teachers are researching ways in which to embed cognitive science in their lessons. There is a plethora of advice on how to plan and teach lessons using these ideas, but little information on how teachers are writing student resources that reflect them. In this article, I will reflect on my own experiences of both sourcing student resources that are informed by cognitive science and writing my own, as well as the impact that this had on students and the implications for my teaching in the future. I will examine the use of workbooks and reflect on the success (or otherwise) of these and my accommodations for students with SEND (specifically dyslexia).  Since Sweller’s 1988 introduction of cognitive load issues in learning, teachers have been grappling w