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Dr Siobhan Merlo?

Dr Siobhan Merlo is a literacy and numeracy learning intervention lecturer at the Melbourne Graduate

School of Education, and is an experienced Psychologist and Learning Intervention Teacher who has been

working in the field for over twenty five years. She obtained her PhD from the University of New South

Wales in the area of Cognitive Load Theory in 2005 under the supervision of Emeritus Professor John

Sweller, and is currently involved in Cognitive Load Theory research. In her practice, she utilises principles

of Cognitive Load Theory in both instructional design and delivery to accelerate learning for students

exhibiting specific and pervasive learning difficulties.

What is the Fuss about Cognitive Load Theory?

Cognitive Load Theory is becoming increasingly well-known, but what is it really, and what are the implications for our practice as speech therapists and literacy leaders?  Cognitive Load Theory has been built on decades of rigorous research to identify most effective ways of designing instruction to optimise learning, based on an understanding of human cognitive architecture. This Key Note Address will provide a brief history of the theory, what we currently understand about cognitive architecture, and the implications this has for practice.